On April 29th, 2024, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) issued a circular requiring all housing projects in Maharashtra to engage only trained and certified agents starting January 2024. MahaRERA has now decided that new or renewed agent registrations from January 2024 must include a certification obtained after training. This is aimed to ensure customers receive accurate information from knowledgeable agents when making home buying decisions. Till last year, over 44,000 agents were registered in the state, but 13,785 failed to renew their registrations on time, as of March 2024. By enforcing this new policy, MahaRERA aims to promote transparency, accountability and build trust between developers, agents and customers.
On April 29th, 2024, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) issued a circular emphasizing the need for all housing projects to have trained and certified agents. Starting January 1, 2024, promoters of all the housing projects across Maharashtra are required to disclose names and addresses of the trained and certified agents they are transacting with for sales and marketing of their respective projects.
Failing to comply with this directive could result in penalties against such projects, as stated in an earlier MahaRERA order from this year. Action can be initiated against the developer and agents even during the project's development stage.
Effective January 1st, 2024, new MahaRERA regulations mandated that new agent registrations or renewals require a certificate. Pre-existing agents and developers’ staff had to acquire this certification by and display it on their website.
Following a January 10th, 2023 order requiring certification, training for new agent registrations and renewals was delayed. MahaRERA granted several extensions to meet this requirement. They organized awareness programs with industry experts to provide guidance on various topics. Agents had a year to obtain the mandatory certificates.
Over 44,000 real estate agents had registered in Maharashtra, which is one of the biggest real estate markets in India. These agents had to renew their registration every five years but 13,785 of them failed to do so. Most of the registrations lapsed between May and June 2022.
As a year has passed since the certification order, MahaRERA has decided that it will not allow new or renewed registrations without certification.
Developers were instructed to only engage certified agents post-January 2024. January 2024's order also specified enforcement for non-compliance. As some developers disregarded reminders, tougher enforcement was needed. Penalties may include rejecting project registrations, revoking existing registrations, or imposing fines.
For a stable real estate sector, agents are crucial for homebuyers and developers, alike. Often, agents are the first point of contact for homebuyers and the agent introduces them to the projects. Clients get primary information regarding the project from them.
Hence, agents need to be aware of the importance of RERA regulations. They must be knowledgeable about various aspects such as project credibility, validity of land rights, RERA-compliant carpet area, commencement certificate, local authority approvals, potential litigations, and financial capabilities of developers. Customers make home buying decisions based on this information. Therefore, MahaRERA has made it mandatory for agents to obtain certification after training to ensure customer satisfaction.
The mandatory certification demonstrates MahaRERA's commitment to protecting homebuyers and establishing professional standards in the real estate sector. By enforcing this new policy, MahaRERA aims to promote transparency, accountability and build trust between developers, agents and customers. In the long run, this will help strengthen consumer confidence and support a sustainable growth of the housing market in Maharashtra.
Advertisement
Facebook
Whatsapp
