We Run Societies

Respected Sir/ Madam,

I am residing in my mother's house since the last nine years with my husband and child in Panvel.My mother is staying with my sister in Chembur. Since the last two months our society committee has levied non occupancy charges on us. I asked them the reason and they are saying that a daughter cannot reside at her mother's house. The house has to be in my name. I found this reason very weird. I would like to know whether I have to pay the charges as per the housing society act which clearly states that such charges are not meant for daughters. The secretary says that the rules are different for married daughters.In my case, since I am married I need to submit an authority letter on a 100 rs bond paper stating that i am allowed to reside at my mother's place.

Seeking your legal advice in this matter urgently.


Thanking you.
With Regards
Ms Sharmistha Ghosh

Dear Sharmistha,

As stated above (as answer), relative of member can reside in the house. Non occupancy charge is not applicable for you.

You should try to talk to them one more time to resolve. If not resolved, immediately write to the deputy registrar asking for relief. Attach supporting documents, written communications you may have along with non-occupency charge bill from the society.

whether police verification is necessary if the block is given on rent ?If this is not done by the member whether society can charge non occupancy charge as per there own norms other than govt norms?for not doing police verification how member can be penalized.and for charging nac more than norm how society members can be penalized? .

Dear Anupkumar,

If the society is being unfair, one can approach the registrar of societies of their area for relief.

If the police verification is not done, write to the commissioner of police - they will take action. Once should do police verification for giving flat on rent.

Is there any late fine for non-payment of non occupancy charges? My society is charging 18% for non payment of this charge but they have not mentioned if this is annualized or monthly. e.g. if I have not paid a monthly charge of 300 rupee for past month they have asked me to pay 300*.18 =Rs 54 extra over and above the 300.
This turns out to be at a monthly rate of 18% which seems too severe to me. Is there no legal upper bound on the late payment fine?

Hi....Amit Tawde here. I have rented my flat at Goregaon Dindoshi to a tenant. The society has levied extra charges in my monthly maintenance bill under the head " Rented flat Compensation ". That too is charged Rs. 900/- p.m. which sums up to Rs. 10000/- per year. As per my knowledge Non Occupancy charges should not be more than 10% of monthly maintenance excluding muncipal charges. This is actually loot of us who have rented their flats. Please can you guide me as to how to tackle my problem as the Society is now demanding 1 months rent as non occupancy charges under the head rented flat compensation. Thanks

We have two buildings in same compound. While buying flat builder allocated parking in another building. Later society members form two separate societies. Now other society is claiming maintenance charges since I have a parking over there. I am paying society charges where I am leaving. I feel it's unfair. Is it legal? Please suggest.

As per byelaw 64(xi), Non occupancy charge is applicable on flats/units given on rent or having paying guest, details of the same is provided by the r Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001.
which states, For flats given on Rent / lease / Having paying guest:- additional Non Occupancy charges of
Max 10% of service charges are to be collected.
In case members have given their tenements/flats to their close relatives viz. mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, sadu (husband of wife’s sister), granddaughter, grandson etc. and to other relatives recognized by the society, in such cases, non- occupancy charges shall not be recovered / charged.
In case of CHS Flats owned by Trusts or Corporate’s, Non-Occupancy Charges CANNOT be levied on the Guests staying in such flats. {Guests = Bonafide Staff members (Directors, Executives, Managers and so on}, for this the Company should submit a Board of Directors (BOD) resolution, to the Society detailing the name of person who is authorized to stay in the flat. Besides the BOD resolution, the company NEED NOT submit any other document. A Company-Owned flat cannot be used as a regular Transit / Guest house.


The amount to be charged is 10% of the service charges, the details related to service charge is given in byelaw 65.

Non Occupancy Charges calculation -Example:
In the monthly Maintenance calculation, if the Service charge portion is Rs:2710/- per month.
Then the NOC charge is 10% of Rs:2710/- = Rs:271/- per month. This can vary based on the Actual expenses under Service head.


“Some societies charge 10% on the monthly charges (Maintenance amount + sinking) or some societies charge 5% ~10% of the rental amount per month. --These are illegal, which is the reason GOM has fixed the charges for NOC at 10% of service charges. Property owner can take the managing committee to the court, as this type of charging is illegal, even though this has approval in GBM.”

Thanks a lot for the comments and info provided. I can now ask the society committee to reverse the illegal charges levied in my monthly maintenance bill...

