Stamp duty collection in Maharashtra declines 17% in Oct-Nov

During October and November, the stamp duty collection in Maharashtra declined by 17%, resulting in a decline in real estate transactions of Rs 548 crore. According to data, the stamp duty and registration fee dropped by Rs 3,220 crore in October and Rs 2,672 crore in November. In FY22, October witnessed the highest revenue collection. Officials said that the decline in November was expected, following the average revenue collection in the rest of the month. During November, the real estate transactions had increased steadily. In 2020, the country's economy was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns, which decreased sales. However, the reduction in stamp duty resulted in a turnaround. The real estate transactions were higher this year than the previous year. Between April to November, Maharashtra collected stamp duty and registration fees worth Rs 17,332.5 crore, about 69% more than the revenue collected during the same period last year of Rs 10,270 crore. Former President of the Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry, Nayan Shah, said that sales in the real estate sector have improved since 2020, with economic improvement, but getting home loans is still a challenge. Housing loans take time to get cleared because people have to address the pending loans first. In April, the revenue generated from stamp duty and registrations in Maharashtra was Rs 845 crore. It increased to Rs 1,157 crore in May, to Rs 1,831 crore in June and Rs 2,411 crore in July. It further increased to Rs 2,537 crore in August, Rs 2,654 crore in September and Rs 3,220 crore in October, which is the highest since April, resulting in increased sales and housing demand. Image Source Also read: West Bengal extends stamp duty, circle rate reductions till Dec 31