Telangana Tightens GPA Checks as 22-A Property Risks Persist

Telangana GPA checks are getting sharper at registration counters, and buyers should treat this as a serious warning sign, not a clerical delay. With 147,934 prohibited property entries under Section 22-A still sitting in the system, any sale through a General Power of Attorney or power of attorney route can get stuck if the land parcel has a government, endowment, assigned land, ceiling, wakf or court-related mark against it.

The impact will be felt most in Hyderabad’s high-transaction belts: Serilingampally, Rajendranagar, Gandipet, Shankarpally, Maheshwaram, Medchal, Quthbullapur, Hayathnagar, Ghatkesar and Uppal. These are the mandals where family settlements, NRI sales, plot resales and old GPA-based layouts often meet rising land values. In our experience, that is exactly where disputes surface late — usually when the buyer is already at the SRO with demand draft, witnesses and moving plans ready.

Our view is simple: a GPA can authorise a person to act, but it does not wash away a 22-A risk, title defect or survey number mismatch. Buyers must verify the property first, then look at the power document.

Telangana GPA Checks: What Has Changed For Buyers?

Sub-Registrar Offices are now expected to look more closely at whether the person executing the sale deed has valid authority, whether the principal is alive, whether the GPA is properly stamped and registered, and whether the property itself is clear for registration. The practical result is that a transaction which earlier moved on trust may now face deeper questions.

This matters because GPA usage is common in Telangana. NRIs authorise siblings to sell family flats in Kondapur or Nallagandla. Elderly parents give powers to sons for open plots in Shamshabad or Tukkuguda. Families use powers of attorney for partition-linked sales in Kukatpally, Miyapur and Uppal. Developers also deal with old landowner GPAs in plotted layouts around Shankarpally, Kandukur and Yadadri corridor.

The tighter check does not mean every GPA transaction is bad. But if the document is being used to sell land that falls under the prohibited property list, the SRO can refuse registration. Even worse, a buyer may discover that the GPA holder had authority, but the property itself could not legally be transferred.

Before paying token advance, buyers should run three basic checks: survey number, EC and 22-A status. Verified.RealEstate tools can help you start that process through the Section 22-A Prohibited Property Check, Encumbrance Certificate Search and Survey Number Finder.

Telangana GPA Checks And The 22-A Problem

Section 22-A is not a small list. The figure of 147,934 prohibited properties is a clear signal that title risk is not theoretical in Telangana. A 22-A entry can relate to government land, assigned land, endowment land, wakf land, surplus ceiling land, land under litigation or property blocked by a competent authority.

For a buyer, the problem is timing. Many people verify the sale deed draft, Aadhaar, PAN and the GPA copy, but they do not check whether the exact survey number or sub-division appears in the prohibited list. This is risky in fast-growing areas where old agricultural survey numbers have been converted into layouts, villa projects and apartment communities.

Take Gandipet and Kokapet side as an example. Apartment quotes in Kokapet and Financial District often sit in the ₹9,000 to ₹14,000 per sq ft band depending on project, floor and handover stage. In Narsingi and Puppalaguda, many live deals are quoted around ₹7,500 to ₹11,500 per sq ft. Open plots on the western side, especially in Mokila and Shankarpally, can move from roughly ₹45,000 to ₹1.2 lakh per sq yd depending on HMDA status, road width and location. At these prices, even a small title gap becomes a large financial problem.

On the southern side, Maheshwaram, Tukkuguda and Shamshabad have seen plotted development interest because of ORR access and airport employment demand. Many resale plots here are marketed in the ₹35,000 to ₹90,000 per sq yd range. But some parcels in these belts have histories linked to assigned lands, old pahanis, government claims or layout regularisation gaps. A GPA sale in such a case deserves deeper checking, not quick signing.

How NRIs And Families Get Caught In GPA Property Transactions

NRIs face a special problem. They often sign powers of attorney from Dubai, USA, UK, Singapore or Australia and rely on relatives to complete the sale. If the GPA is not properly attested, adjudicated or registered where required, the SRO may raise objections. If the principal’s identity, life status or property description is unclear, the transaction can stop.

