How You Can File a Complaint Under RERA

When the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act was brought into the spotlight on May 1 this year, homebuyers all over the country breathed a collective sigh of relief. Rules under RERA are meant to address issues such as delays, price, quality of construction, and title.

The Act aims to enhance transparency in real estate transactions and regulate them to provide greater efficiency.

RERA offers up quite a few benefits:

• Filed cases are resolved much faster than when cases are filed in other situations. It requires that all disputes with buyers be resolved within 120 days.
• There can’t be any ambiguity in terms of the area of the property in question.
• Delayed projects require that promoters pay compensation.
• Transparency becomes a natural result of the regulations.

RERA empowers the buyer by facilitating the filing of complaints in case of violations by builders. Complaints can be filed with the Real Estate Regulatory Authority or the adjudicating officer under Section 31 of RERA. Violations of rules by promoters, allottees or real estate agents can be reported.

In order to file a complaint with RERA, home buyers need to confirm the following:

• The state in question must have implemented RERA and assigned a real estate regulatory authority
• The project in question needs to have been registered under RERA
• The forms prescribed by the state must be filled out completely
• The complaint must be filed as soon as possible

Filing the complaint:

When attempting to file the complaint, the complainant needs to provide the following details in the form prescribed by the state:

1. Particulars of the applicant and the respondent
2. Registration number as well as address of the project
3. A concise statement providing facts and grounds of claim
4. Reliefs and interim reliefs sought

To claim compensation under Real Estate Regulatory Authority, one must initiate proceedings before the adjudicating officer. A similar form will have to be filled out for the same.

In case the complainant has already filed the case with the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) in the past, he or she can withdraw the case and approach the pertinent Real Estate Regulatory Authority for the same. This is because filing cases with NCDRC can prove to be very time consuming since the Commission has large volumes of complaints being submitted every day. RERA, on the other hand, can expedite the process.

Time frame for filing

Although no time limit is specified under RERA per se, the sooner the complaint is filed, the better. For ruling purposes, the Limitation Act 1963 will apply wherein time periods are provided for specific complaints.

Although multiple Indian states are yet to adopt Real Estate Regulatory Authority, there certainly is hope for homebuyers. In future, one can expect clear transactions, fulfillment of delivery promises, and stress-free home purchases.