Handover Week Under RERA: A Possession, Defects and Conveyance Checklist for Bengaluru Buyers
The RERA Act starts several clocks at handover: two months to take possession after the occupancy certificate, five years to report defects, and three months for conveyance where no local law applies. A step by step handover week checklist for Bengaluru buyers, with the sections behind each step.
The occupancy certificate arrives, the builder's email says "possession ready", and a Bengaluru family suddenly has a week of appointments: a walkthrough, a key handover, a stack of papers to sign. It is one of the most important weeks of the whole purchase, and an easy one to arrive at unprepared. The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 sets clocks that start ticking in exactly this window: two months to take possession, five years to report defects, and three months for the conveyance where no local law sets a period.
This guide turns those clocks into a practical checklist for handover week, with the sections of the Act that sit behind each step.
The short answer. Under Section 19(10), an allottee must take physical possession within two months of the occupancy certificate. Section 14(3) gives you five years from handover to report structural defects or defects in workmanship, quality or services, which the promoter must fix without charge within thirty days. Section 17(1) requires a registered conveyance deed, and in the absence of a local law, within three months from the date of the occupancy certificate. Section 19(5) entitles you to the documents and plans, including common areas, after possession. The trade-off: moving in quickly starts your use of the home and your five year defect window, but signing a possession letter in a hurry can leave defects and missing documents unrecorded.
What does RERA require of the buyer at possession?
Two things above all: take possession on time and pay your dues. In the text of the Act published by the Telangana regulator, Section 19(10) says every allottee shall take physical possession of the apartment, plot or building within a period of two months of the occupancy certificate issued for it. Section 19(6) requires the allottee to make the payments specified in the agreement for sale, and to pay at the proper time the share of registration charges, municipal taxes, water and electricity charges, maintenance charges and ground rent.
Section 19(7) adds interest for delay at the prescribed rate, and Section 19(11) says every allottee shall participate towards registration of the conveyance deed. Section 19(9) asks every allottee to participate towards forming an association or society of allottees. None of these are optional extras; they are duties written into the same section that lists your rights.
What must the promoter hand over?
The flat, the title and the paperwork. Section 17(1) says the promoter shall execute a registered conveyance deed in favour of the allottee, along with the undivided proportionate title in the common areas to the association of allottees or the competent authority, and hand over physical possession of the apartment to the allottee and the common areas to the association, along with other title documents, within the period specified under local laws. In the absence of any local law, the conveyance deed shall be carried out within three months from the date of issue of the occupancy certificate.
Section 17(2) adds that after obtaining the occupancy certificate and handing over physical possession, the promoter is responsible for handing over the necessary documents and plans, including common areas, to the association or the competent authority as per local laws, and in the absence of a local law, within thirty days after obtaining the occupancy certificate. On the buyer's side, Section 19(5) entitles the allottee to have the necessary documents and plans, including those of common areas, after physical possession is handed over.
| Handover item | Rule in the Act | Time limit in the Act |
|---|---|---|
| Taking possession | Allottee takes physical possession, Section 19(10) | Within two months of the occupancy certificate |
| Conveyance deed | Registered conveyance in favour of the allottee, Section 17(1) | As per local law, or within three months of the occupancy certificate if none |
| Documents and plans to the association | Including common areas, Section 17(2) | As per local law, or within thirty days after the occupancy certificate if none |
| Defects reported by the allottee | Promoter rectifies without further charge, Section 14(3) | Reported within five years of handover, fixed within thirty days |
| Essential services and maintenance | Promoter maintains on reasonable charges, Section 11(4)(d) | Until the association takes over maintenance |
How long do I have to report defects after handover?
Five years. Section 14(3) says that if any structural defect, or any other defect in workmanship, quality or provision of services, or any other obligation of the promoter under the agreement for sale, is brought to the notice of the promoter by the allottee within five years from the date of handing over possession, the promoter must rectify it without further charge within thirty days. If the promoter fails to do so, the aggrieved allottees are entitled to appropriate compensation in the manner provided under the Act.
