Relief for homebuyers as UP eases steps to register stuck flats in Noida

The Uttar Pradesh government on Tuesday waived off penalties and slashed the interest applied on dues by real estate developers, paving the way for potentially hundreds of thousands of homebuyers to be able to register properties in their name.

- Rajesh Kumar Singh and Vinod Rajput

In a statement, the government said that it had accepted some recommendations of central committee headed by former Niti Aayog chairman Amitabh Kant, and will allow property registrations to take place if real estate companies clear 25% of their dues, which in itself was shaved off significantly as the government removed the penal interest applied between April 2020 and March 2023.

The decision will likely help a large section of homebuyers in Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna expressway areas, where estimates put the number of stalled and unfinished housing projects between 240,000 and 350,000.

While a large part of these stuck units are simply unfinished, many of these are where the builder has completed projects but has not settled land dues to the regional authority. It is only when these dues are cleared that the authorities hand out what are known as completion and occupancy certificates, which are required for a homebuyer to be able to register a property.

If only cases where people have received possession of their properties but have not been able to register them in their names are considered, Tuesday’s decision will benefit 165,000 homebuyers if their real estate companies pay up the 25% due.

The three authorities in Gautam Budh Nagar district are struggling to recover at least ₹70,000 crore in the form of land cost dues from around 400 realty projects. In most cases, the promoters have cited financial crisis for being unable to complete the projects or settling the dues.

The decision will also help bring stalled projects back on track, an official said.