Property registrations across the state, particularly in Mumbai and Pune regions, increased significantly in June. While the revenue collection in the first quarter of this fiscal was 78% less than the corresponding period last year, in June, it was much better—67% less than the same period in 2019-20. Developers and officials were optimistic and said the numbers will only get better from here on.
In June, property registrations across the state rose to 1.6 lakh, showing a significant recovery from 1,000 in April and 43,000 in May. There was a slow but steady revival of registrations in June in all the districts, especially in Mumbai and Pune, Inspector General of Registration and Stamps (IGR) Omprakash Deshmukh told .
More than 2.1 lakh documents were registered for the first quarter this financial year, but they fell by 75% when compared to last year’s nearly 8.1 lakh documents.
Revenue collection of Rs 1,613.9 crore from April to June too plunged by 78%, data provided by the property registration department showed. Last year, during the same period, the collection was Rs 7,501 crore.
Officials said the registration process stopped after the lockdown in March. There was some revival at the end of April, but it picked up from mid-May when the offices opened in green zones. Online registrations continued during this period. Registrations are expected to rise once the offices that are not in containment zones open too.
They may also rise in July once the proposal to allow developers who have sold 25 flats to register the clients’ documents from their own offices comes into effect. Builders and developers said the move would be a big boost.
Vice-president of NAREDCO Manju Yagnik said the convenience to register from the builder’s office will help developers and buyers, and the state government.“Allowing developers to have the home buyer register his or her home from their office will also bring a sense of security and ease of doing business in an uncertain pandemic-stressed world,” she said. This year will be one of technological upgrade, moving the home marketplace to the digital platform, she added.
Home buyers can soon register agreements at builders’ offices
By July-end, property buyers will be able to register their agreements online in the builder’s office itself, without travelling to the sub-registrar’s office. The software, which is awaiting clearance from the government-notified cyber security agency, will not only create digital infrastructure to enable all developers to register sale agreements, but also reduce footfalls at the property registration offices.
The software using broadband will make it easier for developers with just a RERA registration number, a sanctioned building plan and registration with a developers’ association. Property registration officials said the online option will only be available at the first sale or for the primary market for easier verification process. The re-sale market has been kept out of this convenience. “The entire process will be monitored by our office. There will be extra checks on the builders allocated this software,” said Inspectorate General of Registration and Stamps Omprakash Deshmukh. Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India national president Satish Magar, among the developers who had the software to register his projects in Nanded City, said that he found the process convenient.
