Can a person looking to rent a house, be refused tenancy by housing societies? If legal experts are to be believed, housing societies frame their own laws. There are broad guidelines, or bye-laws, that every housing society adopts when it is registered. These rules and regulations govern the day-to-day functioning of the housing society. These are very essential for smooth running of the society.

Ajay Kumar, a 25 year old qualified professional has a harrowing experience whenever he has to look for a rented place. He has no criminal record either yet; he is refused leased accommodation by most housing societies. The reason? He is single. “Being single is a disadvantage because many housing societies prohibit their members from leasing their apartments to bachelors. They refuse to give no-objection certificate (NOC) to flat owners who agree to lease out their property to a group of singles,” Ajay explains.

Although disallowing tenancy to bachelors is the most common reason, it is not the only one, according to real estate experts. Generally, a group of singles is more likely to rough up the place and become annoyance for other members of the society. Moreover, bachelors tend to relocate more frequently and this doesn’t provide stability in rental income as compared to that from families.

Among other reasons for refusal of tenancy is having pets like dogs or cats. It is feared that pets my dirty the society premises or harm children. Further, people with certain meal preferences have also been denied lease. And the starkest is the rejection of tenancy on the basis of religion.
But, can the housing society overrule the flat owner? The by-laws of the society are framed under the Co-operative Societies Act, which provide specific guidelines to be registered with the municipal corporations, its governance structures, common area maintenance rights, dos & don’ts, accounting practices and various other covenants related to leasing/ purchasing a house within the society. In addition, The Act also offers a degree of flexibility to societies to add regulations of their own. For example, if there is a rule for tenants that they cannot park their vehicles in the parking slots allotted to members, then the housing society has every right to enforce it.

Individual societies are legally empowered to deny tenancy based on their by-laws. Although it is the legal right of the owner to lease his property, the housing society also has a say in it.

Can the by-laws be legally challenged? If a tenant feels a housing society has been unfair in any aspect, he can file a police complaint against it, claiming infringement of his rights as a citizen. “Any regulation which infringes on the fundamental rights of an individual can be challenged in the court of law. Every Indian citizen has the right to reside anywhere in the country and discrimination is not permitted on the basis of religion, caste, sex, eating habits or marital status,” proclaims Vinod Sampat, president, Cooperative Societies Residential Users Association, and a real estate lawyer.

Builder offers flats cheaper than MHADA, sued for misleading ad

A real estate firm, Ekta World, in their recent ad campaign showed an image of Anil Kapoor, who is endorsing the brand, claimed that it is selling flats at rates cheaper than MHADA’s. Ashok Mohnani, the owner of Ekta World, claimed that while in Virar MHADA’s latest homes were priced at Rs 6,500 per sq ft; the rates of his project are Rs 5,500 per sq ft.
However, Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority are furious with the construction company because the claims of the firm are false. MHADA officials have asked their Vice President S S Zende to initiate action against the firm for misguiding people. Zende said the proposal to initiate action against the builder has been moved to the vigilance department.
The builder on the other hand, maintains that he has done nothing wrong. “If MHADA serves me notice, I will reply to it,” Mohnani argued, adding that When MHADA-held lottery in February sold flats at prices higher than the market rate, we decided to launch such a campaign and it is solely based on the data that is available on the MHADA website.
The website of Ekta World shows a comparison between their rates and MHADA’s in Virar. According to their calculation, the per square meter rate quoted by the builder is R63, 418, while MHADA sold the same at Rs 73,816.

The housing authority has consulted Advertising Standards Council of India, that talks about fair competition and the technical department will check whether the prices and the areas of both the projects are the same and if not, then the advertisement will prove to be misleading. “We have goodwill and it no one can fiddle with it,” said a MHADA official.

Mumbai Housing and Area Development Authority, MHADA is known for providing affordable homes to families belonging to all income groups. The body runs various schemes under which flats are constructed and sold at reasonable prices through the medium of lottery.

Once again, applications for the purchase of 972 tenaments have been invited by MHADA. The registration of applicants will commence at 2 pm tomorrow, June 23 (Thursday) and end at 11:59 pm on July 24 (Friday). Interested applicants may submit Demand drafts at designated Axis Bank branches from June 24 to July 27.

