Mumbai: Home buyers, RERA can't save you from builders

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Don't be taken in by advertisements of projects flashing their RERA certification. If you thought that the newly set up RERA would protect you from dubious builders looking to make some extra bucks off you, think again.

A recent email from MahaRERA to promoters and real estate agents has not only confused all, but also raised concerns amongst consumer activists, real estate experts and lawyers.

MID-DAYâÂu00c2u0080Âu00c2u0088is in possession of the email, issued on Wednesday, which raises the issue of RERA-certified project submissions being incomplete as well as having discrepancies. It adds that if the promoters don't rectify this and if RERA gets any complaint, it will take strict action.

This has irked experts, who have contended that if RERA found discrepancies in the submissions, then it should have cancelled the application and put the information in public domain instead of certifying it.

Serious concerns
Godfrey Peminta of the Watchdog Foundation said, "RERA was set up to protect consumer interest and bring transparency. Instead of issuing show-cause notices to builders and promoters who submitted incomplete or misleading applications, RERA should be the one explaining why such applications were approved in the first place. Issuing emails to builders, asking them to rectify the errors, without keeping the public in the loop is an act of protecting the promoters instead of the consumers."

A real estate activist,âÂu00c2u0080Âu00c2u0088who did not wish to be identifiedâÂu00c2u0080Âu00c2u0088said, "RERA, like SEBI, has been formed to safeguard the interest of the common man. Many zones, especially those connecting interior Maharashtra, don't have a single project registered with RERA. This means there is no awareness amongst developers in these areas, and there is no guarantee of projects coming up there. Also, a consumer is not qualified to understand the flaws in a project. S/he is likely to invest his/her money in something that has RERA certification, and might end up getting duped."

Industry experts' views
Vikram Mehta, president, Confederation of Realty Estate Brokers Association of India, said, "I am aware of the email; I even discussed the issue with a senior RERA official. It's surprising that the authority has sent this email even to registered and RERA-certified projects. RERA should have done its due diligence before issuing registration certification to developers who have submitted incomplete details or suppressed facts. The authority must ensure that consumers are not misled."

Property lawyer Vinod Sampat said RERA was a new enactment and teething problems were bound to arise in the initial stages, with the public likely to be misguided by builders claiming that their projects have been certified by RERA.

"The discrepancies can be rectified by builders by filing additional submissions. What RERA has done is induced fear in developers and succeeded in changing their approach towards buyers," he added.

"There is a probability that a builder, to enhance the image of his project, may submit some false information, and later, retract. RERA authorities can take action against such developers. Classic example of this is date of possession of the flat offered.

However, I fail to understand that when the Bombay High Court has ordered a stay on new construction due to the dumping ground issue, how can developers or RERA authorities presume that possession will be granted within the stipulated time, as declared by the developer on RERA's website."

Sampat said RERA had failed miserably in getting many projects registered, with not a single registration from several zones.

"An upcoming project in Ghatkopar East, which falls in N ward, mentions an area in M ward. And even though RERA authorities know about it, they are silent spectators," he alleged.

The justification
Attempts made to contact MahaRERA secretary Dr Vasant Prabhu did not yield any result. Another official said, "The bulk of the projects came only in the last few days, making complete scrutiny of documents impossible. After midnight, documents uploaded on the official site were only given a number, not the certification, which is being done now, gradually. And during the course of our scrutiny, we came across the discrepancies in some of the registered documents. Hence the email."