Dear Sir/Madam,
I have given my flat on rent to my friend from Feb 2015. My monthly maintenance charges are Rs.1125/- .As
per law non occupancy charges may not be more than 10% of service charge. If i consider 10% of total maintenance it is Rs. 112.5 /month . But my society has charged me Rs 1600/- from last Feb 2015.As per calculation it should be Rs 900/- .
Please suggest what should be done in this case?
Regards,
Anant.

Is Non Occupancy Charges are applicable to Tenants living in an Apartment registered under Tamilnadu Societies Act?

Dear Anant Dhamale, If your monthly maintenance charges are Rs.1125/- ; then 10% NOC is applicable extra on the service charges component. if your society is not able to show the service charges component in the maintenance charges, then worst case, pay 10% aditional on the Monthly maintenance charges, which is Rs:112.5/-; this works out Rs:1125+112.5=1237.5/- per month.

You can inform your society committee about the Max limit. Owner should talk to the society committee.

How did you arrive at Rs:900/-?

Hello,

I have a question regarding the NON Occupancy charge. Our society is charging us 2000 rs, per month, by suggesting the service charge for the ENTIRE BUILDING is 20,000. Our monthly maintenance is only 2000 rs, 10% of that should be 200. Is what the society doing legal?

Dear Q, If your Monthly Maint charge is Rs:2000/-; Your Monthly Maint charge consist of component towards Sinking fund/ Maint & repair fund, Service charge, parking charge, water charge etc.

Service charge is equally divided by no of tenemants (in the building/ society); if it is Rs:20000/- for the building, based on the no of flats in the building, it should be equally divided..

NOC is 10% of the service charge...... it should be less than Rs:200/-

Hello again,

Thank you for responding! It makes sense, charging 10% of the entire buildings service charges would be insane, and that too from one apartment! 10 apartments and the rest of the building would have to pay nothing!! Now, im assuming the charging of the 10% of the entire bldgs service fee then is not legal? What grounds have been crossed here? How do you suggest one move from here? Thank u!!

Dear Q, it is wrong on the managing committee to charge 10% of the service charges of the entire building.

Pls inform them(Managing Committee), that as per Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001.
Non Occupancy charges of Max 10% of service charges are to be collected from the flats that are given on Rent / lease / Having paying guest.

As per bylaw 64(Vii), The Service charges of the Society shall include the following:
a. Salaries of the office staff, liftmen, watchmen, malis and any other employees of the Society.
b. Where the Society has independent Office, the property taxes, electricity charges, water charges etc. for the same.
c. Printing, Stationery and Postage,
d. Travelling Allowance and conveyance charges to the staff and the Members of the Committee of the Society.
e. Sitting fees paid to the Members of the Committee of the Society,
f. Subscription to the Education Fund of the Maharashtra Rajya Sahakari Sangh Ltd.
g. Annual Subscription of the Housing Federation and any other co-operative institution to which the Society is affiliated.
h. Entrance fees for affiliation to the Housing Federation and any other cooperative institution.
i. Audit Fees for internal, Statutory and reaudit, if any.
j. Expenses incurred at meetings of the general body, the Committee an the Sub-Committee, if any
k. Retainer fees, legal charges, statutory enquiry fees.
l. Common electricity charges.
m. Any other charges approved by the General Body at its Meeting. However such charges should not contradict the provisions of the Act, Rules and
Bye-laws of the Society.


As per bylaw 66(vi). Service Charges should be Equally divided by number of flats / units.


So the current method is wrong.

Flat is in the name of Mr.X,but his daughter & son-in-law is staying in the said flat,and Mr.X is staying elsewhere.Can society impose non occupancy charges on said flat of Mr.X.What is the exact law for non occupancy charges?

Dear Avinash Alatekar,

There is govt order on the NON-OCCUPANCY CHARGES:

Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001.

In the order it says

In case members have given their tenements/flats to their close relatives viz. mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-inlaw, sister-in-law, sadu (husband of wife’s sister), granddaughter, grandson etc. and to other relatives recognized by the society, IN SUCH CASES , NON OCCUPANCY CHARGES SHALL NOT BE RECOVERED.



Answer to your querry is :---SOCIETY CANNOT IMPOSE NON OCCUPANCY CHARGES.

