Society Handover from Builder to RWA: Documents, Conveyance and the First AGM

Handover from builder to society

Handover is the moment a residential project stops being the developer's asset and becomes the residents' responsibility. Done properly it takes a few months and sets the society up for decades. Done badly — which is the norm — it leaves a society without title, without documents, without a corpus, and with defects nobody will now fix.

The pattern is consistent: residents are eager to take possession, relations with the builder are cordial, nobody wants to be difficult, and the handover happens informally. Two years later the society discovers the conveyance was never executed and the maintenance corpus was never transferred.

Be difficult. This is the one occasion where it pays.

Obligations differ by state and by whether your project falls under RERA and which structure you are forming. Take advice — this is worth professional money.

The sequence

1. Form the association. Under RERA, the promoter is generally required to enable formation of an association of allottees within a stated period of a majority of units being booked. Whether you form a co-operative housing society, an apartment owners association or an RWA depends on your state and the project — get this right, because it determines everything afterwards.
2. Register it, and obtain the registration certificate.
3. Elect the first managing committee, usually at a first general body meeting.
4. Serve a formal handover demand on the builder, listing documents and amounts.
5. Conduct a joint inspection of common areas and equipment, with a snag list.
6. Take over documents, accounts and the corpus.
7. Execute conveyance of the land and building.
8. Transfer utilities, contracts and licences.
9. Hold the first proper AGM as an independent society.

Steps 6 and 7 are where societies stop, because the builder becomes unresponsive. Start them early and in writing.

The document checklist

Demand these in writing, with a deadline, and record what was not provided:

Title and approvals

• Sale deed / conveyance deed for land and building
• Title documents, 7/12 extract or property card, mutation entries
• Approved building plans, layout and sanctioned drawings
• Commencement certificate, completion certificate, occupancy certificate
• RERA registration details and the project's declared common areas
• NOCs — fire, lift, environment, water, electricity

As-built and technical

• As-built drawings, structural drawings and design calculations
• Electrical layout, plumbing and drainage layouts
• Lift, DG, pump, STP, fire system manuals, warranties and test certificates
• List of equipment with make, model, serial number and installation date
• Waterproofing details and warranty

Financial

• Statement of the maintenance deposit collected from each allottee and its utilisation
• Handover of the unspent balance — the corpus
• Outstanding dues from unsold units, which the builder owes as a member
• Utility deposits paid — electricity, water — to be transferred
• Property tax status and any arrears

Contracts and staff

• Live AMC and service contracts with expiry dates
• Insurance policies
• Details of staff engaged and their terms

The corpus, and unsold units

Two financial points that decide whether the society starts solvent.

The maintenance corpus. Builders collect an advance maintenance deposit from every allottee, hold it, and spend from it while managing the property. At handover the society is entitled to a full account and the transfer of the unspent balance. Ask for the account before you take over, not after — leverage disappears at handover.

Unsold units. The builder holds unsold flats and is liable for maintenance on them like any other member. Builders frequently dispute this. Establish the position in writing at handover, and levy from the date the obligation begins.

Conveyance

The single most important item, and the one most often left undone.

Until conveyance is executed, the land and building remain in the builder's name. The society cannot deal with the property, cannot redevelop, and its members hold a weaker position than they believe.

Where a builder fails to execute conveyance, several states — Maharashtra most prominently — provide a deemed conveyance route allowing the society to obtain a unilateral conveyance through the competent authority on proof that the builder has defaulted.

If conveyance has not happened, put it on the AGM agenda every year until it does. Societies that treat it as a background item are still without title fifteen years later.

Defect liability

Under RERA, a promoter is generally liable to rectify structural defects and defects in workmanship notified within a defined period from handover — commonly five years — at no cost to the allottees, with a remedy where they fail.

To use it, you must have evidence:

• Joint inspection with a snag list at handover, signed by both sides
• Photographs and dated records of every defect
• Written notification of defects within the period, by a route that proves service
• A structural audit if there is any doubt about the building's condition

Do not accept verbal assurances that something will be fixed. Get it in the snag list.

The first AGM

Once the society is registered and the committee elected, run the first AGM properly — it sets the precedent for every meeting afterwards.

Cover: adoption of the accounts from formation; appointment of the auditor; adoption of the budget and maintenance charges on a proper head-wise basis; adoption of the key policies (parking, move-in, amenity booking); the status of handover with an explicit list of what the builder has not delivered; and the conveyance position.

Recording the outstanding handover items in the first AGM minutes is valuable evidence later. It establishes contemporaneously that the society raised them.

Frequently asked questions

When must a builder hand over to the society? Under RERA the promoter must enable formation of an association within a stated period of a majority of units being booked, and hand over common areas and documents. Timelines vary by state rules.

What documents must a builder hand over? Title and conveyance documents, approved plans, occupancy and completion certificates, NOCs, as-built drawings, equipment manuals and warranties, the maintenance account with the unspent corpus, utility deposits, and live contracts.

What is deemed conveyance? A statutory route in several states allowing a society to obtain conveyance of the land and building where the builder has failed to execute it.

Does a builder pay maintenance on unsold flats? Yes. Unsold units are the builder's, and the maintenance obligation attaches to the flat. Establish this in writing at handover.

How long is the defect liability period? Under RERA, commonly five years from handover for structural defects and defects in workmanship, subject to notification within the period. Keep a signed snag list and dated evidence.

What if the builder refuses to hand over? Escalate through the RERA authority and, for conveyance, the deemed conveyance route where your state provides one. Keep every demand in writing.

Related: RWA vs cooperative housing society · statutory compliance calendar · society asset maintenance schedule · AGM report sample