Is RERA a toothless body after 8 years?
RERA (Real Estate Regulation & Development Act, 2016) that was implemented in May 2017 was said to be the biggest reform of arguably India’s most opaque and ‘corrupt’ business of real estate.
Unfortunately, eight years on RERA has not been able to ensure an honest ecosystem in Indian real estate; even the efforts were half-hearted and questionable.
Are post-RERA launched projects any better?
The advocates of RERA would like you to believe that RERA trust deficit is a result of legacy projects that have been stalled for years. They would also like you to believe that post RERA there is a lot of discipline in the business and most of the pending complaints are of the pre-RERA days. This may appear to be a legitimate explanation, but only for those who have not been dealing with the builders in the post-RERA days. Project delays and defaults are rampant even with the projects launched after RERA came into effect in 2017.
Even if one discounts the challenges before RERA in dealing with the stalled projects, the ground realities have not changed with the projects launched post-RERA.
Of course, the only thing that has changed is the builders’ smartness in dodging the proverbial bullet. Nowadays, the dateline of project delivery is no less than 8-10 years in RERA filing, but buyers are verbally told this is RERA formality and you will get delivery in three years.
Room for reform
The regulatory authority needs to fix the loopholes in order to be more effective for homebuyers. It is time to ensure uniform implementation in all states in the country. Fully functional regulatory authorities should be established in all states with the required manpower and resources. RERA tribunals need to be more efficient so that there are no unnecessary delays in resolving disputes. There is also a need for a balanced approach that takes into account the practical realities faced by both developers and buyers.
Forget honesty & transparency, RERA could not even ensure a better home buying experience for an average Indian.
Has the home buying experience of an average Indian changed post RERA? A survey by Track2Realty earlier this year revealed that the CSAT (Consumer Satisfaction) Score of Indian homebuyers is as low as 18.5. The question here is, if RERA has brought discipline among the erring developers, then why is CSAT score of homebuyers so low even after eight long years.
It’s time to raise some serious questions regarding the effectiveness of the regulatory authority.
Question#1: Is RERA registered project stamp of authenticity & trust?
RERA statistics of cases resolved vis-a-vis the ground reality of average homebuyers are in sharp contrast. The homebuyers are not confident about RERA because the regulatory authority has not changed the home buying experience.
What an average homebuyer expects from RERA is an assurance; where RERA registration number means a due diligence platform. If an average homebuyer even today is being blamed for not doing his own due diligence, then it is justified to question the very existence of RERA.
For an average buyer the government agencies that sanction the projects and the banks that finance the project have failed to act as the custodians of due diligence. That is why RERA came into existence, at least one thought so. But RERA registered projects today neither offer a guarantee of timely delivery with promised amenities, nor give an assurance against cheating.
RERA registered project means as much today as the advertised membership with any trade body like CREDAI.
Question #2: Has RERA moved beyond legacy issues to raise professional standards?
Dealing with the legacy issues of stalled housing projects has been a perfect alibi for RERA ever since its inception. But now after eight years of its existence, a common homebuyer has lost patience. One has every right to know whether they have moved beyond the legacy issues in all these years. If not, then how long will it take them to ensure an aggrieved buyer that the authority means serious business?
From the homebuyers’ standpoint, if he has to finally get justice from the Supreme Court or NCDRC, then what is the role of RERA in old cases?
Forget justice, RERA has not even been able to amicably settle the legacy issues with the kind of solutions that were expected to set a precedent.
Question #3: Is RERA only a compliance filing agency?
RERA for all practical purposes is just a compliance filing window but non-compliance is rampant and RERA seems to be ill-equipped to deal with it.
RERA doesn’t have any monitoring mechanism on the ground. Non-RERA registered projects with more than 500 sqm size and more than eight in number are openly advertised on flashy billboards.
Even with registered projects, why can’t RERA ask a builder why do you need 8-10 years to complete a 4-acre project with only 500 housing units? But no! RERA in many cases has rather awarded the timeline extension as well.
MPR (Monthly Progress Report) & QPR (Quarterly Progress Report) is never questioned unless the project goes out of the hands of builders’ execution capabilities.
The result is that any reckless developer can launch a financially risky project like 10:90 scheme or 20:80 scheme to lure the buyers.
RERA only monitors, if at all, the escrow account and doesn’t summon the builder to question the project’s financial closure.
Question #4: Has it checked builders’ abuse of dominant position?
RERA was expected to check the builders’ high-handedness and abuse of dominant position, so that fewer cases reached the higher courts and ‘poor’ homebuyers were saved from harassment of lengthy and costly litigation process.
However, RERA has failed to put an end to trauma of litigation for homebuyers. Builders continue to define law as per their convenience. Builder-Buyer agreements are still unfair and arbitrary; and the copy of BBA is shown to the buyer only after he has made the upfront 10% payment. If you question or challenge it, then your deposit can be forfeited.
