Builder to Society Handover Checklist

Lifecycle of a typical Multi-Dwelling Complex (Apartment/Villa Complex):

1. Purchase of a Land Bank by the Builder from the Landowner(s)
2. Construction of the Building and sale of individual Units to Owners (typical duration of 1-3 years)
3. Handover of the Units to the Owners for Occupation, and maintenance of the Complex by the Builder
(typical duration of 1-3 years)
4. Formation of the Owners Association/Society and handover of the Maintenance & Control by
Builder to the Society (typical duration of 3-5 months)
5. Management of the Complex by the Owners Society (typical duration of 25-40 years)
6. Redevelopment of the Complex by the Owners Society in collaboration with a Builder.
It is evident that the crossover between Point 4 and Point 5 above is crucial. A Property which will be
managed by the Owners Association for 25-40 years and beyond need to be handed over well to the
Society.
Society Handover
Here is a comprehensive checklist any Society will require for a smooth Handover from the Builder:
Checklist for Handover from Builder to the Society / Owners Association
Property
P1. Property Documents executed between the Landowners and Builders
P2. Approved Construction Plan
P3. Completion Certificate
P4. Occupancy Certificate
P5. NoC from Fire Department
P6. NoC from Electrical Inspector
P7. Clearance to operate Elevators
P8. Property Insurance Document (if any)

Operations
O1. Drawings of the Electrical Wiring including Earthing Points
O2. Drawings of the Water Piping
O3. STP Drawing & certification by Architect/Pollution Control Board
O4. Waste Disposal system with approval from Pollution Control Board
O5. AMC Documents – Lift, Generator, Transformer, ApartmentADDA portal, etc.
O6. Invoices and Warranties for all Assets – Pumps, Lift, Generator, Transformer, Pool Equipments,
Gym Equipments
O7. Maintenance Schedule for all Assets
O8. Work Schedule of all Staff maintaining the complex

Finance
F1. Payment Record for Taxes towards Property, Construction and Maintenance
F2. Payment Record for City/Municipality Water Supply
F3. Record of Maintenance Expenses while under Builder’s Maintenance
F4. Record of all Collections made from the Owners (except purchase related)
F5. Contracts with existing Maintenance, Security staff (could be same as L6)

Legal
L1. Sale Deed copy/Proof of Ownership of all Owners
L2. Share Certificate Copies for all Owners (where applicable)
L3. Khatha Certificate Copies for all Owners (where applicable)
L4. Car Parking Allocation Record

