After Maharashtra, Kerala to have real estate regulator

Construction, sale and maintenance of residential apartments, commercial complexes, office structures and IT/ITES buildings would come under the purview of the new law. Developers would have to register projects with the authority before going for the advertisements, seeking investors or customers.

However, the new law would not be applicable to real estate projects erected on land measuring up to 25 cents and complexes which have less a dozen flats.

Customers can approach the authority with complaints regarding inferior quality of construction materials, delay in completing projects and violation of any condition in the agreement. The authority would have the right to cancel a developer’s registration if there are grave complaints regarding the completion of a project. Construction firms would have the responsibility to make repairs (for defects not caused by owners) for two years after handing over the property.

A real estate developer has to deposit with a bank a portion of the advance amount collected from the customers. The amount could be even up to 70 percent of the advance paid by the customer.

The real estate agents or brokers, too, will have to register with the authority to ensure transparency in dealings. It also envisages registration of residence associations after handing over the units in a project.