RERA 5-Check

Why: Section 3(1) bars a promoter from advertising, marketing, booking, selling or offering for sale an apartment, plot or building in a real estate project without registering it with the state Authority. Section 11(2) requires the advertisement to carry the Authority website address and the registration number.

• Ask for the registration number in writing
• Look it up yourself on your state RERA website. Match project name, promoter, address and completion date
• Check whether the project is a phase. Each phase is registered separately (Explanation to s.3)
• If the seller says the project is exempt, ask which exemption: land up to 500 sq m or up to eight apartments, or a completion certificate before the Act (s.3(2)). Thresholds can be lowered by the state State thresholds: to be verified

Red flag: no registration number on the advert, a number that does not match the portal, or "registration in process" for a project already selling.

Why: Section 2(k) defines carpet area as the net usable floor area of an apartment, excluding the external walls, services shafts, exclusive balcony or verandah area and exclusive open terrace area, but including the internal partition walls. Section 4(2)(h) requires the registration to state the number, type and carpet area of apartments.

• Get the carpet area in sq ft or sq m, in writing
• Divide the price by carpet area and compare options on that number
• Ask what the gap between carpet area and the quoted area contains, and what each part costs

Red flag: a price per sq ft that cannot be tied to a carpet area in the registered documents.

Why: Section 4(2)(l)(D) requires 70 per cent of the amounts realised from allottees to be deposited in a separate account in a scheduled bank to cover the cost of construction and the land cost, and used only for that purpose. Withdrawals are in proportion to the percentage of completion.

• Ask which bank holds the project account
• Check the project's progress updates on the authority website
• Ask how the payment schedule is linked to construction stages

Red flag: requests to pay into a personal or unrelated company account.

Why: Section 13(1): a promoter shall not accept more than ten per cent of the cost as an advance payment or application fee without first entering into a written agreement for sale and registering it.

• Ask for the draft agreement before paying beyond the token
• Check the payment schedule, possession date, specifications and carpet area against the registered project details
• Have your lawyer read it before you sign

Red flag: pressure to pay more than the token with no registered agreement.

Why: Under section 18, if the promoter fails to give possession by the agreed date, an allottee who wants to withdraw is entitled to a refund with interest and compensation, and an allottee who stays is paid interest for each month of delay. Under section 14(3), a structural or workmanship defect brought to the promoter's notice within five years of possession must be rectified within thirty days without charge.

• Check that the agreement does not waive these rights
• Note the dispute route for your state (authority complaint process) State process: to be verified
• Keep every receipt, email and message