Real Estate Bill expected to bring solutions to buyers problems

The Real Estate Regulatory Bill, to be tabled in Parliament in the monsoon session, is expected to have some solutions for the worries of home buyers. So, does the Bill offer a smoother process of buying your dream home? Does it have a better grievance redressal mechanism? According to credit rating agency CRISIL, the Bill will improve buyers' confidence and boost demand for residential real estate.

It will incorporate mandatory disclosure clauses for builders, providing greater clarity on the project standards and time-lines for completion. The current form of the Bill is diluted from the draft published in 2012.

Home buyers face several problems with the builders while buying flats/houses. Builders quote one price, usually lesser amount, in the advertisements and when buyer comes to the stage of agreement for sale the builder quotes higher price. If questioned, the answer often is that the advertised rate was an offer that is over now.

That's not all. Most builders and brokers heckle you to decide immediately, saying there are many buyers waiting to lap up the property. But once you have paid, they seldom live up to their promises. If the flat is to be delivered one year later, you would be lucky to get it after 18 months. In addition, builders keep demanding extra money for parking, extra floor space or under some other head. The worst part: Buyer-builder agreements never favour the buyer.

There are legal remedies and in recent times, the courts have aggressively penalised some leading builders for changing rates or delaying project completion. However, too long-drawn a process puts off litigants.