• Purchase of property from son of deceased owner

I am planning to buy a house properly in Charkop, Kandivali west, Mumbai (MHADA). Following is the chain:

1989 - Building was constructed and Arjun purchased one of the flat 
1993 - Arjun sold the flat to Ram
2005 - Ram expired
2010 - Ram's wife Sita became the owner of the flat by way of registered declaration
2017 - Sita expired leaving behind a registered will in favour of son 'Kush'.
(Ram & Sita had 4 children in total. 2 sons and 2 daughters. Sita's will and nomination for this flat was in name of 'Kush' only as Kush took care of all the family expenses).
2018 - Society transferred the flat to Kush on the basis of Sita's will and the nomination form. 

Now I am buying this flat from Kush. The society is ready to give NOC. I spoke to the secretary who says that Kush's brother is mentally retarded, 1 sister is well off in Canada but not in good terms with Kush and 2nd sister is also well off in Delhi. He states Kush tool care of medical expenses of his ailing brother and mother. The secretary has been in this building for past 10 years and never saw Kush's sisters and seldom seen his brother around. He only saw Kush around and taking care of his mother. 

My concern is that, will Kush's siblings try to claim their share from this property in future? although the registered will of Sita clearly mentions that Kush will have full right in the property and can sell to anyone he wishes to. Can I go ahead with this deal? Please advise.
Asked 5 years ago in Property Law
Religion: Hindu

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15 Answers

On Ram death his wife and 4 children had equal share in flat 

 

2) you have stated that Sita became owner by registered declaration 

 

3) did the 4 children relinquish share in property . .?

 

4) if not Sita was not absolute owner of property and could not have bequeathed property to Kush 

 

5) his siblings can claim equal share in property 

 

6) consult a local lawyer 

Ajay Sethi
Advocate, Mumbai
94520 Answers
7485 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1)After the death of ram, if he died without a Will, then the property will devolve amongst all legal heir class1 i.e Wife, Sons, Daughters. Is their any release deed or relinquishment deed executed. 

2) as a buyer you can include an indemnity clause in the sale deed specific to the inherited property. The crux of this clause will be that in the case of any future dispute on inherited property, the seller indemnifies the buyer. The terms and conditions of this clause can be mutually decided between buyer and the seller. In the case of any doubt or high perceived risk, you can also execute a separate indemnity bond in the court.

 

Mohammed Mujeeb
Advocate, Hyderabad
19299 Answers
32 Consultations

4.7 on 5.0

See one transaction how on expiry of ram the property was transferred to sita by way of declaration. Is there any court order for same??

 See if sita got same by court order then transaction is clear khush has will in favour and he can sell it and there is no problem then in that transaction.

Shubham Jhajharia
Advocate, Ahmedabad
25514 Answers
179 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Yes. You can purchase. Just get a notice published in an English daily and one in vernacular daily, that you intend to purchase the stated property any one having any interest in it should state it to you (at your address or that of your advocate). 

Even if the siblings state their interest, legally they didn't have any right over it and their contention you can reject and purchase.  

If the said transaction becomes contention of litigation, I'm prepared to defend you in court as your advocate. I'm based in Mumbai, just as you are. 

Your contact details aren't shown to me here. Please leave them in feedback so that I can get in touch with you

Netra Mohanchandra Pant
Advocate, Navi Mumbai
1545 Answers
5 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

The right of ita after death of Ram on the basis of ' registered declaration' is not clear to me.

If Ram purchased the flat in his sole name then on his death his 4 children and SIta , all five of them inherits the same in undivided 1/5th share.

So Sita could have become its exclusive owner only if her 4 children relinquished their share in the property in her favour.

in absence of clear title of Sta, Kush can not have better title from her and mere nomination and issuance of share certificate issued in the name of Kush will not improve his case.

Devajyoti Barman
Advocate, Kolkata
22779 Answers
484 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Dear Sir,

As history goes there are rare chances claim by siblings of Kush since till today they have not challenged the will.  The right to claim partition survives only for 12 years after the death of the father who's is the original owner of the property.  Thus you are in safer side to purchase the property.

Netravathi Kalaskar
Advocate, Bengaluru
4952 Answers
27 Consultations

4.8 on 5.0

As per the case above khush has received the same from the self acquired property of his mother and he is the sole owner as per the will. Unless they challenge the will there will be no problem in your title.

