Buyers can bid for flat in auction in lieu of money paid to builder: Revenue dept

The revenue department of Gautam Budh Nagar, which has to recover about ₹650 crore dues from builders, is trying to reach out to homebuyers with a novel plan that

The revenue department of Gautam Budh Nagar, which has to recover about ₹650 crore dues from builders, is trying to reach out to homebuyers with a novel plan that is a win-win for all parties concerned.

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Homebuyers who are yet to get flats despite paying money to the builder, can now bid for attached properties of builders in a public auction. The amount paid to builder will be adjusted towards the bid, and the revenue department gets to recover its dues.

The department is currently trying to contact buyers, who had approached the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (Rera) seeking relief, to take part in the auction.

The revenue department is planning to auction properties worth about ₹30 crore to recover dues from defaulter builders. “There are many builders against whom recover certificates have been issued and we have seized their properties to recover our money. We are trying to get in touch with buyers who have approached Rera after their money got stuck with the builder. We will be using social media platforms and advertisements to reach out to such buyers,” Rajiv Rai, subdivisional magistrate, Dadri, said.

“Buyers can take part in the auction. They can purchase the flats up for bids and the money which they have already paid to the builder will be adjusted towards the bid amount. That way, buyers can get their flat and we can recover our dues,” Rai said.

Recently, in an internal meeting, the revenue department has decided to recover at least ₹250 crore by the end of March. There are around 10 properties in Noida and Greater Noida which have been seized by the revenue department after defaulters failed to clear recovery certificates issued against them.

Recently, the department submitted its report on the procedure for holding an e-auction of attached properties to attract maximum bidders from all over the country. “We are just waiting for the approval of the state government to start the e-auctioning. We are aiming to recover at least ₹250 crore by the end of March. We are going to intensify our action against defaulters in the coming weeks,” Rai said.

The department had issued recovery certificates to the tune of around ₹1,200 crore for the year 2019-20. Recovery certificates worth ₹550 crore have been stayed by the court or the National Company Law Tribunal, thereby reducing the target of Gautam Budh Nagar’s revenue department to ₹650 crore.

Around ₹170 crore has been recovered until now. Of the pending ₹650 crore, around ₹254 crore has to be recovered from the Pan Oasis group.