Our newly formed society is charging maintenance charges on super builtup area which is not mentioned anywhere on sale deed of flat.Whereas it is showing built up area.Is it right to charge on Super built up area by SOCIETY.
Also they had asked flat onwers to pay Temple maintenance charges and festival charges as mandatory part of maintenance charges.
Are these charges payable and legal?

Dear MG,
1. The charges(Sinking fund/ Maint & Repairs fund) should be based on the area specified on your sale deed.
2. Society cannot forcefully collect Temple charges / Festival charges.

Non Occupancy charge should be as per govt. order SAGRUYO-1094/15615/ case no 317/14-C Mantralay Extention Mumbai-32 dt 01 August 2001

Hi
I am staying in a Society and my maintenance is 1000 +10%=1100. Now I am shifting to new flat in same Society in same Building prevoisly I was on 4th Floor now I am on 3rd floor ;now the owner of my flat is different than the Old one;now Society is telling to pay 1000 rupees for NOC ;is it legal ; if any one take flat on rent in Society then do it needs to pay one time noc charge plus every month maintenance+10% of maintenance ;

Dear Irfan,

Your monthly maintenance charge includes : the sinking fund + maintenance & repair fund + service charges + property tax(if applicable)+ parking charges + water charges + Insurance.

So service charge is only part of your monthly maintenance charge. NOC should be 10% of the service charge.

If your monthly maintenance is Rs:1000/-; then the service charge component will be much less.

The service charge component will be less than 1000/-; the NOC is 10% on the service charge component, not on the maintenance charge!!!.

As per bylaw 64(Vii), The Service charges of the Society shall include the following:
a. Salaries of the office staff, liftmen, watchmen, malis and any other employees of the Society.
b. Where the Society has independent Office, the property taxes, electricity charges, water charges etc. for the same.
c. Printing, Stationery and Postage,
d. Travelling Allowance and conveyance charges to the staff and the Members of the Committee of the Society.
e. Sitting fees paid to the Members of the Committee of the Society,
f. Subscription to the Education Fund of the Maharashtra Rajya Sahakari Sangh Ltd.
g. Annual Subscription of the Housing Federation and any other co-operative institution to which the Society is affiliated.
h. Entrance fees for affiliation to the Housing Federation and any other cooperative institution.
i. Audit Fees for internal, Statutory and reaudit, if any.
j. Expenses incurred at meetings of the general body, the Committee an the Sub-Committee, if any
k. Retainer fees, legal charges, statutory enquiry fees.
l. Common electricity charges.
m. Any other charges approved by the General Body at its Meeting. However such charges should not contradict the provisions of the Act, Rules and Bye-laws of the Society.

As per bylaw 66(vi). Service Charges should be Equally divided by number of flats / units.


On onetime charges:-
Yes society can charge administrative charges every year (11 months Typically). This charge amount should be approved in the GBM.

So if you shift from one flat to another flat, you need to pay administrative charges.

This amount is towards the office administrative expenses:

1. Updating of the society data base as per the requirement of the govt.
2. Maintaining seperate File for the flat.
3. Checking the validity of the rent agreement.
4. Verifying the police verification form.
5. Providing Vehicle stickers
6. Providing clubhouse ID card

what is the non occupancy charges or royalty in west Bengal housing co-operative society bye laws for rent out flats? Is the managing committee can claim double maintenance plus n o c for the same flat?

my society is charging me
1 non Occupancy charges 10%
2 Subletting charges (till not specify)
3 Shifting charges (till not specify)

I want details about this charges is it legally and permissible to collect the this charges. Please guide me .......

Does a tenant should pay the non occupancy charges in the society????

Dear Tanushree, Non occupancy charges (10% of the service charge) should be paid by the flat owner who has given the flat on rent. The owner inturn collects from the Tenant.

Please check my earlier postings related to NOC

Can a CHS in West Bengal charge non-member charges three times the maintenance charges more than that charged to members?

I am an owner of a flat in Mumbai but residing out of Mumbai in south India. The managing committee is refusing to charge the non occupancy charges as per the 10percent and is over charging me for the past 7 years. I had filed a complaint with the deputy registrar twice but nothing has changed. I am feeling helpless as how to stop the excess charges and also recover the extra money i already paid. Initially when I stopped paying the excess the society started charging me with interest for non payment. Please help to resolve this matter. Thanks.

Dear Shoba, pls cite the govt order on the NON-OCCUPANCY CHARGES:

Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001.

which directs society, for rented flats the NOC should be only 10% of the service charges(not the maintenance charge).