Prashant Nayak
Advocate, Mumbai
31807 Answers
175 Consultations

4.1 on 5.0

When Ram passed away (i assume he died intestate i e without a Will), his property devolved on his legal heirs i e widow and children in equal proportions (i assume Ram's mother predeceased him)

So Sita could not have become absolute owner of the flat merely on basis of a registered declaration 

Ideally a letter of administration for administering Ram's estate ought to have been obtained

The administrator so appointed under the above LA would then execute and register a transfer deed in favour of Sita with consent of other legal heirs of Ram

This wasn't done. So Sita had only 1/5th share in the flat and she couldn't be said to be its absolute owner to be entitled to make a Will of the same

As per Sita's Will, only her 1/5th share in the flat will go to Kush and not the entire flat

So Kush has his own 1/5th share plus 1/5th share of his mother ie 2/5th share

The balance 3/5th belong to children of Ram and Sita equally

Kush's title is not clear

Not advisable to proceed with the deal

Also merely because Kush was taking care of his mother, doesn't mean that right of other legal heirs of Ram in his flat are wiped away

Transfer by society on basis of Will and nomination in favour of Kush do not confer any valid ownership title on Kush. Its of no effect in absence of a proper registered document standing in name of Kush 

Kush will have to obtain LA to administer estate of Ram and also obtain probate of his mother's Will

If either of the above grants are obtained and Kush's siblings are agreeable for transfer of the flat to his sole name, then the administrator can execute and register a transfer deed in his favour which will complete his title

A guardian will have to be appointed for the brother of Kush who is mentally unfit, by filing a guardianship petition in High Court 

Yusuf Rampurawala
Advocate, Mumbai
7483 Answers
79 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

This property originally belonged to Kush's father hence the acquisition of the entire property by his mother is in doubt because all other legal heirs are entitled to an equal share in it.

You have mentioned that she acquired it by a registered declaration, have ll the other legal heirs relinquished their rights in the property by executing a registered release deed in her favor?

If yes, then the Will bequeathing the property in favor of kush is very much valid and nobody can claim any share in the property as a right.

You confirm this proposition and then proceed based on the recommendation made by an advocate in the local through his  legal opinion

 

T Kalaiselvan
Advocate, Vellore
84711 Answers
2172 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. What was the registered declaration made by Ram in favour of his wife Sita? Was it a will? If it was a will then is it attested by two attesting witnesses?

2. Conduct due diligence to ensure that the instrument executed by Ram in favour of his wife is legally sound and foolproof. The secretary of the society will not come to your rescue if there is a title dispute.

3. The siblings of Kush are at liberty to challenge the will of Sita on the ground that it was executed by her under coercion, undue influence or fraud, but they will have to prove the absence of free consent.

Ashish Davessar
Advocate, Jaipur
30763 Answers
972 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

Dear Client,

After Ram death, His property inherited in his wife and children, 1/5th each. Kush have 1/5th share of his and 1/5th of his mother by virtue of WILL and retard sibling share can be sold by court order only after declaring kush his guardian.

Sale invalid, Sisters can claim their share.

Yogendra Singh Rajawat
Advocate, Jaipur
22596 Answers
31 Consultations

4.4 on 5.0

Yes you can go ahead with the deal since the Kush is having the right to transfer the property.

Before purchasing make a publication in the newspaper that you are going to purchase the said property and if anyone is having objection then the same may be raised. 

Regards 

Anilesh Tewari
Advocate, New Delhi
18077 Answers
377 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

1. IF the property was legitimately transferred in name of kush and the society is ready to give NOC, THEN it would be safe enough to purchase such property, PROVIDED you take proper indemnity bond from Kush, indemnifying you against any dispute relating to the property, by his relatives.

Keep Smiling .... Hemant Agarwal

Hemant Agarwal
Advocate, Mumbai
5612 Answers
25 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

This is my response to you:

1. It seems that Kush is the real owner of the flat;

2. He has the perfect title to it and therefore can sell it to you;

3. Make sure you have a chain of the agreements and MHADA permissions have been complied with thoroughly;

4. You can also do a title search of the flat through an advocate;

5. There is less chance that the siblings can stake a claim, even if they do they will not have merits;

6. Consult a local lawyer and take steps.

Gowaal Padavi
Advocate, Mumbai
1920 Answers
5 Consultations

5.0 on 5.0

yes you can goahed with the deal as per your inputs, cleared off legal issues.

G Suresh
Advocate, Chennai
394 Answers
5 Consultations

4.9 on 5.0

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