Even for the layout and FAR changes, builders force the buyers to sign on the dotted line with advance consent at the time of signing BBA.
Projects are openly advertised to sell on super built -up area, only exception being that nowadays builders print the carpet area as well in their records.
Question #5: Is it ill-equipped, legally untrained or just directionless?
An RTI asking whether there has been any legal training of RERA members, who are mostly ex-bureaucrats and don’t come from a legal background. The reply has been that there is no such information available.
It is hence no surprise that there is no consistency in RERA orders by its different members. For example, RERA Act empowers adjudicating officers to take suo moto cognizance, but some RERA members claim their hands are tied till they receive a formal complaint.
Builders continue to divert funds from escrow accounts with misrepresentation of facts and RERA ignores the project status in release of funds.
In a bizarre case, Karnataka RERA registry itself decided the maintainability of the case and dismissed it. Karnataka High Court had taken strong exception to this and clarified that RERA registry can’t decide the maintainability of the case.
Question #6: Has it been helping builders instead to restraining them?
Why is RERA so lenient with builders that it violates the Act itself?
As per RERA Act, a buyer is entitled to get refund even if the project has been delayed by a month.
But in practice, forget refund, RERA has in some of the cases, denied due penalties, or at max has given only MCLR plus 1% (and not the same penalty that builder charges in cases of late payment) to the affected homebuyer. Delay penalty and refund is often denied in the name of project viability.
Builder’s request for project extension is easily granted, even when there is no valid explanation and heavy penalty is not imposed for being reckless with the project timelines.
Question #7: Who is happy with RERA as a real estate regulator?
The homebuyers are obviously unhappy with an additional window of litigation.
They are also unhappy with the fact that RERA orders are not executed.
Higher courts have time and again pointed out poor judgments of RERA.
The Supreme Court is equally unhappy and has gone to the extent of questioning whether RERA stands as the rehabilitation centre for ex bureaucrats.
Question #8: Whose interests are being served with RERA?
In the end, all that can be said in defence of RERA is that it’s a quasi-judicial body that absorbs pressure from all — political establishment, builders and homebuyers.
The regulatory body members often wish they had more powers but the fact remains that they have thus far failed to exercise the powers already invested in them.
The writer is CEO Track2Media
GMADA puts Mohali realty on cloud NINE
The Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) recently unveiled plans to develop nine new sectors across 6,285 acres — a landmark initiative under Punjab’s flagship land-pooling policy. Covering Sectors 84, 87, parts of 101, 103, and 120-124, along with backlogged pockets in 76-80, the project emphasizes a strategic drive towards sustainable, multi-use urban growth.
Strategic Sector Allocation
The residential sector has been allotted 1,800 acres across Sectors 120-124 and left-out pockets, aligning with the six-lane PR7 Airport Road for seamless urban connectivity. While the commercial segment takes 236 acres in Sector 87 to nurture a dedicated business district.
Further, institutional developments received 313 acres in Sector 84 for education, healthcare, and civic infrastructure, and industrial took 321 acres across Sectors101 and103, designed for manufacturing and logistics hubs.
Industry stakeholders opine that this will bolster the realty market in the city where property prices have seen significant appreciation over the past one year. Mohit Goel, Managing Director, Omaxe Group, noted, “What we’re seeing in Mohali is a textbook case of connectivity-driven real estate appreciation. The integration of new residential and commercial zones along PR7, one of the region’s fastest emerging corridors, means that buyers will benefit from both location and infrastructure from Day I. This drives higher tender values and faster sales velocity. In today’s market, township models aren’t just about homes; they’re about how quickly and seamlessly people can live, work, shop and that’s exactly what GMADA’s planning promises to deliver.”
Mohali, the dynamic core of the Tricity, is evolving, anchored by tech hubs like QuarkCity and IT City, along with robust transport infrastructure. The nine new sectors are designed to complement this trajectory, stimulating investment, employment, and quality urbanisation in North India. As Umang Jindal, CEO, Homeland group puts it, “Tier II cities can no longer thrive on fragmented growth. Mohali’s blueprint, with integrated transport corridors, transit systems, and proximity to Aerotropolis and IT City, positions it as a true alternative to metros drawing investment, skilled professionals, and quality urban living in one ecosystem.” TNS
Connectivity Highlights
PR7 (Airport Road): A 200-ft-wide, multi-lane urban corridor with service roads, green medians, advanced lighting, and drainage, becoming the structural backbone of Mohali.
Airport Shortcut Route: A 3.36-km four-lane link from Sector 65-66 to 66B, reducing travel time by 3.5 km and easing congestion-completion expected by October 2025.
NHAI Greenfield Corridor: A 31-km bypass from IT Chowk to Kurali, currently 82% complete and expected to be operational by September 2025 to decongest Airport Road.
Ring Road Expansion: Six-laning of Kurali-Siswan and development of Zirakpur bypass under the Northern Ring Road scheme, slated for completion by 2026.
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