That clock starts at handover, so the date on your possession letter matters. A written snag list submitted at handover, and every defect report after that, should be dated and sent in a way you can prove later. Our earlier guide to the five year defect liability under Section 14 explains the clause in more detail.
Who runs the building until the association takes over?
The promoter, on reasonable charges. Section 11(4)(d) makes the promoter responsible for providing and maintaining the essential services, on reasonable charges, until the association of allottees takes over maintenance of the project. Section 11(4)(e) requires the promoter to enable the formation of an association or society of allottees under the applicable laws, and in the absence of local laws, within three months of a majority of allottees having booked.
For a buyer, that means maintenance in the first months is the promoter's responsibility under the Act, on reasonable charges. Ask for the basis of the charges and keep the receipts, because the handover of maintenance to the association is a separate event from the handover of your flat.
How do the dates work out in practice?
Take a hypothetical tower whose occupancy certificate is dated 1 November 2026. Under Section 19(10), allottees would need to take physical possession within two months, so by about 1 January 2027. Where no local law sets a different period, Section 17(2) would have the promoter hand over documents and plans, including common areas, to the association or competent authority within thirty days after the certificate, so by about 1 December 2026, and Section 17(1) would have the conveyance carried out within three months, by about 1 February 2027.
Now suppose a buyer takes physical possession on 15 November 2026. The five year window in Section 14(3) for reporting defects would run from that handover date, to about 15 November 2031. Those dates are illustrations; your own will depend on the certificate date, the local law that applies, and the date on your possession letter. Write them on one page and keep it with your sale documents, because every later conversation with the promoter will turn on them.
What should a Bengaluru buyer do in handover week?
Work through these steps in order. Each one is anchored in a section of the Act discussed above.
- Get a copy of the occupancy certificate and note its date, since the two month possession window and the three month conveyance period run from it.
- Walk through the flat with a written snag list and have it acknowledged in writing before you sign the possession letter.
- Check that the possession letter states the date of physical possession, which starts the five year defect window.
- Reconcile your final statement of account against the agreement for sale before paying the last instalment.
- Ask the promoter for the timeline to register the conveyance deed, and diarise three months from the occupancy certificate as a reference point.
- Request the documents and plans, including common area plans, that Section 19(5) entitles you to after possession.
- Ask when the association will be formed and when it will take over maintenance, and join it when it is formed.
If you are taking possession in a large township such as Brigade Eldorado in Bagalur, the same steps apply, but ask specifically which phase's occupancy certificate covers your tower. Our earlier explainer on the documents a buyer is entitled to from booking to handover lists the paperwork in more detail.
What if the promoter delays the conveyance or the documents?
Write first, then use the forum the Act provides. Section 31 allows any aggrieved person, including an association of allottees, to file a complaint with the Authority or the adjudicating officer for a violation or contravention of the Act or its rules and regulations. A complaint is far easier to support if you have the occupancy certificate date, the possession letter, the snag list and your written requests in one place.
Handover week is short. The protections that follow it last five years and more, but only if the first week's paperwork records what happened.
Frequently asked questions
How soon must I take possession after the occupancy certificate?
Section 19(10) of the RERA Act says every allottee shall take physical possession of the apartment, plot or building within two months of the occupancy certificate issued for it. Section 19(6) and (7) also require you to pay your dues on time, with interest at the prescribed rate for delay.
How long can I report defects in a new flat under RERA?
Section 14(3) says structural defects, or defects in workmanship, quality or services, reported by the allottee within five years from handing over possession must be rectified by the promoter without further charge within thirty days. If not, the allottee is entitled to appropriate compensation under the Act.
When must the builder register the conveyance deed?
Section 17(1) requires a registered conveyance deed in favour of the allottee within the period specified under local laws. In the absence of any local law, the conveyance must be carried out by the promoter within three months from the date of issue of the occupancy certificate.
Who maintains the building before the association takes over?
Section 11(4)(d) makes the promoter responsible for providing and maintaining essential services, on reasonable charges, until the association of allottees takes over maintenance. Section 11(4)(e) requires the promoter to enable the formation of the association, and Section 19(9) asks allottees to participate in forming it.
Last updated 2026-10-25. PropNewz Team.
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