Can I take possession and register the flats paying final payment?
Will I get Khatha transfer without OC. I want to sell one flat and rent out the other one. Will there be any problems for this.
I was told that most of the flats in bangalore are without OC. and if I go to Consumer forum it will go for a long period. If I want to go to consumer forum, can I do after taking possession?
Please give me a clear answer. and help me.
There has been lot of inquiries regarding OC.
The builders or developers do not obtain OC so easily owing to the deviations in constructions.
The builder may send you an email or communication stating that Final Payment Request Letter (FPRL) with details of the final amounts due to be paid by you. It goes on to inform you about the consequences of delay. “Please note that if you fail to take possession of your unit, for any reason, by ……. (date), you will be charged Rs 10,000 per month as Holding and Caretaker Charges, till the unit is taken over. In case the unit is not taken over during the Warranty Period you will not be entitled for any rectification in your Unit. In case you fail to register your unit by ……. (date), you will be charged Rs 10,000 as one time documentation, coordination and logistic charges.”
What has been described is often the regimen followed by builders in handing over “completed” apartments to buyers. In all of this, one very important factor has been forgotten. It is called the Occupancy Certificate.
The Occupancy Certificate (OC) is a document issued by a statutory authority (such as BBMP and BDA in Bangalore) and it gives the applicant (builder) permission to “occupy” the property. It is required for commercial buildings and for residential buildings that have more than five units. OC is issued for an entire building, or a part thereof, and is not given to individual flats. As per Section 5.6 of the Bangalore Municipal Building Bye-laws 2003, “The Authority shall decide after due physical inspection of the building (including whether the owner had obtained commencement certificate as per section 300 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976 and compliance regarding production of all required documents including clearance from the Fire Service Department in the case of high rise buildings at the time of submitting application) and intimate the applicant within thirty days of receipt of the intimation whether the application for occupancy certificate is accepted or rejected. In case, the application is accepted, the occupancy certificate shall be issued in the form given in Schedule IX provided the building is in accordance with the sanctioned plan.”
Simply put, this means that the builder, on completion of the building, needs to apply to the statutory authority (BBMP/ BDA) for OC. If the building has been built as per the sanctioned plan, and fulfils the other legal requirements, the authority is supposed to issue the OC within 30 days. It is illegal for the builder to hand over the flats to the buyers without receiving the OC. It is illegal for the flats to be occupied / rented without the OC. -
The law states that it is illegal for a building without OC to be occupied. There are several reasons for this, including: The building is not as per the sanctioned plan, has illegal unsanctioned floors/ walls/ extensions The building is not safe to inhabit because of quality of construction, safety of stairs/ lifts, electrical safety, fire safety, airline safety, etc. The building is not capable of fulfilling its mandatory role in managing its waste, sewage, water.
Builders, without fulfilling the mandatory terms of sanction and/or promises to the buyers are eager to hand over and move on to the next project. By getting people to live in the flats, they create a shield for themselves. They also escape from the delay penalty clauses that are in the agreement. - Buyers are eager to take possession of their homes. Many are not even aware of OC and what it means. - Water, sanitary and electrical connections are being given on a permanent basis even without OC. - There are tenants waiting to rent the property. - The law is not being enforced by the government authorities. Finally, it is the buyer who pays the price. BBMP is quite aware of hundreds of buildings without OC. Owners are paying property tax, but still, until they get the OC, they face the risk of losing the property.