Greenland Properties
Stamp duty and registration charges are unavoidable costs on top of a property's price — and in Maharashtra, they can add several lakhs to a mid-sized purchase. Here's how they work in Pune and across the state.
What's the difference between stamp duty and registration charges?
Stamp duty is a state tax on the property transaction itself, paid as a percentage of the property's value. Registration charges are a separate fee paid to record the transaction with the sub-registrar's office, making the sale legally enforceable and part of the public record.
Current stamp duty rates in Pune
Pune's stamp duty structure includes components beyond the base Maharashtra rate, because of an added Local Body Tax and Metro Cess specific to the city:
| Buyer | Stamp Duty Rate |
|---|---|
| Male buyer (sole owner) | 7% (5% base + 1% Metro Cess + 1% Local Body Tax) |
| Female buyer (sole owner) | 6% (1% concession on the male rate) |
| Joint ownership (male + female) | 6.5% |
Outside Pune's municipal limits, the Metro Cess and Local Body Tax components may not apply, so rates can differ slightly by city and even by locality — always confirm the applicable rate for the specific area before budgeting.
Registration charges
Registration fees in Maharashtra are a flat 1% of the property's market value, capped at ₹30,000. So for any property valued above roughly ₹30 lakh, the registration fee simply stays at the ₹30,000 cap rather than continuing to scale up.
What value is stamp duty actually calculated on?
This trips people up often: stamp duty isn't calculated on whatever price you and the seller agree to. It's calculated on whichever is higher — the agreement value, or the government's Ready Reckoner rate for that locality. If you try to under-declare the transaction value, the stamp duty is still charged based on the (higher) Ready Reckoner rate, so there's no benefit to doing so.
A worked example
Say a woman buys a flat in Pune for ₹75 lakh, and the Ready Reckoner value for that unit is ₹70 lakh (lower than the agreement value, so the agreement value applies):
- Stamp duty at 6%: ₹75,00,000 × 6% = ₹4,50,000
- Registration charge: 1% of ₹75,00,000 = ₹75,000, capped at ₹30,000
- Total: ₹4,80,000 on top of the ₹75 lakh purchase price
A few things worth knowing
- Ready Reckoner rates are revised annually, typically effective from 1st April, so the applicable rate can change year to year for the same locality.
- The 1% concession for women applicants is usually only available when the property is registered solely in a woman's name — check current eligibility conditions, as rules occasionally change.
- Stamp duty and registration must both be paid before or at the time of registering the sale deed — the transaction isn't legally complete until this is done.
Not sure what a property will actually cost you?
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