How to Check RERA Registration in Maharashtra

Before you pay a booking amount for a new flat in Mumbai or Pune, check that the project is registered with the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA). MahaRERA also publishes lists of projects it has frozen for missing deadlines, which are worth checking before you look at anything else. This guide covers the search, the record, those lists, and the complaint route.

What RERA is and why it matters

RERA is the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, a national law. Each state sets up its own authority and rules. Maharashtra's main rules for projects and agents are the Maharashtra Real Estate (Regulation and Development) (Registration of Real Estate Projects, Registration of Real Estate Agents, Rates of Interest and Disclosures on Website) Rules, 2017.

Under section 3 of the Act, a promoter (the builder or developer) may not advertise, market, book or sell flats in a project until it is registered. Small projects are exempt: land of up to 500 square metres, or no more than eight apartments, counting all phases together. Each phase of a phased project needs its own registration.

Registration brings duties that protect buyers:

Advertisements must carry the registration number and the authority's website address.
A promoter cannot take more than 10% of the cost as an advance before a written agreement for sale is signed and registered.
70% of the money collected from buyers must go into a separate bank account and be spent only on that project's land and construction.
The promoter must keep the project's public record up to date.

How to look up a project

Open maharera.maharashtra.gov.in. In the "Home Buyers" menu, under "Projects", choose "Registered Real Estate Projects".
Keep "Registered Projects" selected. The other option, "Revoked Projects", searches projects whose registration has been cancelled.
Type the project name or the MahaRERA registration number in the first box. You can narrow the search by pincode, completion date and district. Mumbai projects are listed under Mumbai City or Mumbai Suburban district, and projects elsewhere in the region under their own districts, such as Thane. Filters for carpet area and completion percentage are also available.
Click "Search". No login or CAPTCHA is needed for the list. Each result shows the registration number, project name, promoter, location, district and last-modified date, with links to the certificate and any extension certificate.
Click "View Details" to open the full record. The public view asks you to type the characters from a CAPTCHA image before it shows the record.

The same menu also has "View Projects on Map".

The promoter shown is the legal entity that registered the project, which is often not the brand on the hoarding. Match it to the seller in your agreement.

What the registration number looks like

MahaRERA project numbers start with P followed by eleven digits. A Mumbai Suburban example is P51800002451, and a Pune example is P52100051257.

Agent numbers start with A, for example A51800033854.

Check that the number in the advertisement, the brochure and your draft agreement is exactly the same and leads to the same project and promoter.

What to check on the project record

MahaRERA's own guidance for home buyers sets out what to check on the record.

What to check	What to look for
Promoter	The legal name and details of the firm or company that registered the project.
Title and encumbrances	The legal title report and any loans, mortgages or litigation on the land. MahaRERA advises checking for title updates every quarter. It also points buyers to CERSAI, the central registry, to check for security interests on the project.
Approvals and plan	Sanctioned building and layout plans, the commencement certificate and its validity, and later revisions, permissions and NOCs.
Agreement	MahaRERA advises comparing the agreement you are given with its model agreement for sale, and reading the deviation report on the website, which shows where the promoter's version departs from the model.
Carpet area	Check that the carpet area in your agreement matches the area on the portal.
Progress	Building-wise work progress in the task and activity section, the status of common areas and amenities, certificates from the project's professionals, and the project summary report.
Complaints and litigation	Complaint and litigation details and units sold. MahaRERA also publishes a "Project Wise" complaints report with the number of complaints for each project.
Completion	The occupancy certificate covering your unit and the architect's completion certificate (Form 4) before you take possession.

The abeyance lists

In the "Home Buyers" menu, "Abeyance Project List" has four lists:

"Due to Lapse of Completion date"
"Due to Non Compliance of QPR", meaning the promoter has not filed quarterly progress reports. This list shows the month and year of the missed report.
"Due to Common Bank Account", for projects sharing one bank account instead of keeping a separate account each.
"As per Authorities order & other reasons"

MahaRERA states that for projects on these lists, the bank accounts are frozen and the promoter may not sign agreements for sale or sale deeds with buyers until it complies. Search each list by project name or registration number.

The same menu also links to revoked and void registrations, deregistered projects, de-registration notices and projects before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).

Expired or extended registrations

A registration runs until the completion date the promoter declared. Under section 6 of the Act it can be extended for force majeure, meaning war, flood, drought, fire, cyclone, earthquake or another natural calamity, or in other reasonable circumstances where the promoter is not at fault. The total extension under that second route cannot exceed one year.

In Maharashtra the promoter applies in Form E with an explanatory note on the reasons for delay, and an extension is granted in Form F.

To spot a problem:

Check the "Extension Certificate" entry on the search result. It reads "N/A" when there is none.
Compare the completion date on the record with today's date.
Look for the project on the "Due to Lapse of Completion date" list.

Which account to pay into

The Act requires each project to keep a separate account for 70% of buyers' money. Ask the promoter for that account's details in writing, check that it matches your agreement and demand letters, and pay only into it. If the project appears on the "Due to Common Bank Account" list, do not pay until the promoter shows the authority has lifted the abeyance.

Checking an agent

Brokers who sell flats in registered projects must register too, and an agent must not help sell an unregistered project. Open the "Real Estate Agent" menu and choose "Registered Agents". Search by agent name or registration number, or by pincode. Each result shows the agent's certificate number with links to the details and certificate.

A Maharashtra agent registration is valid for five years and can be renewed. The same menu links to "Real Estate Agents whose Registration validity has lapsed" and to a list of deregistered agents.

Red flags

The project is not in the search, or the number in the advertisement leads to a different project or promoter.
Only one phase or wing is registered, but you are being sold another.
The completion date has passed and the extension certificate reads "N/A".
The project is on any of the abeyance lists, or among revoked or deregistered projects.
The carpet area or terms in your agreement differ from the portal.
You are asked to pay more than 10% before a registered agreement for sale.

How to complain

Complaints are filed online. Open "Complaint Redressal" and choose "Make a Complaint", which takes you to MahaRERA's online portal, where you create an account. While you register, the portal offers MahaRERA's Conciliation Forum, which uses neutral mediators, as an alternative.

There are two forms under Maharashtra's complaint rules of 2017:

Form A goes to the authority, for any breach of the Act, rules or regulations.
Form B goes to the adjudicating officer, through the authority's office, for compensation under sections 12, 14, 18 and 19 of the Act.

The rules set a fee of Rs 5,000 for each form, paid digitally. A complaint can be filed only against a registered project. If a project is not registered, use "Inform Non-Registration" instead.

After filing, MahaRERA asks complainants to submit a convenience set of key documents of no more than 20 pages. Hearing notices are sent to your registered email and shown on your dashboard, so check it regularly.

What registration does and does not guarantee

Registration gives you legal footing. If the promoter fails to hand over on the agreed date, you can ask for a refund with interest or, if you stay, interest for each month of delay. Defects in structure or workmanship reported within five years of possession must be fixed within 30 days.

Registration does not mean the project is well built, fairly priced or financially sound. Most of the record is uploaded by the promoter, so compare it with what you see on site. It also does not replace a lawyer's check of the land title and the building approvals.

Key points

Find the project in MahaRERA's registered projects search and match the P number and promoter to your papers.
Check the three abeyance lists before you pay anything.
Read the completion date, the extension certificate entry, the quarterly progress and the complaint count.
Pay only into the project's separate account, and no more than 10% before a registered agreement for sale.
Check your broker under "Registered Agents" and make sure the registration has not lapsed.

Sources

This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Rules and rates change; check with a lawyer, chartered accountant or your bank before you decide.

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