Meghalaya RERA: Real Estate Regulatory Authority

Introduction to Meghalaya RERA

India has seen a huge growth of population every year and so are the basic needs of humans. One of the most important needs is Shelter. To meet the housing requirement of the huge mass, several real estate companies have evolved. Home Buyers generally meet an agent in the search for a good home. But there are fraudsters in every business and therefore the government has introduced a Real Estate Regulatory Authority.

Now the question that arises is what is mean by Rera? Rera is an authority launched by the government to create a more equitable and fair transaction between real estate developers and home buyers. By promoting accountability and transparency, Meghalaya RERA has made the real estate business simple, trustworthy, fair, and better. Under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, every family is promised to provide a shelter and according to the income category subsidies on housing units will be allocated. The introduction of RERA is also important to ensure the families with housing units without any fake commitment or frauds. All the developers and builders need to register their properties on the State’s RERA portal and it is open to all the buyers who are in search of a commercial or residential property. All the details related to the properties are updated quarterly by the sellers and the authority ensures delivering a property as promised.

Why is Rera important?

While purchasing a housing unit, buyers usually face certain problems like delay in giving possession, the addition of extra charges, change in the carpet area measurements than promised, and so on. Several times, buyers complain about the one-sided favor given to sellers, meeting fraud agents, or being cheated by the developers. Some projects do not get approval from the government and buyers do need to face unwilling problems in between. As this real estate business provides the economy to the government, so when a buyer is deceived, the government also becomes a part of it. Therefore is the introduction of Meghalaya RERA.

The importance of RERA are as follows –

• It eliminates developer-specific risks.
• Offers an equitable transaction between buyers and sellers.
• Promotes transparency, thus no costs or details of the property can be kept hidden from a buyer.
• Reduces regulatory risks as the buyer needs to pay a fine in case of fraud.
• Low risk in the property business as all the builders need to register on the website to carry out a business.
• No more immoral practices of the builders will be entertained.

Wondering about What is Rera approved plots? Plots on which an apartment is being built must be registered on the RERA website of the state by the builders. If all the documents provided about the builder and the project are true as verified by the RERA, only then it will be considered as Rera approved plots. With these housing units, buyers can trust their real estate agents blindly, as the Government is the verifying body and all deceiving activities are prohibited here. All commercial and residential projects must be registered under RERA except for –

• The carpet area does not exceed 500 sq meter
• The number of apartments cannot be more than 8
• The promoter has received the completion certificate of the project before the commencement of the RERA act.
• If the project includes renovation, repair, or re-development. That is, no marketing, advertisements, selling, or allotments are made.

The registration process for Real Estate agents

For RERA Registration in Meghalaya, real estate agents need to follow the points and get themselves registered on the state’s RERA website-

• File an application form and attach all the necessary documents along with the required fees.
• After registration, the regulator will provide you with a registration number. This number is needed to be mentioned during every property sale.
• The accounts book, all records, and documents related to the transactions are required to be maintained quarterly.
• To maintain transparency, he needs to share the entire property details with a buyer.
• If any fraud information is found during the time of registration then the agent may be suspended.

The documents required to be submitted by the builders are –

• Pan Card
• Balance sheet and Income Tax Return of the last 3 years.
• Details of the apartment like the carpet area, or the number of floors, must be mentioned.
• A legal declaration about the land ownership or a consent letter from the real owner along with his documents.
• Details of the land.
• Details of the project.
• All other ownership documents
• Details of all the persons involved like architects, engineers, designers, etc.

Benefits of RERA for Buyers

1. The carpet area of a property is standardized and therefore the builders cannot charge an extra amount from buyers. The price of a property can be calculated by the formula – the cost of property = carpet area × rate per sq ft.
2. The rate of interest on default payment by builders and default in handing a possession by sellers are equal.
3. No chance of bankruptcy as the builder needs to deposit 70% of the realized amount of the project in a different bank account and can withdraw only after completion of the project as certified by a civil engineer, architect, or a chartered accountant. The fund cannot be used for some other projects or purposes.
4. The buyer can withdraw from the project in case of false promises and the seller is bound to refund the advances paid. He may also need to pay the interest along with some compensation.
5. Buyers now need to pay only 10% of the cost of the housing unit in advance or an application fee that was paid before signing an agreement of sale.
6. If the buyer finds any structural defects within 5 years of possession then it will be rectified by the builder with no extra charges. If the builder disagrees to do so, the buyer can claim compensation.
7. In case of delay in possession, the buyer can withdraw from the project and the seller needs to refund the advance payment along with an interest that will be counted from the due date of completion to the date of refund. He can also continue with the project but the seller needs to pay compensation along with an interest counted from the due date of completion to the actual date of completion.
8. If the buyer finds a defect in the property title anytime after purchase, the seller is bound to pay compensation. There is no limitation of time in this case.
9. The buyer must have the entire information about the project. This may include the completion status, the plot layout, etc.
10. Buyers have the right to redress all the grievances against a builder under RERA. He can file an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal and the case will be redressed within 60 days.

Thus Meghalaya RERA has provided several rights to the home buyers and has made strict rules and regulations for builders to prevent any kind of fraudulent activities towards buyers.

Also, Read    RERA Carpet Area: Things You Must Know About 

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