The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) took suo motu action against 628 housing projects across the state for not complying with the regulation to display the registration number and QR code in their advertising materials. Of these 628 housing projects, 312 are from the Mumbai region, including Mumbai, Mumbai suburban, Thane, Nashik, and Konkan. Around 250 projects are from the Pune region, covering Pune city, western Maharashtra, and Marathwada, while 66 projects are from the Nagpur region.
MahaRERA appealed to homebuyers to avoid engaging in transactions with housing projects that lack the mandatory RERA registration number to ensure their investments are secure. Ajoy Mehta, chairman of MahaRERA, stated that promoters of housing projects are not permitted to advertise their projects without a MahaRERA registration number. Starting August 1, 2023, it also became mandatory to display a QR code with every advertisement to enable homebuyers to access important project-related information. Despite this, some developers have been violating these guidelines, leading MahaRERA to regularly monitor and take action against such advertisements.
For effective implementation of the guidelines and identification of violators, MahaRERA has sought assistance from the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). Advertisements are no longer limited to traditional media, necessitating monitoring of new-age formats. The collaboration with ASCI aims to expand the identification of violators in new-age media, supported by artificial intelligence. This collaboration has helped identify violators in newspapers, websites, online video streaming channels, and social media, with the rate of violations significantly higher on social media compared to traditional formats.
As per the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, any project in Maharashtra exceeding 500 square meters or involving more than eight apartments (including plots) must be registered with MahaRERA. No marketing activities or sales are permitted in such housing projects without securing a registration number from MahaRERA. Starting August 1, 2023, developers are also required to provide detailed project information, including the project?s name, developer?s name, registration renewal status, expected date of completion, registration status, pending complaints, litigations, and any recovery warrants issued. A simple scan of the project?s QR code will disclose all this information.
Despite making it mandatory to print the registration number and QR code in all publicity materials, some developers continue to disregard the guidelines. Consequently, MahaRERA initiated suo motu action against such violators and served them show cause notices.