L5. All Legal Documents executed between the Builder & Landowner (could be same as P1)
L6. Contracts with Vendors
L7. Undertaking by the Builder regarding Indemnity & Limitation of Liabilities of the Society for all
transactions prior to the Handover Date
Checklist for Handover from Builder to Owners Association
Each apartment complex has its own Aparttment Owners Association for maintenance of the apartment and its
amenities. But before formation of the Apartment Owners Association, it is the duty of the builder to maintain the
apartment and its amenities. Most developers provide a corpus fund for the maintenance of the apartment and its
amenities. The maintenance will be carried out by the builders till the formation of the Apartment Owners
Association. After completion of the project and formation of the Apartment Owners
Association, the builder needs to handover the leftover money, audited accounts of the maintenance fund and
interest earned. Besides, the builder also has to handover the apartment and its amenities to the Apartment
Owners Association.
Checklist for Handover from the builder
The Apartment Owners Association needs to get documents and audited accounts from the builder during the
handover of the apartment.The following is a list of items that the builder has to handover to the Apartment
Owners Association during the handover of the apartment and its amenities.
 Proof of approved floor plans: Builder has to handover documents and proof of approved floor plans
toApartment Owners Association during handover of the apartment and its amenities.
 Copy of Building plan and approval plan: All building plans need to be approved by the local
authority. The builder has to handover a copy of the building plan and approval plan to the Association to
prove that the apartment and all its amenities are constructed as per the plan approved by the concerned
authority.
 NOC from local authority: No objection Certificate or NOC is issued only to an apartment or building that
does not object to the covenant of the certificate. Builder has to handover the NOC from the pollution
board, electricity, water and fire department needed for the Apartment Owners Association.
 Completion Certificate (CC): An apartment or building cannot be occupied without a Completion
Certificate. Issuing of Completion Certificate will ensure that the owner has constructed the building as
per an approved plan. The builder has to handover the Completion Certificate to the Association.
 Transfer utility connection: It is the duty of the builder to transfer the utility connection to the Association
during handover of the apartment and its amenities. In case the builder fails to transfer the utility
connection, he has to give an NOC to the Apartment Owners Association for transferring utility
connections such as electricity and water connection to the Association.
 Handover of documents: Handover of documents such as original registration documents, parental
documents, drawings, concerned authority approvals etc. to the association.
Other documents or items to handover
Following are other important documents or items that a builder needs to handover to the Association along
with the handover of the apartment and its amenities.
 Audited accounts of the maintenance and interest earned
 Details of deposit, if any
 Apartment tax related details
 Insurance details for the building
 Handover of the left over money
 Handover of the office room, departmental stores, records, documents etc. to the association.
 Contract or agreement details of maintenance staffs and security service
 Issue of consent letter from the Electricity Board for change of name
 List of amenities in the apartment
 List of services offered by builder after handover of apartment
 Handover of the function hall, parking lot, swimming pool and other amenities to the association
 Contracts on the structural issues
 Insurance details for the building
 Car Parking allocation and marking
 Repairs or service (for any of the houses, if the owner asks for it)
After the formation of the Apartment Owners Association, the builder has to handover the maintenance fund or
corpus fund to the Apartment Owners Association. In some cases, the builder keeps some income generating
areas with him though the Association is formed. The Act gives apartment owners alone the right to generate
income from common areas and facilities in the apartment. In case the builder fails or refuses to hand over the
apartment or its amenities after completion of construction and formation of the Apartment Owners Association, a
criminal offence could be filed against the builder by the association. After formation of the RWA or apartment
owners association, the builder has to handover the maintenance fund as well as the documents relating to the
apartment and its amenities to the Apartment Owners Association.

Pasted from <https://www.commonfloor.com/guide/handover-of-apartment-to-association-1691.html>

Is your builder taking you for a ride over maintenance charges? Here's help
BY SUNIL DHAWAN, ET ONLINE | UPDATED: MAR 11, 2017, 04.24 PM IST
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The actual amount is not mentioned and the builder indicates a range if asked by the buyer during the initial
stages of the deal.
There's a million yards to walk before one settles down in one's own home. This is true especially
for those who buy their house from a developer.

From the time one books a house to actually getting its possession, there can be plethora of
charges, some disclosed upfront, while others are buried under the loads of agreement papers,
which are typically signed blindly by the buyers.

One such charge is the maintenance agreement between the buyer and developer. Most buyers
do not pay much heed to maintenance charges in the initial stage of booking, but it comes back
to haunt them as the possession date nears.

What are maintenance charges?

Every housing society has some common areas and as per the Real Estate (Regulation and
Development) Act or RERA (well, even before the Act came into existence), the promoter or
the builder is responsible for providing and maintaining essential services on reasonable
maintenance charges to be paid by the residents.

Once the society's Resident Welfare Association (RWA) is formed, and the maintenance work is
handed over to it, the builder can no longer charge for maintenance. RWA can then devise its
own set of rules for maintenance charges.

Maintenance charges are applicable for parks, gardens, lobbies, stairs, elevators, fire escapes,
entrances and exits of the building, community centres, common parking areas, installations of
central services such as power light, air conditioning, and things that are necessary for a
society's existence, maintenance and safety.

Are they compulsory?

Maintenance charges involve a contractual element between the buyer and the developer. It is
included in the allotment letter, initially issued to the buyer after he has paid the booking amount.

The actual amount, however, is not mentioned and the builder indicates a range if asked by the
buyer during the initial stages of the deal.

How are they calculated?

