The real estate sector is under immense pressure. Thousands of vacant homes lie unsold with developers offering bargain prices, but home buyers remain unconvinced. The reason is simple; people just do not trust the real estate sector anymore and it is clearly the developers who are at fault. As part of a special series, we highlight top developers who have broken their promises to their customers.

Unitech: Broken Promises, Broken Dreams
Pankaj Srivastava, an employee with the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) once dreamt of buying his own house, without having to shell out a small fortune in rents every month. And while he did purchase a flat, his dream has today turned into a nightmare. “I booked my flat in 2009 with Unitech Unihomes and I paid up 95% of the total cost. Until 2010, construction was in full swing but in 2011, it stopped completely for nearly 3 years. Several other buyers and I protested, and while we can see some workforce at the site now, it is not sufficient to finish construction. I have no choice but to continue to pay rent while struggling to pay off my home loan” laments Pankaj.

Until recently, India’s did not have a clear regulatory framework for the real estate sector and this has allowed developers like Unitech to brazenly break promises while taking helpless home buyers for a ride. Nearly 40 of Unitech’s projects remain abandoned across India with more than 17,000 flats and villas lying incomplete, with average delays of 3 to 5 years in most cases.

Unitech: When Builders Go Rogue
What’s worse is that Unitech has so far refused to engage with its customers, many of whom have paid up almost the entire cost of their home. “I have been trying to communicate with them, but I didn’t receive any reply. Several of us (buyers) have formed an association and we meet monthly to track the progress of the project, and so far no construction and development has happened” complains Iyarappan, secretary of the Uniworld Chennai Owners’ Association.

Several frustrated buyers took the legal route and managed to get a landmark judgement from the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) which asked Unitech to pay compensation to buyers of both the Gurgaon Vistas Project and the Habitat Project. However, the Supreme Court has put a stay on that order till August 2016 and in the process, it is the home buyers who have been left out in the cold once again. India’s judicial logjam is legendary and while developers have the time and resources to go through a prolonged legal battle, home buyers do not.

That’s why the passage of the Real Estate Regulator has given hope to lakhs of home buyers across India, who expect these issues to be addressed fairly and on time. Next week, we highlight other top developers across India who have given the sector a bad name. Watch this space.

Chanakya Bhatia, Reporter, NDTV

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