To know more, click here >> https://mhada.maharashtra.gov.in/?q=mhadalottery16

To apply, visit >> https://lottery.mhada.gov.in/

While the cheapest houses available in this scheme are in Malvani, Malad with a carpet area of 16.72 square metres for Rs 8.17 lakh, the most expensive houses are located at Shailendra Nagar, Dahisar, priced at Rs 83, 86,000 and the carpet area of 78.47 square metres.

The winners of MHADA lottery 2016 will be declared on August 10. You can check the list on the MHADA website.

In order to bring uniformity in the property taxes levied in the suburbs and in south Mumbai, The Brihan Mumbai Municipal Corporation had introduced a new tax system from rateable to capital value in 2010 based on the built-up area, but was strongly opposed by all sections of the society, especially the residents of south Mumbai who enjoyed the ready-reckoner benefits but were paying property taxes on the basis of prevalent meagre rents. The residents of the suburbs of Mumbai were, however, paying higher property taxes.
The BMC is finding it increasingly difficult to refund a whopping Rs. 1,300-crore in property tax to those tax payers who paid their taxes during 2010-2014; the civic body has decided to tweak the existing tax formula to evade reimbursement to the affected.
Including the built-up area in the capital value-based property tax formula was opposed by the BMC’s corporators across party lines then. Citizens had also challenged this in the Bombay High Court. While the HC had asked the BMC to calculate the property tax on the carpet area till a decision is arrived at, citizens were given a choice whether to pay according to the controversial formula or the interim formula. Although most people paid as per the new formula, if the BMC continues accepting tax payments based on the interim formula, it would have to incur losses to the tune of Rs. 1200 – 1300 crore.
Further, in 2015, the BMC came up with a new formula by adding the factor ‘1.2’ in the calculation. The Standing Committee as well as the High Court demanded to know the basis of the formula and its legal validity. The civic body then sought the advice of Attorney General.
Finally when the Attorney General has given its opinion, the BMC has tabled the proposal where it tweaked the property tax formula in the name of revenue neutrality and will now charge 20% added tax from citizens.

Sonam Kapoor got hooked to a 7000 sqft duplex for 30 crore!

The media is buzzing with reports of Bollywoodeans looking for their own homes sans their parents. After Priyanka chopra, Alia Bhatt, Shraddha Kapoor, we’ve learned that fashion diva Sonam Kapoor has moved into a plush duplex in Signature Island located in Bandra-Kurla complex.

Interestingly, Ms. Kapoor ditched the Bollywood capital Juhu and chose a business hub for her pad. Sonam’s building is populated with the likes of industrialist Gautam Adani, Deutsche Bank co-chief executive officer of Asia/Pacific, Gunit Chadha, chairman of JM Financial Nimesh Kampani, former Citigroup head Vikram Pandit, Harsh Mariwala of Marico, Kishore Lulla of Eros International and Ashok Wadhwa of Ambit Holdings, Jalaj Dani of Asian Paints, Pramit Jhaveri, CEO of Citi India, and Mickey Doshi, MD and country head at Credit Suisse.

The actress was initially hunting for a bungalow, but when she came across this project, she thought of booking a duplex. The house is a sprawling 7000 sq ft space that runs across the 3rd and 4th floor of the building. And apparently, the duplex has cost Sonam a whopping Rs. 30 crore!

The house overlooks some of the top hotels in the neighborhood, and the building’s proximity to American Consulate also makes it paparazzi proof. The building also sports a mini-theatre, where Sonam could host movie screenings.

The Khoobsurat girl’s abode has been designed by her maternal aunt Kavita Singh who is an interiors expert. The attraction of Sonam’s house is a lavish bathroom with a Jacuzzi attached and also a walk in wardrobe, which suits perfectly for the fashionista of Bollywood!

Under construction flat? Service Tax levy may be exempted

A High Court ruling is all set to bring cheers to thousands of home buyers who have booked under-construction properties before 2012. In a landmark judgement on a wake petition filed by two buyers who had purchased flats from Sethi Buildwell Pvt. Ltd in the Max Royal group housing project in Noida’s Sector 76, The HC has ruled that builders or developers cannot charge service tax from home buyers for under-construction property. However, they can charge extra under ‘Preferential Location Charges (PLC).

