BENGALURU: The Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-Rera), set up to safeguard homebuyer interests, has failed to recover Rs 666 crore — or 88% — of the Rs 758 crore it had ordered builders to pay their customers under the head of refund for incomplete/delayed projects, among other things.
As on Dec 31, 2024, K-Rera had issued recovery orders worth Rs 758 crore against 278 builders in cases filed by 1,660 homebuyers since 2017. But it had recovered only Rs 92 crore, according to official data.
TOI spoke to several affected buyers who, even after receiving favourable rulings, have yet to get back the money paid to buy their dream homes.
Mohan Pulliah, 53, paid Rs 46 lakh for a 3-BHK flat in a project in 2014 and never saw the structure becoming a reality. After following the builder for years, he grew tired and approached the Rera court, which passed an order in March 2023 asking the builder to pay him back. But two years on, the money is yet to return to him.
“I invested my hard-earned savings and have been waiting for my money, hoping that the officials will do something. Buying a home is a big investment, something we do for our future. K-Rera issued a refund order, yet officials took no action. If they just pass orders and do nothing, what’s its purpose? We’ve done everything legally possible, yet our money is still stuck,” Pulliah said.
A 48-year-old man paid Rs 26 lakh in July 2016 to buy a flat at an apartment complex in Kannamangala village. “With the project incomplete, I was left in financial distress. Rera passed a judgment in Dec 2023 asking the builder to pay back my money, but the builder didn’t care. There has to be a system in place to look into recovery. The amount is specified and even govt officials were directed to take action. If the builder isn’t paying, then confiscation of property should have happened — there are so many ways to act. But if the system doesn’t move and even courts can’t enforce their own orders, what can we do?” he asked.Surrendra, a representative of Karnataka Home Buyers Forum, said, “K-Rera not owning the responsibility of money recovery from promoters is becoming a big problem for homebuyers.”
Source Homevior.in