Families also face emotional pressure. A brother may say, “I have the GPA, no need to worry.” A cousin may push for quick registration because rates in Tellapur or Bachupally are moving. Parents may not remember the old survey number after land pooling, layout approval or municipal merger. These are not rare cases. We have seen buyers lose weeks because the property mentioned in the GPA says one survey number, while the draft sale deed carries another sub-division.

In GPA transactions, the buyer should insist on seeing:

• Original GPA or certified copy, not only a WhatsApp PDF.
• Proof that the principal is alive on the date of sale, unless the law clearly allows otherwise in a specific case.
• Clear property schedule with village, mandal, survey number, plot number, extent and boundaries.
• Latest EC for at least 30 years where possible.
• 22-A check for the exact survey number and sub-division.
• Pahani, Dharani extract or municipal record depending on land type.
• Link documents from the original owner to the present seller.

For buyers comparing registration cost before signing, the Stamp Duty Calculator is useful. Telangana property registration usually works around 6% of value in many sale transactions, including stamp duty, transfer duty and registration fee, subject to property type and government rules. But cost calculation should come after title checks, not before.

What SROs May Look At More Closely

At the SRO level, scrutiny can become sharper on both the person and the property. A buyer should expect questions on who signed, what power was given, whether the GPA authorises sale, whether consideration can be received by the agent, and whether the property schedule matches government records.

Ready reckoner or market value is another area where buyers should be careful. The government market value is not the same as the open market selling price. For example, a flat in Gachibowli may be negotiated at ₹8,500 to ₹12,500 per sq ft, while the guideline value may be lower. A resale plot in Bachupally or Ameenpur may sell at a premium if it has road access and clear layout approval. You can compare the official base value through the Market Value / Guideline Value Search.

Telangana GPA Checks: Localities Where Buyers Should Be Extra Alert

The highest caution is needed where old village lands have become urban property. In Serilingampally mandal, areas like Kondapur, Gachibowli, Nallagandla and Tellapur have seen multiple generations of sale deeds, development agreements and family settlements. In Rajendranagar and Gandipet, land value has risen sharply after ORR and IT corridor expansion. In Medchal and Quthbullapur, industrial, residential and old gram panchayat records often sit side by side.

On the east, Uppal, Boduppal, Pocharam and Ghatkesar have many layouts where buyers must check whether the land was agricultural, assigned, converted and approved. On the south, Maheshwaram and Kandukur attract plot buyers because entry prices can look lower than the west. Lower price does not mean lower risk.

For apartments, buyers should also verify whether the project is registered under RERA wherever applicable. A GPA by a landowner or developer representative is only one part of the story. Project approvals, land title, sanctioned plan and RERA status also matter. Start with the RERA Project Lookup when dealing with new or under-construction projects.

Practical Checklist Before Buying Through GPA

Here is the checklist we would use for a client before allowing money to move beyond a small refundable token:

• Confirm the seller’s title through link documents and EC.
• Check 22-A status for the exact survey number, not just village name.
• Match property boundaries across GPA, sale deed, pahani, Dharani and layout plan.
• Verify SRO jurisdiction and pending document history.
• Ask for principal’s recent life certificate or video confirmation in NRI cases.
• Check whether the GPA permits sale, receipt of sale consideration and execution of deed.
• Use a local advocate who understands mandal records, not only apartment paperwork.
• Avoid cash-heavy structures; bank trail protects genuine buyers.

The bottom line: tighter GPA scrutiny is good for genuine buyers, even if it slows down registration. It forces families, NRIs, agents and buyers to clean up documents before money changes hands. With 147,934 properties marked under 22-A, Telangana’s property market cannot treat power of attorney sales casually anymore.

If you are buying in Hyderabad, Ranga Reddy, Medchal-Malkajgiri, Sangareddy or Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri, do the boring checks first. In real estate, boring paperwork saves exciting amounts of money.