New Proposals to Indian Real Estate Bill Could Land Errant Developers in Jail

Proposed amendments to the Real Estate Bill 2011 could mean that anyone selling a project that hasn’t previously been registered could land up in jail, and may also face a hefty fine.

According to an article in the Hindu Business Line.com, these latest amendments are all part of the draft Real Estate Bill, and the Ministry of Housing and Urban Property Alleviation is looking for public comments on the draft within the next week or so. The first draft of this bill was prepared back in 2009, and has substantially changed after many consultations with stakeholders. Apparently the government is hoping to table the bill during the winter session of Parliament, and hopes to get it passed by the monsoon session next summer.

The Real Estate Bill would only affect property transactions, but all states would be required to adhere to these regulations. Government officials have plans to set up a Real Estate Authority in every state, and there are intentions to put a dispute settlement mechanism in place to resolve any conflicts between purchasers and developers.

These new amendments would also mean a developer will first have to register with the authority and will be able to upload relevant information to the authority’s website, which will include the registered sales deed, and additional information about architects and engineers. It could also include useful documents for potential purchasers such as the title deed and approval certificate.

Developers contravening these rules could be asked to pay up to 5% of the total project cost, and failure to pay could result in this penalty being doubled. Developers are concerned that these new regulations only affect them, and point out that if a local authority delays occupancy certificates they could be held liable for the subsequent late running of the project.