By Suyash Malpani, Intern, Lex Maven
Buying a Flat or a house with hard-earned money is a big dream for everyone but not getting it on time is quite frustrating. There are laws to protect such homebuyers but very less people are aware of such laws.
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 is the act that was passed to protect the interest of the homebuyers. Its jurisdiction lies in all Real state matters. Section 18 of the said act protects the homebuyers if a builder fails to give possession of an apartment on time. According to section 18 of RERA,2016 if the promoter fails to complete or is unable to give possession of an apartment, plot, or building in accordance with the terms of the agreement for sale on a specified date then a homebuyer have two options-
- Allottee or homebuyer may withdraw from the project and can ask for a refund with interest.
- Allottee or homebuyer if did not intend to withdraw from the project, he/she shall be paid, by the promoter, interest for every month of delay, till the handing over of the possession.
The rate of interest is prescribed under rules, which is 2% State Bank of India’s marginal cost of lending rate.
If a builder refuses to pay the interest to the homebuyers or allottees then a homebuyer can also file a complaint against the builder with the authority or adjudicating officer. The rights of home buyers in such case are protected under Section 31 of the RERA.
Sometimes it may also happen that a builder fails to mention the date of possession in the agreement which further aggregates to the mental and financial trauma for the homebuyers. Taking a serious note of this kind of issue in the case of Vrajesh Hirjee vs. Skyline Construction Company, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority Mumbai directed Skyline Construction Company to refund Rs 1.06 crores, along with an interest of 10.55% to the Appellant Vrajesh Hirjee for failing to hand over possession on time and keeping the date of possession clause empty in the registered agreement.
Thus, under RERA there are remedies available for the aggrieved homebuyers but due to lack of information very few complaints are registered under RERA and as a result people face losses and suffer from mental and financial trauma, therefore, it is very essential to know these laws for every homebuyer to safeguard himself/herself in such type of cases.
