The housing finance giant has subsequently sold the project to an asset reconstruction company (ARC). Despite being envisioned as one of the most luxurious real estate projects in Vadodara, Agora City Centre has been plagued by controversies and challenges since its inception.

The project, developed by Manav Infrastructure under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), was built on land that formerly housed the Sanjaynagar slums.

As part of the redevelopment, high-rise residential buildings were constructed on a portion of the land and allocated to the slum’s former residents. These homes were completed and handed over to the beneficiaries as planned.

The remaining land was set aside for Balaji City Centre, a grand mixed-use development comprising retail, commercial, and residential spaces.

It was also designed to include a high-end clubhouse and other luxurious facilities. Promoted as a unique project and the first of its kind in Vadodara, Balaji City Centre faced significant challenges and controversies from the very beginning.

One of the first allegations against the project was that it had been launched without the necessary permissions. Additionally, constructing a retaining wall within the Vishwamitri River’s boundary raised environmental concerns. Further complications arose over the project’s height, which led to the removal of certain floors.

The project came under scrutiny again after Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) conducted investigations during floods and identified encroachments that were reportedly obstructing the river’s natural flow. This resulted in VMC demolishing the project’s clubhouse, further tarnishing its reputation.

The challenges deepened for Manav Infrastructure following the untimely death of its chairman, Ashish Shah, in 2022. Shah, who passed away due to dengue in Ahmedabad, was the driving force behind the company and the Agora City Centre project. His demise marked a significant setback for the project and its developers.

Amid these ongoing difficulties, LICHFL issued a notice last month, inviting agencies to take over the project’s stressed loan. According to the notice, the developers owed a total of ₹711.2 crore, prompting LICHFL to initiate the process of identifying an ARC to handle the loan.

In accordance with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) guidelines, LICHFL disclosed the transaction in a recent statutory filing to stock exchanges.

The bidding process resulted in the identification of CFM Asset Reconstruction Private Ltd as the ARC to manage the stressed loan. CFM Asset Reconstruction paid ₹250 crore to LICHFL for the acquisition of the loan.

This development highlights the financial challenges surrounding the Agora City Centre project. With LICHFL officially transferring the loan, CFM Asset Reconstruction will now take charge of recovering the outstanding debt.

The declaration underscores the significant hurdles faced by this ambitious project and marks a critical step in addressing its financial woes.

The post LIC Housing Finance Labels Agora City Centre as a Stressed Asset appeared first on .

Located in Mallampet Village, Medchal-Malkajgiri district, the project was initially scheduled for completion by July 1, 2023, with a grace period extending to December 2023.

However, with significant delays, RERA has directed the developer to finish all pending work within 90 days from November 14, 2024.

The action follows a complaint filed by flat buyers Allam Nagaraju, S. Arun Kumar, and others, who alleged multiple violations, including delays in project delivery and deviations from the approved construction plan.

According to the complainants, Sterling Homes did not adhere to the sanctioned plan, particularly in constructing the clubhouse and ensuring a compound wall to separate the project from its adjacent Phase II development.

They also accused the developer of misleading buyers by sharing amenities between Phase I and II without prior disclosure. Further, they alleged that Sterling Homes relocated the Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) in violation of the approved plan and began work on Phase II before completing Phase I, thereby compromising the rights of Phase I buyers.

In response, Sterling Homes defended itself in its submission to Telangana RERA (TGRERA), citing external factors such as regulatory hurdles, heavy rainfall, labour shortages, and disruptions caused by the pandemic as reasons for the delays.

The developer maintained that the deviations from the approved plan were minor adjustments made to ensure structural integrity and had been approved by the relevant authorities.

Sterling Homes denied allegations of malafide intent, asserting that Phase II construction was initiated only after securing the necessary approvals and that buyers had been informed about the shared amenities.

It further claimed that financial constraints, exacerbated by the complainants’ alleged non-payment of dues, contributed to the delays in completing Phase I.