You can take to your ward registrar and give complaint once again with reference of the earlier complaints. or thro' RTI ask the registrar about the status of your complaint.

Or take it with consumer court, if you have time.

if the plot is kept vacant in a society. Can society charge maintenance 10% extra?

Dear Mohan, is it Flat or Plot?

If your flat is kept vacant, society cannot charge extra charges.

If plot is kept vacant and if there are unwanted wild plants growing, society can charge the trimming/ cleaning & disposing charges. If you takecare of the wild plant /tree trimming & disposing of the same, then society cannot. otherwise society can.

I have given my flat on rent.Society demand for double maintenance charge where supreme court says it should not more than 10% of the levied charge from the owner.
What should I do pl give answer positive
Harshad shah

I have a flat which is vacant, I am not staying and neither I have given the same on rent. then how come I shall be paying the same charges as others, who are staying in their flats.

The society is charging maintenance on per sq.ft basis for example if my flat is 750 sq.ft then they are charging Rs.1500/- as maintenance. isn't it wrong they shall charge basic maintenance for cleaning etc.

Please let me know what shall I do for the same.

Dear Sir/Madam,

Our maintenance amount is 542 Rs. Society is additionally charging the non occupancy charges of 200 Rs. Is this legal to charge this much amount? What is the maximum limit to this? 10% of what?

Dear Mayur,

Your monthly maintenance charge includes : the sinking fund + maintenance & repair fund + service charges + property tax(if applicable)+ parking charges + water charges + Insurance.

So service charge is only a part of your monthly maintenance charge. NOC should be 10% of the service charge.

If your monthly maintenance is Rs:542/-; then the service charge component will be much less.

The service charge component will be less than 542/-; the NOC is 10% on the service charge component, not on the maintenance charge!!!.

As per bylaw 64(Vii), The Service charges of the Society shall include the following:
a. Salaries of the office staff, liftmen, watchmen, malis and any other employees of the Society.
b. Where the Society has independent Office, the property taxes, electricity charges, water charges etc. for the same.
c. Printing, Stationery and Postage,
d. Travelling Allowance and conveyance charges to the staff and the Members of the Committee of the Society.
e. Sitting fees paid to the Members of the Committee of the Society,
f. Subscription to the Education Fund of the Maharashtra Rajya Sahakari Sangh Ltd.
g. Annual Subscription of the Housing Federation and any other co-operative institution to which the Society is affiliated.
h. Entrance fees for affiliation to the Housing Federation and any other cooperative institution.
i. Audit Fees for internal, Statutory and reaudit, if any.
j. Expenses incurred at meetings of the general body, the Committee an the Sub-Committee, if any
k. Retainer fees, legal charges, statutory enquiry fees.
l. Common electricity charges.
m. Any other charges approved by the General Body at its Meeting. However such charges should not contradict the provisions of the Act, Rules and Bye-laws of the Society.

As per bylaw 66(vi). Service Charges should be Equally divided by number of flats / units. so the NOC charge will be less than Rs:54/-

Dear Sir/Madam,

I have read the Govt. Order regarding Non-Occupancy charges, Dated 1st August, 2001. However, my Society does not seem to understand.

I am a widow and my husband had purchased this flat. After my husband passed away, the Society started charging me NOC stating that the flat transfer was not done in my husbands name. The Society till date has not issued Share Certificates to any Society members. We paid the Transfer fee but the previous owner did not pay his share of Transfer fee. Hence the transfer formality was not done. The maintenance bill still comes in the previous owners name. I make the payments minus NOC to avoid any penalties. Now the Society wants me to pay the other half of the Transfer Fee.

I have put this matter forward to the Registrar, but its still the same. Please help.

Thanks a lot Sir.

Can we ask for refund whatever amount paid more than 10%? They are charging us 200 Rs. NOC. Is there any way to get that paid money back.? Should I send them a legal notice?

@Mayur, Please discuss with your Society MC members and understand the Maintenance cost expenditure, are they following CHS byelaw rule for calculating the maintenance cost or it is monthly common expenditure divided by no of flats? Accordingly you can discusswith them for the NOC charges. yes you can make them understand on the rule and ask them to refund excess charges.