The judgment will be applicable to houses purchased before July 1, 2012. In addition, HC has also said that if service tax has already been collected by the developer, then the revenue department shall refund the same to buyers with 6% rate of interest.

“Mom will design my new home,” says Varun Dhawan

After actors like Alia bhatt, Taapsi Pannu, Shraddha Kapoor ventured out into the real estate market to buy their own properties in the maximum city, it is now the turn of the Badlapur boy to move out of his parents’ home.

Varun Dhawan has recently bought a four-and-a-half BHK flat in the same building where he is currently staying with his parents, David and Karuna Dhawan in Juhu area of Mumbai.

“I have been wanting to buy my own apartment since a while now, but not by borrowing money from my father,” he says. Varun’s bachelor pad is on the first floor of this building. “It is always nice to stay closer to your parents,” the 29-year old reveals.

While Varun’s co-star Alia Bhatt is getting her Mumbai home designed by interior designer Richa, for Dhawan kid, mommy knows best! “My mom will design the interiors of my new home,” he chuckles.

Varun is expected to move into his own den by December this year.

You can also reach him on :

Facebook :  www.facebook.com/VarunDhawan.co

Twitter : twitter.com/varun_dvn

Indiabulls to develop plot in Worli, Mumbai

Tapir Realty Developers, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Indiabulls Real Estate (IBREL), has entered into a joint development agreement with Oricon Properties, a subsidiary of Oricon Enterprises, for development of 7,810 sq metres plot located on E-Moses Road at Worli in Mumbai, the company said in a statement filed on the BSE.

IBREL, which has presence in Mumbai, NCR and Chennai, is developing over 10 projects in India with total saleable area of over 30 million sq ft.

The company has reported consolidated net profit of Rs 305.04 crore; while the company’s total income stood at Rs 2,785.84 crore for the financial year ended 2016.

Hiranandani’s Powai retail space to be acquired for $1 billion

Developed over a decade, the Hiranandani Group, a partnership between brothers Niranjan and Surendra Hiranandani, which owns 4.5 million square feet of office and retail space in Powai, a suburb of Mumbai, will soon be acquired by Canada-based Brookfield Asset Management. This is said to be Mumbai’s largest property transaction in the commercial space which is worth $1 billion or Rs. 6700 crore.

“The process to restructure Hiranandani brothers’ partnership firm is already at an advanced stage and this will clear the way for the transaction. The deal is scheduled to conclude very soon,” a source familiar with the development said.

The developer group which holds the Powai assets is presently a corporate entity and this move may be a precursor to either listing of a Real Estate Investment Trust that would hold the office assets or stake sale.

Hiranandani’s Powai offices are fully leased to giants like Tata Consultancy Services, Nomura Group and Deloitte Consulting India.

Brookfield Asset Management is a global alternative asset manager which has been very active in India off late. The company acquired 100% stake in four special economic zones owned by Unitech Corporate Parks (UCP) and 60% stake in its two other assets in the country for Rs 3,500 crore in 2014.

Dancer Lauren buys her own home in Mumbai!

Mumbai, the city of dreams, is rightly called Mayanagri. It might be easier to fulfill most of your dreams here but for owning a house. Countless people have reveries of living here but buying a property here sure burns a huge hole in your pockets.

Nonetheless, some are lucky to own an apartment here while many others struggle to turn their dream into reality. And, B-town dancer Lauren Gottlieb is just one of them.

The mind-blowing dancer who has made appearances in some reality shows and a few Bollywood movies has finally got the keys to her new home in Mumbai. After three long years of struggle & adversities, the US beauty feels that this is her home away from home. “It is extremely difficult to get a property of your choice in Mumbai especially if you are a foreigner, single, dancer and linked to bollywood. And I’m all of these. I simply wish to thank god and my family for my accomplishment,” the emotional Lauren wrote on Instagram.

You can also reach her on :

Facebook : www.facebook.com/LaurenGottliebofficiall

Instagram : www.instagram.com/laurengottlieb