MahaRERA Orders Builder to Pay Rs 1.6cr After Homebuyer Challenges Stamp Duty Clause

The Bombay High Court's MahaRERA has ruled in favor of a homebuyer who challenged a builder's claim that it would not bear the stamp duty and registration charges on a property. The homebuyer, who paid Rs 1.6 crore for the plot, had initially understood that the builder would take care of these expenses.

However, when it came to execute the sale agreement, the builder backtracked on its promise, leaving the homebuyer dissatisfied with the project.

The homebuyer approached MahaRERA with a complaint. Alleging that the builder had failed to register the sale agreement as required by the RERA Act, 2016. MahaRERA found that the builder had breached Section 13(1) of the Act by accepting almost the entire amount from the buyer without completing the necessary formalities.

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Rs 1.6 crore: The amount paid by the homebuyer for the plot.

April 27, 2026: The date of the occupation certificate (OC), which was issued by the builder.

January 1, 2026: The date from which interest is payable to the homebuyer, as per MahaRERA's order.

According to advocate Siddharth Chandrashekhar, who practises before the Bombay High Court, MahaRERA's ruling indicates that a builder cannot unilaterally pass on statutory costs to a buyer through a sale deed when earlier documents submitted to RERA had already stated that the builder would bear those costs.

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MahaRERA's decision also acknowledged that interest would be payable to the homebuyer from January 1. 2026, until April 27, 2026, the date of the OC. The builder is now required to fulfill its obligations under RERA.

This includes maintenance, as per the relevant provisions of the law and RERA rules.

The builder must now comply with the requirements of the law. This includes maintaining corpus funds, conveyance deeds, and other applicable requirements, as stipulated in the RERA Act and relevant regulations.