MahaRERA to float discussion paper on quality guidelines for real estate projects

Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority plans a stringent quality regime for real estate projects in the state and a discussion paper on it will soon be out, Ajoy Mehta, Chairman MahaRERA said. 

Speaking at a real estate summit organised by industry body NAREDCO, Mehta said that quality is one of the issues that come up in disputes between property owners and builders. 

Mehta said that the RERA Act provided for a ‘defect liability clause’ under which it can monitor project quality. He said the intent was to monitor quality of the projects right from ‘day one’. The state regulator has been inundated with complaints from homebuyers about quality of the houses they have bought, ranging from falling plaster to leaky bathrooms and moisture seeping from ceilings. 

Regulatory transformation

Mehta pointed out that while the raw materials used in constructing projects all had standards, ‘there is no standard for the finished product.’ 

Under Mehta, MahaRERA has become a regulator that the builder lobby were initially apprehensive about but have now come to respect. Builders have increasingly started to toe the line on sticking to project timelines, delivering projects on schedule, and ensuring that funds are utilised for the purpose they were raised. 

Mehta has lost no time in cracking the whip on erring builders and penalising them, which includes registrations being withdrawn. The actions taken by him has resulted in MahaRERA being held up as one of the best regulators across the country. 

There are over 9000 disputes still pending with the regulator, though Mehta said that they had succeeded in bringing it down over the months. 

He said that if the real estate sector was craving respect, it needed to clean up its act and deliver quality homes on time. “You cannot form an economy that has hurdles and disputes.”