Stop property transfer charge: Federation of Noida RWAs

OIDA: After the Confederation of NCR Residents Welfare Associations (CONRWA) and the Noida Federation of Apartment Owners’ Associations (NOFAA), another umbrella RWA body — the Federation of Noida RWAs (FONRWA) — has now demanded the abolition of the exorbitant property transfer fee applicable on the resale of residential units in the city.

While some residents maintain that there has been no appreciation in property prices in the past 5-6 years, others claim to be facing a financial crisis, especially due to job losses owing to Covid 19. “We have written to Noida Authority CEO Ritu Maheshwari urging her to remove the hefty transfer of memorandum (TM) charges applicable on the resale of properties on a 99-year lease,” said FONRWA president Yogendra Sharma.

While reselling a property in Noida, along with the stamp duty and the registration fee, it is also essential to pay a 5% TM charge to ensure a successful transfer of ownership. However, these charges vary significantly across sectors depending on the circle rate.

Unlike Delhi and Ghaziabad, residential properties in Noida are sold on a leasehold basis for a period of 99 years. Here, the Noida Authority is the owner of the land, and the developer is the allottee. Therefore, each time a transaction takes place, the buyer needs to pay a lease rent to the Authority known as the TM charge. However, these charges apply only on units on resale and not on new residential units.

KK Jain, secretary general of FONRWA, said, “Not only registry charges are to be paid again at the time of the sale deed, but also the property transfer charge, which adds to the price of the property. And since the real estate sector is already struggling due to the recent economic slump, the Authority should step in to take corrective steps. The Greater Noida Authority has already cut property transfer rates.”

Earlier this month, CONRWA filed a petition in the Allahabad high court, demanding freehold property in the district. “Hearing on the matter is expected this week. We expect a positive response from the court,” said PS Jain, president of CONRWA.