The growing population in this state has led to the development of the real estate sector to a great extent. However, with development comes the need for proper rules and regulations to maintain it. That is when the RERA Act in Odisha comes into action and prevents people from getting cheated in the Real Estate market. Continue reading to get more details and information on it.

The Government of Odisha introduced RERA Act in Odisha on May 1, 2017. The main objective of this Act was to maintain and gain the trust of real estate sellers and buyers in Odisha. In addition, this Act works to regulate the stakeholders and real estate market and make it more organised. With this Odisha Real Estate Regulatory Authority's introduction, sellers and buyers can maintain a harmonious environment.

Follow these steps to register under Odisha RERA Act.

Step 1 - Visit the official website of RERA Odisha.

Step 2 - Enter whether you want to register as an agent or a project.

Step 3 - In case you want to enter as a promoter, click 'no', and you will be redirected to a new page.

Step 4 - Fill out the application form.

Step 5 - You will receive an email for verification on the previously entered mail id.

Step 6 - Visit the home page of Odisha RERA again.

Step 7 - Choose the registered projects and agents.

Step 8 - Enter your name and other necessary information.

Step 9 - Fill out the detailed application form.

Step 10 - Upload all the necessary documents.

Step 11 - Verify and then declare the form.

Step 12 - Pay the necessary charges.

After following these steps, the registration under Odisha RERA will be successful.

Documents that are needed to register for a project under the RERA Act in Odisha are-

• Promoter’s last 3 years’ income-tax report
• Passport-size photograph of the promoter. If the promoter is a team of a few more people, then photographs of all members including the director and the chairman should be attached.
• Aadhar and PAN card of the promoter, and if there is more than one promoter, then the Aadhar and PAN of all of them are necessary.
• Legal title deed or any other relevant document with authentication is required. These documents should mirror all the legal rights of the promoter. If the legal deed is unavailable, promoters can submit the non-encumbrance certificate. However, revenue authorities above the post of Tehsildar can procure this document.
• The project's approved layout plan.
• The collaboration agreement's copy and owners' consent should be provided if the promoter is not the owner of the land on which the project is being developed.
• Approved sanction plan of the project.
• Project’s well-made location details which shall include the longitude, latitude and boundaries.
• A full-proof plan of all the facilities that the buyer will get after buying the project and it will include the fire-fighting provision, drinking water, evacuation provisions, electricity and renewable energy usage.
• Number of apartments, carpet area, and the open terrace area and balcony area, if there is any.
• An invoice including estimation and details regarding the conveyance deed proposed and a sales agreement.
• If any real estate agent is associated with a project, then details like name and address of the agent have to be provided by promoters.
• Details regarding all individuals, including architects, contractors, structural engineers and any other person that is involved in development of the project.
• Promoters must provide well-defined information on the garages and parking on sale.
• Promoters have to submit the declaration of Form B. This form ensures that neither the promoter nor anyone involved in the project has done any discrimination in allotting the projects.

Project agents need to follow these steps for registering under the RERA Act.

Step 1 - Visit the official website of RERA Odisha.

Step 2 - Click on the option that asks you to register as the project or agent.

Step 3 - You will be redirected to another page, select whether you are already registered as an agent or promoter, if not then select the “no” tab.

Step 4 - An application form will appear on the screen. Provide the necessary information as needed according to the format given in the registration form for agent or promoter as chosen by you.

Step 5 - Create a unique user ID and a strong login password.

Step 6 - Click on the “register” button.

In order to register as a promoter under RERA as a real estate promoter, one needs to follow these steps-

Step 1 - Visit the official portal of RERA Odisha.

Step 2 - Click on the " Do you want to register your project/ as agent?" option.

Step 3 - You will be redirected to a page asking whether you are already registered as a promoter or agent, select "no" if not registered.

Step 4 - Read the guidelines carefully and fill in the application form with the necessary information.

Step 5 - Click on the "Proceed to login" button.

Step 6 - Enter your password and username.

Step 7 - Visit the dashboard page and then register yourself.

The State Government of Odisha has brought a few amendments to Odisha RERA Act. Odisha's Housing and Urban Development department has notified about these new modifications. 

• As per the new amendments, promoters must follow and abide by the time that he disclosed at the time of registration with authority. However, suppose there is a delay in completing a project or an increase in development charges after the expiry of a project happens. In that case, the buyer will not incur additional costs.
• Buyers and investors have rights to visit the house or plot they bought to check on the development of the project. In addition, these amended rules also state that promoters will hand over the project’s common areas to the association of allottees after duly obtaining the occupancy certificate from the concerned authorities.
• If no local law is present, promoters have to hand over the plans and other necessary documents, including the common areas, to the association of buyers, investors or any other concerned authority. They have to do it within 30 days of getting the occupancy certificate.

Here is a detailed step-by-step guide to checking the application status in the RERA portal in Odisha.

Step 1: Visit the official website of the Odisha RERA. 

Step 2: Navigate to the projects or agents’ options according to the requirements.