@Dolly, As per Byelaw, the outgoing member(Seller / TRANSFEROR) should only pay the Transfer fee (Rs:500/-) & Transfer premium(Rs: 25,000/- Max). { Tax on the transfer fee/ premium is not applicable when paid by the TRANSFEROR, otherwise if paid by the TRANSFEREE (Buyer)the Transfer fee/ Transfer premium is applicable to TAX}

Due to Ignorance and verbal agreement, may times the Transferor & Transferee get into agreement on the payment of transfer premium; either 50:50 by both or 100% by Transferee.

Pls check how much your Husband has paid as Transfer Premium to the society, The maximum limit is Rs:25,000/- ; if your society is asking More than Rs:25,000/-, you can register complaint with the Registrar, Co-operative societies for both Transfer fee issue and for NOC charges.

As you have mentioned, that your husband have already paid half the transfer premium, if you have records that the society have taken the money against transfer fee, then you can always request your society to issue Maintenance bill against your husbands name or your name.

Please also discuss with your old owner and ask him to pay the transfer premium, as he /she is bound to pay as per byelaw. If he/she don't relent, then you can go to Court, provided you have document to prove on the agreement for payment of Transfer premium.

Pls do check if all the relevant documents for transfer is submitted to the society.

Dear Mr. SENTHILMANI S S,

Thank you for the prompt reply.

I have a receipt of 5000/- towards Transfer Fee. The Society wants me to pay 5000/- more as the Sellers Transfer Fee. Society says that they will give the Maintenance bill in my name. Will that do if I wish to sell my flat?

Regarding NOC, could you please quote me a bye-law which states that NOC is not applicable if the flat has been purchased and the transfer is still pending. I read it somewhere but I can't find it now.

Thanking you in advance,
Dolly

Our building has 1.5 & 2 BHK flats with different areas. So the monthly maintenance charges for 1.5 & 2 BHK will be same or different?

Hi..
My Hsg. society has passed a resolution that members having 4wheeler must pay parking charges annually,
For example :-From MAY 2015 to APRIL2016
And not on pro-rata basis.
I have started using the society's car parking space from OCT-2015,But the society wants me to pay four wheeler parking charges from May2015.
Kindly help me out as how can a society demand parking charges for those tenure for which i haven't used the car parking space of the society .

Please help me out.

Regards
Shafi

Is there a way for society to find out relation between person occupying flat and owner?
if owner is claiming fake relation with tenant, and society not charging non-occupation charges does society comes under any legal obligation?
Is there a requirement of agreement and police verification in case of close relatives are occupying flat?

@Neeti, To find out the relation, society can ask the document which has the grand partents name, going thro the document of the owner and the relative's document, verify/ check if the grand parent's name either grand father / grand mothers name matches the document.

Dear Shafi Ansari, If you are the owner, and if the parking lot is alloted to you by builder / society. irrespective of your actual usage, you need to pay the parking fees.
Reason: Society cannot deploy a seperate security/ office staff to monitor individual parking usage.

@ Faisal, As per CHS byelaw, the maintenance charges will be different for 1.5 BHK & 2BHK.

as per the act itis legel. Howeverif the society is charging more it is deficiency in services as per consumer Protection Act

The rule/act which says society can have up to 10% higher maintenance charges for tenants. Is this rule applicable in Ahemdabad Gujarat?

@ Dolly, sorry for late reply.

Here is the CHS byelaw ( Year 2014) for your reference.

Byelaw no: 37 d. "No Objection Certificate" of the Society is not required to transfer the shares and interest of the transferor to transferee. However in case such a certificate is required by the transferor or Transferee, he shall apply to the Society and Committee of the Society may consider such application on merit, within one month.

Dear Mr. senthilmani.s.s,

Thank you for your response, however, my question was about Non-Occupancy charges. Forgive me if I was not clear. Requoting" Could you please quote me a bye-law which states that Non-Occupancy Charges are not applicable if the flat has been purchased and the transfer is still pending."

I read it somewhere but I can't find it now. My Society has been charging me Non-Occupancy charges since my husbands death. And the manager says that it is applicable since the transfer from previous owner is pending. FYI: Till date The Society has not given Share Certificate to anyone in the Society.

Thanking you in advance,
Dolly

@ Dolly, if the flat is given on rent "Non-Occupancy charges" will be applicable.

If the flat is occupied by you and not given on rent, "Non-Occupancy charges" is not applicable.

