PUNE: Unceasing complaints from homebuyers over delays in recovering compensation from developers, including the issue being raised in the state assembly in July this year, have prompted state govt to step up enforcement of MahaRERA’s recovery orders.
The regulator has now recovered Rs369.5 crore against orders worth Rs1,037.9 crore issued for 1,531 complainants since 2017, officials told TOI on Thursday, with a large tranche of the total collected this year amid expedited action.
The issue of delays in executing recovery warrants was raised during the last monsoon state assembly session. Revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule had at the time assured the House that resident deputy collectors and additional district collectors would be appointed as dedicated recovery officers to speed up the process.
Of the total compensation recovered, around Rs260 crore was collected between 2017 and Dec 2025, while another Rs110 crore was recovered in 2026, according to MahaRERA. The authority’s stated recovery rate is 45%.
Mumbai suburban recorded the highest recovery at Rs142.3 crore against orders worth Rs415.9 crore, followed by Mumbai city at Rs85.8 crore against Rs231.8 crore. Pune recovered Rs68.6 crore against orders worth Rs230.5 crore. Thane recorded recoveries of Rs36.8 crore against Rs87.5 crore, while Alibaug recovered Rs12 crore against Rs27.5 crore.
MahaRERA said outstanding compensation had been reduced to zero in Nagpur, Palghar, Nashik, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Sindhudurg, Solapur and Chandrapur. Recoveries in these districts ranged from Rs9 lakh in Chandrapur to Rs9.7 crore in Nagpur.
Under state govt’s procedure, resident deputy collectors and additional district collectors in each district were designated as dedicated revenue recovery officers for MahaRERA cases. The authority said the arrangement had helped expedite recoveries.
Under Section 40(1) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, MahaRERA issues recovery warrants when developers fail to pay compensation within the stipulated period. The warrants are sent to the district collectorates concerned for execution under the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, placing the actual recovery process in the hands of the revenue administration.
However, recovery proceedings involving another Rs209.16 crore remain restricted at the moment. Of this, Rs104.70 crore relates to cases pending before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), while Rs104.46 crore falls under the Maharashtra Protection of Interest of Depositors Act, officials told TOI.
Officials explained that a quasi-judicial body such as MahaRERA has the power only to issue recovery orders on a case-by-case basis. Under section 40 (1) of the 2016 Real Estate Act, actual implementation of orders rests exclusively with the revenue authorities, namely, offices of the district collectors, in accordance with the provisions of the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code.
If the erring developer fails to comply with the compensation recovery order to pay the homebuyer within a stipulated time, MahaRERA issues a recovery warrant and sends it to the district collectorate of the respective area to initiate recovery proceedings.
However, citizens who are waiting for the execution of recovery warrant orders said that there are still plenty of complaints that are yet to be addressed. A senior citizen from Navi Mumbai said that it gets very difficult to follow up with collectors as many of them cite other work. “It’s nine years now since I am waiting for the execution of recovery warrant orders,” the resident said, requesting to stay unnamed.