In its ruling, RERA ordered the developer to complete all remaining work in the Sterling Orchids Phase I project, including promised amenities, strictly in line with the sanctioned plan, within 90 days.

Additionally, RERA mandated Sterling Homes to pay interest at a rate of 10.95% per annum to the complainants for the amounts already paid, as outlined in the Agreement of Sale.

At the same time, the complainants were directed to clear any pending sale consideration amounts within 45 days to facilitate the project’s progress. Both parties have been instructed to fulfill their respective obligations to ensure the project’s timely completion and prevent further disputes.

The post Telangana RERA Penalizes Sterling Homes ₹18 Lakh for Project Delays. appeared first on .

Of these 628 projects, 312 are from the Mumbai region, including Mumbai, Mumbai suburban, Thane, Nashik, and Konkan. About 250 projects are from the Pune region, covering Pune city, western Maharashtra, and Marathwada, while 66 projects are from the Nagpur region.

To protect investments, MahaRERA has urged homebuyers to avoid transactions with housing projects that lack the mandatory RERA registration number. “Promoters of housing projects are not permitted to advertise their projects without a MahaRERA registration number.

Starting August 1, 2023, it is also mandatory to display a QR code with every advertisement, enabling homebuyers to access important project information.

Despite this, some developers are violating these guidelines. Therefore, MahaRERA is always on the lookout for such advertisements and regularly initiates action against the violators,” said Ajoy Mehta, chairman of MahaRERA.

For effective enforcement of these guidelines and to identify violators, MahaRERA collaborates with the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI). This partnership aims to monitor both traditional and new-age advertising formats, with the aid of artificial intelligence.

The collaboration has successfully identified violators across newspapers, websites, online video streaming channels, and social media. Notably, the violation rate is significantly higher on social media compared to traditional advertisement formats.

Under 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 allowed without securing this registration number.

Furthermore, starting August 1, 2023, developers are required to provide detailed project information, including the project’s name, developer’s name, registration renewal status, expected completion date, pending complaints, litigations, and any recovery warrants. This information can be accessed by scanning the project’s QR code.

Despite these mandatory requirements, some developers continue to disregard the guidelines, prompting MahaRERA to initiate suo motu action and issue show-cause notices to the violators.

The post MahaRERA Takes Action Against 628 Projects for Registration and QR Code Non-Compliance appeared first on .

More than 222 projects, or 46.25% of the 480 projects registered in April 2023, have been prompted by the regulator’s rigorous action to submit their quarterly updates within the allotted time frame.

Remarkably, only two projects out of 746 (or 0.02% of all projects registered) in January 2023, roughly 19% (or 131 out of 700) in February, and about 34% (or 150 out of 440) in March 2023 had given quarterly updates prior to sending out any warning.

“In accordance with the regulations, housing developments must submit a Quarterly Progress Report (QPR) to MahaRERA and keep it updated on the internet. This facilitates the purchasers’ understanding of the project’s accurate and current status. It’s encouraging to see that projects responded 46.25% in March compared to 0.02% in January. However, MahaRERA demands and aims for a 100% response, according to Ajoy Mehta, Chairman of MahaRERA.

The regulator halted the registration of more than 3,388 real estate developers’ projects in September due to their failure to provide the required quarterly updates of project-related data.

According to the Real Estate (Regulation & Development) Act of 2016, this data needs to be updated. According to the rule, real estate developers need to register their projects with MahaRERA and update the relevant data every three months.

This is intended to assist buyers in understanding the status of the project, including the number of sold units, the amount of money collected, the expenses incurred, and whether or not those expenses are reasonable given the physical development.

MahaRERA has begun enforcing strict measures against projects; thus far, 741 projects have been placed on hold, and 195 of those have complied further, resulting in the issuance of withdrawal orders. At the moment, 546 projects are on hold, and their bank accounts have been frozen.

The post The action taken by MahaRERA over non-compliance leads to a rise in quarterly project updates. appeared first on .