RERA Simplified: What’s the Difference between RERA Registered and RERA Approved Properties?
The Real Estate Regulatory Authority, or RERA Act was formed to make the real estate industry more transparent while addressing the existing discrepancies and issues. It has played a tremendous role in transforming the sector by making it more accountable to buyers.
For customers to make the most of the benefits offered by RERA, it’s important to understand the key differences between the terms “RERA Registered” and “RERA Approved” because although the two terms sound familiar, there is a fine yet crucial difference between them.
Read along to find out what they are and how you can use this knowledge to have a secure home-buying journey.
What is RERA?
With a vision to create transparency in the real-estate business, the Government of India enacted the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) in 2016. The Act focuses on promoting transparency, accountability, and efficiency in every real estate transaction by ensuring fair practices, timely transfer of ownership, and working as a dispute resolution authority.
Why was RERA formed?
The need to establish RERA was due to a rise in delayed projects, unscrupulous selling practices, and an overall lack of transparency in the real estate business. Buyers had to go through numerous challenges while buying their dream property with misleading advertisements and investing in potentially risky properties due to a lack of regulatory oversight.
RERA worked as a body to address these issues effectively while restoring confidence in the real estate industry among buyers.
Now that we know the core purpose of RERA, let’s clear out the confusion about the terms “RERA Registered” and “RERA Approved”.
Why the confusion?
From a real estate developer’s perspective, RERA certification is the most important literature that signifies the authenticity of commercial and residential properties. It also works as an excellent marketing tool to attract more customers with a promise of transparent selling practices and utmost security for residents.
That’s why most real-estate firms put “RERA Certified” and “RERA Approved” to make the property more appealing to prospective customers.
Now the question is, which property is better? RERA Certified or RERA Approved? Because though the meaning of both terms is almost similar, one is significantly better than the other in the long run.
To answer this question, let’s take a look at both terms individually to get a clear understanding of them.
What is RERA Registered?
RERA Registered, or RERA Certified real estate projects have officially registered themselves in their respective state’s RERA authority. It is mandatory by law for real estate businesses to register every project of theirs under RERA while adhering to its strict regulations and guidelines.
Builders must provide crucial project information like current project status, timeline, layout plans, and financial details to keep a track record of its progress with the government. Having a clear record of project timelines and clearly-defined features through RERA regulations ensure transparency and accountability, thus making it an ideal property for customers.
Having a RERA registration makes buyers trust the project as they can rest assured that the project is made with the utmost care towards maintaining the quality and integrity of the construction while being legally accountable in case of any mishaps.
What is RERA Approved?
The term “RERA approved” often refers to the project acquiring the necessary approvals from the state’s RERA body to build a property. However, this term does not officially exist.
Builders often use this term to show that the property is designed with compliance from the Government of India. Yet, buyers must conduct thorough research on the property to check its official status on RERA registration and factors like timely completion or adherence to the promised specifications.
A customer must verify the property’s authenticity through various means like digital search, peer reviews, previous projects from the builder, etc. to make an informed decision before taking a definitive step towards buying the property.
To sum it up, When the property is RERA Registered, you can rest assured that the property follows the highest standard in quality, integrity, and legality by following the policies stated by the Government of India. RERA Approved property, on the other hand, needs a further thorough inspection to make an informed decision.
It’s important to note that nowadays these terms are often used interchangeably. So, make sure to discuss with your property dealer or builder to see the actual proof of RERA registration.
With that said, here are a few handy tips to make an informed decision every time you buy a property.
- Always do thorough research on the developer, project, and their past projects along with any past legal issues to get an initial idea of the project you’re planning to invest in.
- Verify the builder’s state-wise RERA details as proof of their authenticity.
- Check the project’s RERA documents along with the brochure, layout plan, and completion timeline.
- If possible, seek legal advice from trained professionals who are experienced in real estate matters. A professional legal consultant can help you understand the authenticity of claims made by the developers.
- Check the project’s track record to find any delays in previous work, as it causes financial and emotional distress.
- Stay up-to-date on RERA’s Complaint Redressal Mechanism by learning how to register a complaint and seek an ideal resolution of any grievances you’ve faced during your home-buying journey.
Conclusion
The Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) Act is designed with buyer’s rights in mind to bring significant reforms in the real estate sector as a whole. It’s important to make the most of this Act while making a sound, well-researched, and profitable purchase of real estate.
The first step for it is understanding the small differences in legal RERA terminologies, namely RERA Registered and RERA Approved. Through this blog, our goal was to help you understand the key difference in real estate terminologies to help you make a beneficial and informed decision while buying property.
Remember, thorough research on property and developers, understanding the latest state-wise RERA norms, and knowing your legal rights is the key to making your property-buying experience a hassle-free one.
