Realtors: Rules will weed out illegal operators, but hike rates

Rohit Gera, managing director at Gera Development Pvt Ltd and vice president of CREDAI, Pune, said that RERA would see a reduction in launches for a short time and an escalation of real estate rates. “The Act will help weed out fly-by-night operators… only well-funded professionals will remain in the business. As the consumer will be assured of the timely delivery and quality of the project, the extra cost will be welcomed by him,” he said.

However, Sachin Kulkarni of Vastushod said RERA would not affect illegal operators too much. “The Authority will only act if a formal complaint is lodged and it might ask the district collector to take action. Illegal operators anyway do not adhere to rules, so this will not affect them at all,” he said. However, Kulkarni also said that the cost of real estate would go up once RERA comes into effect.

The state government has already appointed former IAS officer Gautam Chatterjee as the first real estate regulatory authority and there are talks of setting up offices in areas such as Pune and Nagpur. Housing activists have demanded that more such offices should be set up in the state. However, activist Vijay Kumbhar said the rules passed by the government have shielded the promoter from making public the quarterly details of ongoing projects. This move defeated the very purpose of the act, said the activist. Withholding this information would render the Act toothless and not allow consumers to take action against the builder, said Kumbhar. Ambiguity in terms of RERA’s jurisdiction over projects below 5,000 square feet and reduction of compound interest were also “pro-builder moves,”said the activist.