The fruits of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) are becoming evident three years after it came into force. As many as 48,556 complaints were disposed by the respective state authorities as of July 2020, according to the Data by Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. Out of this, nearly 57%cases or approx. 27,581 complaints were resolved in the last one year alone. One of the main aims of RERA is to address consumer complaints from the real estate sector.
Uttar Pradesh takes the lead with as many as 18,509 cases disposed of by the UP- RERA authorities so far, against a mere 5,989 cases a year ago. Haryana is second with nearly 9,919 cases disposed of currently as against 3,123 cases in the corresponding period of 2019. Maharashtra›s MahaRERA has so far disposed of nearly 7,883 cases.
KK Khandelwal, Chairman, Haryana’s RERA department H-RERA this writer, “Execution of disposed complaints is doing well. In as many as 138 cases, there is a stay order from the High Court. The introduction of H-RERA has led to builders submitting all the information about the project before starting construction, this itself solves half the problems that used to crop up in times before the introduction of RERA. Construction now happens as per building plan, the builder-buyer agreement that is signed has all the information and hence there is less room for misinterpretation and misuse of the agreement unlike earlier times when the agreements were loosely worded.”
RERA has powers to check and monitor the quality commitments made on paper by the builder.
When this writer asked that there have been instances of use of ground water by builders which led to cracks in building walls, Khandelwal said that consumers should know that there is complete ban on use of ground water by builders, and if he has found to using ground water in violation of the laws, he is bound remove any defects that crop up in the building for a period of five years since construction.
On the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) and Deen Dayal Jan Awas Yojana (DDJAY) front too, Haryana was doing well with as many as 1 lakh housing units of two and three bedroom under construction at a price point of Rs. 35 lakh.
Speaking on the disposal of RERA complaints in Uttar Pradesh, Balwinder Kumar, Member, and UP-RERA, told this writer, “Disposal of complaints has gone well and now our focus is on execution of the orders passed”
Project & Agent Registrations
The 24% growth in project registrations under RERA in a year pertains to around 43,208 projects by the end of July 2019 to nearly 53,364 projects as of date. The States with maximum project registrations currently include Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu. Cumulatively, these seven states account for a significant 85% share with nearly 45,278 registered projects. Maharashtra tops the list with nearly 25,604 project registrations, said Anuj Puri, Chairman, Anarock Property consultants.
Interestingly, UP has seen the least annual growth of 5% in project registrations. In July 2019, around 2,676 projects were registered in the state – currently, the number stands at approx. 2,818 projects. Evidently, developers in the state were more focused on project completions than on new launches.
Among these top 7 states, Telangana saw the highest yearly growth of 79% in project registrations – from 1,064 projects in July 2019 to over 1,902 projects now. Tamil Nadu recorded a 54% yearly jump – as on July 2019, the state has 1,064 projects registered which have increased to 1,635 projects this year.
In terms of agent registrations, there has been a 20% increase in a year – from 34,182 registered agents towards July-end 2019 to nearly 41,143 agents as of July 2020.
High-scoring States Maharashtra is the frontrunner with the maximum number of project and agent registrations, setting a high benchmark for other states to emulate. MahaRERA continues to be the ‘poster-child’ of RERA implementation:
As on 4th July 2020, Maharashtra saw the registration of 25,604 projects and 3,999 agents.
Gujarat saw 7,210 projects and 1,178 agents registered.
In Karnataka, 3,446 projects and 1,916 agents have been registered as of July 2020.
In Uttar Pradesh, 2,818 rojects and 3,808 agents have been registered.
Madhya Pradesh saw total registrations of 2,663 projects and 677 agents.
Other states catching up in project registrations include Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana which saw 1,142; 1,243; 1,635 and 1,902 projects registered respectively.
Tarun Nangia is the host and producer of Policy & Politics.