Even after a year, the implementation of RERA remains patchy in most areas of the state
On completing one year of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) on May 1, Maharashtra has been identified as the state with the highest number of registered projects. Along with it, according to official sources, it has also been identified that Mumbai has been on the top of the cities pertaining to RERA registered projects. Sources claimed that the implementation of RERA is still patchy in most areas of the state.
According to official sources, Maharashtra is the only state to set up a Conciliation Forum as an alternative platform for home buyers and developers to resolve disputes outside the Court. Along with it, they have set up online portals to file complaints, register projects, with the government in the process of forming an Appellate Tribunal to hear appeals.
The Real Estate (Regulations and Development) Act, popularly known as the RERA Act, 2016 had come into force from May 1, 2017. Although, certain sections of the act were introduced a year before, the act only came into force in 2017. The act has been said to bring clarity and a proper functioning order in the real estate sector. Before the act came into force, many builders and developers took home buyers for a ride as there was no real estate regulatory authority in the country. Along with it, there was also rampant delays in getting homes quite often. However, since the implementation of the RERA, home buyers now have a reliable and proven source to address their grievances. The act had defined a set of stringent norms for estate developers, builders, real estate agents, as well as home buyers. According to official sources, until now, more than 15,000 cases have been registered under the RERA act, just in Maharashtra (MahaRERA).
The RERA authority has an online portal, where home buyers can file the complaints against builders, developers, and real estate agents. The authority has passed several judgments since the act came into force, with a lot of stringent action being taken against developers and builders. “More than 2,000 complaints have been filed in the MAHARERA. In one year, we have solved and dismissed more than 1,000 cases”, said Satbhir Singh, member of MAHARERA. Sources also claimed that the authority has fined more than 1,000 developers.
Currently, the RERA environment is in its transitionary phase, claimed official sources. They further claimed that the first two to three years will be painful, but once that is done and new projects launched, it would usher in good professional developers and real estate agents, and no unprofessional projects.
Currently, according to official sources, the government is also working on a policy to have projects pertaining to rehabilitation within the purview of MAHARERA.
Sources claimed that in the last year of MAHARERA, very few new projects have been launched. Instead, the focus of the authority was on old projects and their registrations. However, now, in this year, the regulatory authority will be focusing more on new projects. “Based on the last one year's experience, we are now going to focus more on the new projects getting registered. However, our aim stays the same - making sure that home buyers get their homes in the shortest span of time as possible, and cutting out the wrongdoings of the developers”, said a senior MAHARERA official. Sources claimed that Maharera, in the coming year, will make sure that the process of registration of real estate projects reach far off areas, especially rural areas, and areas like Pune and Nashik.
According to official sources, out of the 28 states in the country, only 20 states have notified the rules or have set up the real estate authority. North Eastern states are yet to notify the rules, and Jammu and Kashmir is the only State to not have the real estate regulatory authority.
Developers speak about RERA turning one year old:
'Implementation of policies like RERA and GST last year had a significant effect on the real estate industry, and it brought about a substantial shift in the market. In the year since then, RERA as a policy has already ensured that the consumer buying sentiment is finding its way back as is being reflected in sales of established developers. As a confidence building measure, it is certain that this will have a long standing impact on the sector and lead to positive momentum in the market.”
- Tushad Dubash, Director, Duville Estates.
"RERA has been a revolution for the real estate sector, transforming the very fabric of the industry. Completing a year since its enforcement, most of the states and union territories have functional bodies with an encouraging number of projects registered, pan India. RERA has brought about financial and development discipline among developers and has made the consumer, better informed. The environment created will certainly give rise to professionally run development companies to succeed. Overall, changes seen over the last year have been encouraging and have set the foundation for a robust market transformation."
- Kishore Bhatija, MD – Real Estate Development, K Raheja Corp,