A-khata vs B-khata: the one check that decides whether a Bengaluru property is worth buying
A cheap plot is often cheap for a documented reason. Khata classification is where that reason usually hides.
More money is lost in Bengaluru real estate to paperwork than to price. And of all the documents involved, khata classification is the one that most reliably separates a good buy from an expensive lesson.
What a khata actually is
A khata is not a title document. It does not prove you own the property. It is an account maintained by the municipal body recording that a property exists, who is liable for property tax on it, and what its assessed details are. People conflate it with ownership constantly, and that confusion is where trouble starts.
A-khata
An A-khata means the property sits on the primary register. It complies with applicable building bye-laws and zoning, taxes are properly assessed, and the local body treats it as a fully legitimate property. Practically, this is what you want.
- Home loans available from essentially every lender
- Building plan sanction and occupancy certificate obtainable
- Trade licences and utility connections straightforward
- Full resale pool — the next buyer can also get a loan
B-khata
A B-khata means the property is recorded on a separate register maintained for properties with deviations — unapproved layouts, revenue land, bye-law violations, or conversion that was never completed. The municipal body collects tax on it, which many sellers present as proof of legitimacy. It is not.
- Most major lenders will not fund it, or will fund it only at higher rates through NBFCs
- Building plan sanction is generally not available
- Your resale pool shrinks to cash buyers and NBFC borrowers
- Regularisation depends on policy that has repeatedly been announced, litigated and stalled
How to actually verify it
- 1Ask for the khata certificate and the khata extract — both, not one. The extract shows the assessment details.
- 2Check the property tax receipts for the last five years and confirm the khata number matches.
- 3Verify the layout approval separately — BDA, BMRDA or the relevant planning authority.
- 4For converted land, ask for the DC conversion order and read the survey numbers against the sale deed.
- 5Pull an encumbrance certificate for the statutory period to surface charges or liens.
- 6Have an advocate read the title chain from the mother deed forward, not just the latest sale deed.
When B-khata can still make sense
It can, occasionally — for a cash buyer, on a long hold, in a belt with genuine infrastructure momentum, at a price that properly reflects the restriction. That is a real investment thesis. What it is not is a way to get an A-khata property cheap, and anyone presenting it that way is either uninformed or hoping you are.