When a Bengaluru buyer finally read the fine print of his builder buyer agreement, a week after paying the booking amount, he found the possession clause promised a date but attached almost no penalty if the builder missed it, while his own late payments attracted a steep charge. The agreement was heavily tilted toward the developer. Under RERA it should not have been. The builder buyer agreement, or agreement for sale, is where your rights as a buyer are either protected or quietly signed away, so it deserves careful reading before you sign. Here are the clauses that matter most.

The short answer. A builder buyer agreement should price the flat on RERA carpet area, not super built up area, state a clear possession date with compensation for delay, and preserve the five year defect liability the law gives you. Under Section 18 of RERA, if the builder misses the agreed possession date, you can either withdraw with a full refund and interest or stay and receive interest for every month of delay. Under Section 14(3), structural defects notified within five years of possession must be fixed. The trade off is vigilance. Developers often present a one sided draft, so the clauses you check, and insist on correcting, decide how much protection you actually keep.

Why does the builder buyer agreement matter so much?

It is the contract that governs your entire purchase, and its clauses override casual sales promises. Once you sign, the brochure and the salesperson's assurances count for little next to what the agreement says, which is why reading it closely is not optional. RERA was designed to standardise and rebalance these agreements in the buyer's favour, setting minimum protections a developer cannot strip away, as explained in this explainer on Section 18 rights. But developers still circulate drafts that lean their way, so your job is to check that the statutory protections are present and that no clause quietly waives them. A short review by a property lawyer here is one of the highest value steps in the whole purchase.

The payment plan inside the agreement deserves the same scrutiny as the headline price. A construction linked plan, where instalments fall due as real milestones are completed, protects you because your money follows actual progress on the ground. Plans that front load payments, or that tie instalments to time rather than construction, shift risk onto you if the project slows. Some developers also offer subvention or possession linked schemes that sound attractive but can carry their own catches, so read exactly what triggers each payment and what happens if a milestone slips. The agreement should make the schedule explicit and link it to verifiable stages, not to vague phrases that let a demand arrive before the corresponding work is done.

Is the price based on carpet area?

It should be, because RERA requires pricing on carpet area rather than the larger super built up figure. Carpet area is the net usable floor area within the walls, excluding external walls and balcony areas as defined by the Act, and it is the honest measure of what you actually get. An agreement that still prices on super built up area, or that is vague about which area applies, is a red flag, because it lets the loading between carpet and super built up inflate the price opaquely. Confirm the carpet area is stated in the agreement and that the price and payment plan are tied to it, a distinction we explain in our guide to carpet, built up and super built up area.

What should the possession and delay clause say?

It should give a clear, dated possession commitment and honour your Section 18 rights if the builder misses it. A realistic, specific handover date matters, because Section 18 of RERA makes the builder liable when possession is delayed beyond that date. If it is missed, you are entitled either to withdraw from the project and receive a full refund with interest, or to remain and receive interest for every month of delay until you actually get possession. Watch for clauses that pad the date with long grace periods, or that cap or dilute the delay compensation below what the law provides. The possession clause is where many buyers lose the most, so it deserves the closest reading.

What is the defect liability clause?

It is your protection against poor construction, and RERA fixes it at five years from possession. Under Section 14(3), if you notify the builder of a structural defect, or a deficiency in workmanship, quality or service, within five years of taking possession, the builder must rectify it, and is expected to act within about thirty days, failing which you may be entitled to compensation. A good agreement restates this defect liability rather than diluting it. Be wary of any clause that shortens the period, narrows what counts as a defect, or makes the process to claim so cumbersome that the right is hollow. This clause is what stands between you and expensive repairs soon after moving in.

Buyers often assume a developer's printed agreement is fixed and cannot be changed, but that is not quite true. While a large builder may resist edits to a standard draft, you can and should raise clauses that fall below your RERA rights, because those protections are statutory and cannot be lawfully signed away. Sending your concerns in writing, and asking for corrections before you sign, at least creates a record and sometimes secures a fairer term. Where a developer refuses to align a clause with the law, that refusal is itself information about how they may behave later. The point is not to win every negotiation, but to enter the agreement clear eyed about which protections are intact and which the developer has tried to trim.

Which other clauses deserve a close look?

Several clauses beyond price and possession quietly shape your risk. Check that interest for delay applies symmetrically, so the builder pays at the same rate for delay that you would pay for a late instalment, rather than a one sided penalty on you alone. Read the termination and default clauses to see how much you forfeit if you exit and on what grounds the builder can cancel. Confirm the specifications, amenities and common areas are described precisely, since vague wording lets quality drop. Look at how maintenance, the corpus fund and the handover to an owners association are handled. And confirm the project and your unit are covered by a valid RERA registration, which we cover in our guide to verifying a K-RERA registration.

Two smaller clauses catch people out more often than they expect. The first is the description of amenities and common areas, because a promised clubhouse, landscaped space or parking count that appears only in the brochure and not in the binding agreement is not enforceable. Insist that anything the sales team promised is written into the agreement or its annexures. The second is the treatment of parking and any additional charges, which should be spelled out rather than left to a later demand. Getting these into writing now avoids the familiar dispute where a buyer feels short changed at handover but has nothing contractual to point to.

What should a Bengaluru buyer do?

Work through these seven steps before you sign the agreement.

1. Read the full agreement yourself, and do not rely on verbal assurances or the brochure.
2. Confirm the price and payment plan are tied to the RERA carpet area.
3. Check the possession date is clear and the Section 18 delay compensation is intact.
4. Verify the five year defect liability under Section 14(3) is preserved, not diluted.
5. Ensure interest for delay applies to the builder as well as to you.
6. Read termination, specifications, maintenance and corpus clauses with care.
7. Have a property lawyer review the draft and negotiate one sided clauses before signing.

The builder buyer agreement is the backbone of your purchase, and RERA has loaded it with protections that a careless signature can still give away. Insist on carpet area pricing, a firm possession date with real delay compensation, and the five year defect cover the law guarantees, and push back on one sided penalty and termination clauses. Read it slowly, get a lawyer's eye on it, and you enter the deal with the rights RERA intended you to keep rather than the ones a developer would prefer you to have.

Frequently asked questions

Should a builder buyer agreement price the flat on carpet area? Yes. RERA requires pricing on carpet area, the net usable floor area within the walls, rather than the larger super built up figure. An agreement that prices on super built up area, or is vague about which applies, is a red flag. Confirm the carpet area and payment plan are stated clearly.

What happens if the builder delays possession? Under Section 18 of RERA, if the builder misses the possession date in the agreement, you can either withdraw from the project and receive a full refund with interest, or stay and receive interest for every month of delay until possession. Watch for clauses that add long grace periods or cap this compensation below what the law provides.

How long is the builder liable for defects? Under Section 14(3) of RERA, the builder is liable for structural defects and deficiencies in workmanship, quality or service for five years from the date of possession. If you notify a defect within that period, the builder must rectify it, generally within about thirty days, failing which you may be entitled to compensation.

What clauses are often one sided against the buyer? Common ones include a heavy penalty on your late payments with weak or capped compensation for the builder's delay, harsh termination terms that forfeit large sums if you exit, vague specifications and amenities, and cumbersome defect claim processes. Check that interest for delay applies both ways and have a lawyer flag and negotiate any clause that strips your RERA protections.

Last updated 2026-08-26. PropNewz Team.