Step 3: Sign up and provide the registration number. 

Step 4: After entering all these details, you can view your application status on the screen.

 Individuals searching for registered project need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Visit the official website of RERA Odisha. 

Step 2: Click on the Projects Tab. This tab has two more tabs: Offline Projects and Online Projects. Individuals can find the projects registered online under one of the online or offline project lists.

The projects that come under RERA Odisha offline are registered offline. At the same time, the projects covered under the online list are those registered through RERA online registration. 

Step 3: Individuals can search for the registered project by searching the promoter or the project’s name.

Following these steps, individuals can search for registered agents under RERA Act Odisha.

Step 1: Visit the official website of Odisha RERA.

Step 2: Upon visiting the website, individuals will find the tab with the option 'agents'. Individuals need to click it.

Step 3: The list of registered agents will then appear on screen. Individuals can also search the agent's name in the keyword section to find the registered agents.

Anyone can file a complaint with the RERA Odisha online. To do so, individuals need to follow the following steps.

Step 1: Individuals first need to click on the option that asks if they want to complain after visiting the official website of the Odisha RERA. 

Step 2: In the second step, individuals must fill in the form with the required details.. The information will be saved, and then individuals can submit it to the authority.

Follow the below steps to check status of your complaint:

Step 1: Individuals can check the status of the complaint by clicking on the complaint status, which is available on the RERA Odisha website

Step 2: After individuals click on the Complaint Status Tab, the screen will show the list of complaints that have been made so far to the authority and their statuses. Alternatively, individuals can also search the status of any complaint by searching it via any keyword associated with it or via the nature of the complaint.

To access the list of rejected projects, individuals need to go through the following steps.

Step 1: Visit the official website of the RERA in Odisha. On visiting the website, individuals can find a tab which will display the option’ Projects’.

Step 2: Under the ‘Projects’ tab, individuals will find two more options- online and offline. Online denotes the projects which were registered through RERA online. The offline option denotes the projects which were registered on RERA online.

Step 3: Individuals can find the list of rejected projects from both the online and offline tabs.

Homebuyers in Odisha, interested to know about the progress of the project they have purchased, need to follow these steps to access the progress report.

Step 1: Individuals need to visit the official website of the RERA Odisha online. On visiting the website, individuals can find the tab with the option ‘Projects’.

Step 2: Under the 'Projects' tab, individuals can find two other options- 'Online' and 'offline'. Individuals can search for both 'online' and 'offline' projects and find the registered projects.

Step 3: On clicking the registered projects, individuals can find the project names and then click on the 'view details' option to check the project progress.

The pointers to keep in mind for Projects under RERA in Odisha are as follows:

• Security

The RERA act requires buyers and investors to keep 70% of the amount of money in a separate account. This money will be provided to the builders for land purchasing, development and construction of a project. However, project developers have the right to ask for only 10% of the property's cost before signing the agreement.

• Fairness in Sale Terms

Under the instructions of RERA, developers can sell any project solely based on the carpet area. Promoters cannot sell any project in super-built-up areas. If by chance, any project is delayed, investors and buyers have the right to get a full refund. Promoters can refund either in monthly instalments or give the entire money back at once. The choice lies in the hands of investors and buyers.

• Authorisation

Builders cannot sell, book, build, advertise or invest in any project without the regulator's registration. After completing the registration process, Odisha RERA will provide a unique project-wise registration number, and the advertisements for investments should have them. 

• Transparency in Transaction

Builders need to submit all the real documents related to any project they undertake. Although they can make changes in the plan, they need to take the consent of every buyer to do so. For example, if any builder wishes to add one room to any building or flat, the builder has to take permission from the buyers and investors before doing it.

• Quality

If any buyer has any issues within five years of purchase, a builder has to rectify them within 30 days of filing it. If builders cannot fix the buyer's problem, he has to pay compensation after the buyer files a complaint.

• Carpet Area Rules Set by RERA Act

According to rules set by Odisha RERA Act, builders can sell any property only based on the carpet area. Thus, to do so, they must also follow some rules set by the authority for the carpet area. The rules are as follows -

Moreover, this helps analyse the rate per square foot of the projects and makes it easier to compare.

The benefits that individuals can derive from the RERA Odisha are -

• Buyers will get detailed information about the project on an online platform, as the Real estate Regulatory Authority made it compulsory for mandatory registration.
• Due to the fact that a seller can collect only 70% of the money, it will ensure the promoter will complete the project on time.
• Buyers will get fair compensation for the delay in the project handover as the developer has to pay 2% of interest.
• Homebuyers need not worry if they find any defects or flaws in their homes within 5 years of purchase.  The promoter has to rectify the issues within 30 days of filing a complaint, that too, without any additional charges. 

To conclude, RERA Act in Odisha is an innovative and effective initiative taken by Odisha Government to ensure the home purchasing and selling process is corruption free and smooth. In addition, the online presence of the portal has made it easily accessible for all home-buyers.