Not all societies have the same structure when it comes to maintenance charges. In some, it may
be flat and fixed from each household, irrespective of the area of the apartment. In some, they
are calculated on the basis of the area of the flat.

Says Ashwinder Raj Singh, CEO, Residential Services, JLL India, "The funds will be collected
from the residents, based on either the principle of equal participation, where the flat sizes are
almost the same, or per square feet (psf) charges for varying flat sizes." For a resale property,
where the RWA handles the maintenance, the model by-laws for RWA might give indication of
the charges.

How much is the amount and when to pay?

They are not the same in every society and can be anywhere between Rs 2 psf to Rs 25 or more
psf. So, for a 1,500 psf apartment, if the maintenance charge is Rs 3 psf per month, the amount
will come to about Rs 4,500 per month.

The builders may ask for 12 months, or 24 months, of maintenance charges in advance at the
time of possession. Once handed over to the RWA, the frequency of collecting the maintenance
charges is decided by it.

How much is reasonable?

In the absence of a regulatory mandate, can the builders charge arbitrarily, and are there any
rules? Says Singh, "No, the developers can't charge maintenance charges arbitrarily. Even
though many state governments have made rules regarding such charges, the most effective and
useful legislation that provides clear guidelines is from the state of Maharashtra."
Some heads of expenses could include repairs and maintenance of the building, service charges
for housekeeping, security, common area electricity, equipments, expenses on repairs and
maintenance of the lift, including charges for running the lift. Says Singh, "As per widely followed
norms, 0.75 per cent per annum of the construction cost of each apartment is charged towards
expenses for regular repair."

Even though this could be the biggest expense head, the actual maintenance charge should be
around it. Let's work some numbers. Say, a 1,800 sq. ft. apartment costs Rs 5,000 psf amounting
to a total cost of Rs 90 lakh. If 0.75 per cent per annum goes towards repairs, it amounts to Rs
67,500, i.e., Rs 3 psf per month. In such a scenario, the maintenance charges of Rs 3-4 look apt.
The builders should explain if there is any drastically different figure.

When does it hurt?

If the applicability and the quantum of maintenance charges remain unknown at the time of
booking, and the buyer gets to know of them only at the possession stage, it will, obviously, come
as a surprise to the buyer. Also, if the builder increases the amount from the following year
indiscriminately or fixes the amount on ad hoc basis, it hurts the residents.

So, at the time of buying, can these charges be disclosed upfront? "Absolutely. However, certain
charges are variable like water charges, upkeep of services, unforeseen repair, etc., that can't be
decided while booking of the apartment," informs Singh.

RERA to the rescue

On possession, the builder makes the buyer enter into a maintenance agreement clearly
specifying the actual amount and the frequency. But, later on they can be fixed mutually between
the RWA and the builder.

"Yes, that should ideally be the practice and RERA has made it a part of its provisions to ensure
that residents don't have to pay ad hoc charges. The clear guidelines in the rules shall make the
process smooth for the buyers," says Singh.

Resident right and defaults

As a resident paying maintenance charges, you can look at the actual amount spent by the
builder on maintenance, along with the break-up. Singh says, "It is the residents' right to be
aware of the amount spent by the builder on maintenance. Till a society is formed, a builder pays
for the maintenance and has to keep his books open for scrutiny by the residents."

If the owner has put his flat on rent, it still doesn't absolve both him and the tenant from the
responsibility of paying maintenance charges. The final responsibility even if the flat remains
unoccupied, rests with the owner.

However, he can make the tenant pay the charges after putting it in the agreement letter. In case
of default, the RWA may cut off or withhold supply of essential services such as supply of water,
electricity, lights in passages, staircases, lifts, etc.

Conclusion
It's always better to have a fair idea of the maintenance charges at the time of booking an
apartment as they are recurring monthly charges. Also, try and participate in the process of
arriving at the charges when the RWA takes the matter in its hands.

Pasted from <https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/real-estate/are-you-ready-for-the-maintenance-

charges-of-your-flat/printarticle/57549620.cms>