Seller asks more than Kaveri shows for the same building: red flag or normal?
Direct answer: Often normal, and still not a price to copy. Kaveri shows the consideration on registered deeds, and the guidance value used as a floor for duty. Check the year and the flat before you haggle.
One buyer on r/BangaloreRealEstates, writing about a Hulimavu 2BHK, said the seller wanted ₹80 lakh. Registered considerations that buyer read for 2025 and 2026 sat nearer ₹41 lakh to ₹61 lakh. We did not pull those deeds again. It does not tell you what to offer.
Ask your CA: section 78 of the Income-tax Act, 2025 can treat the stamp duty value as the seller's full sale price when the deed price is lower, unless that value stays within 110 per cent of the price. Section 92(2)(m)(ii) can tax the buyer on the excess once it is more than ₹50,000 and more than 10 per cent of the price. Run both before a lower figure goes on the deed.
Ask your lawyer: under section 45-A of the Karnataka Stamp Act, the sub-registrar uses the guidance values published under section 45-B. If the stated value does not look true, you are told the estimate. Pay duty on it, or registration stays pending and the deed goes to the Deputy Commissioner.
What the Kaveri number is
The consideration is the amount on a sale deed the day it was registered. An encumbrance certificate lists those instruments. If the money was never written into a deed, Kaveri will not show it. Pull yours with the steps in how to download an EC from Kaveri.
Guidance value is the other number. Section 45-B sets up the Central Valuation Committee, which publishes the market-value guidelines. Section 2(1)(mm) defines market value as the open-market price or the consideration in the deed, whichever is higher. Look up this flat's line on Kaveri.
The asking price is only what the seller wants this week.
Checks before you decide
- Read the year. A 2017 deed is not a 2026 price.
- Match the flat. Get a certified copy of the sale deed for this seller and for two other sales in the same block. Compare carpet area. Super built-up beside carpet fakes a gap.
- Keep the guideline apart from old consideration. Deeds near the guideline, with an ask well above, are a gap to explain. They are not your price.
- Write the money you pay on the deed. Pay by bank transfer, and put that full amount in the agreement and the sale deed. At ₹50 lakh or more, on price or stamp duty value, section 393 puts TDS at 1 per cent of the higher figure.
The mistake to avoid
Don't bid the lowest old consideration as today's price, and don't register less than you pay so the deed "matches Kaveri". A wide gap against recent sales is one of the signs a flat is overpriced. Walk the flat. Read the khata.
Frequently asked questions
Are the amounts on Kaveri the money that changed hands?
They are the amounts on registered instruments. Section 45-A exists because a stated value can sit below market value. Ask your lawyer what this one proves.
Should I offer the lowest recent figure?
No. Use a recent deed only after area, floor and year match.
What if the seller wants the deed at guidance value?
Don't. Sections 78 and 92(2)(m)(ii) still compare stamp duty value with the price on the deed. Your CA should read the draft.
Does a wide gap mean the flat is overpriced?
Not by itself. Compare recent like-for-like deeds, then read the khata.
Related on acre&key
References
- r/BangaloreRealEstates, buyer post on a Hulimavu resale: seller asking ₹80 lakh, registered considerations the poster read as ₹41 lakh to ₹61 lakh for 2025 and 2026. The post was about two months old when read on 2 Nov 2026: https://www.reddit.com/r/BangaloreRealEstates/comments/1vyujqt/buying_a_resale_2bhk_in_hulimavu_seller_wants_80l/.
- Karnataka Stamp Act, 1957, section 2(1)(mm), section 45-A and section 45-B (India Code text as amended by Act 30 of 2025): https://upload.indiacode.nic.in/showfile?actid=AC_KA_71_596_00001_34_1551857974089&filename=34_of_1957_%28e%29_30_of_2025.pdf&type=actfile, accessed 2 Nov 2026.
- Income-tax Act, 2025, section 78 and section 92(2)(m), as amended by the Finance Act, 2026: https://www.incometaxindia.gov.in/documents/d/guest/income_tax_act_2025_as_amended_by_fa_act_2026-pdf, accessed 2 Nov 2026.
- Department of Stamps and Registration, Karnataka, Kaveri Online Services: https://kaveri.karnataka.gov.in/, accessed 2 Nov 2026.
This page explains public rules and processes. It isn't legal or tax advice. acre&key gives buyers advice for free.