"Non-Occupancy charges" is not applicable if the flat is used by Family members

This is what the " Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension,
Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001." says,

"In case members have given their tenements/flats to their close relatives viz. mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-inlaw, sister-in-law, sadu (husband of wife’s sister), granddaughter, grandson etc. and to other RELATIVES recognized by the society, in such cases, Non-occupancy charges shall not be recovered."

"Non-occupancy charges" shall no tbe more than 10% of the service charges ( Pls note, it is 10% of the service charge and not on the maintenance charge)


Further as per Government Order No. SAGRUVA- 2010/PRA.KRA- 173/14 S Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 400032 Dt- 25th Febrary 2011
"Non-occupancy charges" is also applicable to flats which have PAYING GUEST.

Hope this clarifies.

Dear Mr. senthilmani.s.s,

Thank you for the reply. I am aware that Non-Occupancy charged are applicable only if the flat is leased out. And I have already informed my Society about the Bye-law that you have quoted. My query as given above still remains unanswered.

Dolly

@ Dolly, Ok, Unless you become a member of the society, they might be charging NOC based on OLD owners resenditial status.

You have not mentioned about the deal your husband had with the owner on the transfer fee. As you have mentioned earlier, you have paid Rs:5000/- and they are asking further Rs:5000/- ; total transfer fee amount is Rs:10000/- this is within the govt limit of Max-25000/-.

If you are ok, please pay the amount of Rs:5000/- as transfer fee and close. Pls also see, you are paying NOC charges currently, this NOC charges will itself be more than the transfer fee after a period of time.

Non Occupation charges are compulsory for tenants and paying guests or society can decide not to charge any Non occupation charges for any flat?

It is advisable to lodge a complaint with consumer forum against the soceity for overcharging of non occupancy charges as it is deficiency in servises as per consumer protection act

Dear Suman, As per byelaw NOC to be collected. Then it is upto the Society GB to decide. If the society does not want to collect, then owners residing should shell more for maintenance. These extra NOC amount will be used for society monthly expenses.

Dear Mr. Senthilmani.s.s,

Thank you for addressing my question. Yes, the maintenance bill still comes in the previous owners name and hence the Non-occupancy charges. But at the time of purchase we had received a No-Objection Certificate from the Society and eventually we had submitted the House Agreement copies and Nomination papers duly signed by my husband. This is proof enough to show that we have purchased the flat. We paid our share of the Transfer Fees and the balance was to be paid by the seller. If the Society did not collect it, is it our fault?

It's not a big deal to pay off the balance Transfer fee and NOC, but it is wrong that we are being charged NOC for a flat that we own. Anyways, thank you for your advice.

Regards,
Dolly

Is it mandatory for societies in Pune,Maharashtra to charge non occupancy charges? If majority of the resident forms consensus that they don't want to have NOC charge in place, can society still forcibly impose NOC? In other words, how can NOC be stopped and reverted if the residents does not want it but society still wants to impose and collect NOC?

Dear Mr. Senthilmani,

I am referring to a comment from you on 21st September 2015 that Company owned flats cannot be used as a guest house / transit house. We have formed a new society in Mumbai and one of the owners has let out his flat to a Company, which is being used as a guest house. This is causing a lot of issues for other residents and we want to pass a rule or bye-law prohibiting it. My question is: is it legal or tenable for the society to frame such a rule? Under what provision of the model bye-laws in Maharashtra can we do this?

Many thanks for your guidance.

Unregistered Soceity can not charge Non Occupancy Charge.Undr this case or under any other case co-oprative registrar can not provide any rlief because he does not have powers for punishment. Over charging of any charge is deficiency in srvices as pr Consumer Protction Act. Lodge th complaint and ask for compensation is correct solution.

Hi, I wish to know if a co-op hsg soc. can charge non-occupancy charges for a commercial premises when the owner has divided the premises in 3 parts (by putting woodden/ bakelite partition) and given 2 parts to carry out his exsisting business to 2 persons on leave and license and 1 part he occupies himself. He is being charged 3 times the maintenance per month. Is it fair? To the best of my knowledge a co op hsg soc cant charge more than 10% of maintenance per month for non occupancy. Also, is it non occupancy if the owner himself sits in part of the premises which is meant for commercial purpose?

if i provide my flat on rent , in that case registration agreement is compulsory. becuse this aggrement required 5000 rupes.

please advise

I HAVE PURCHASED FLAT IN NALASOPARA. FLAT IS VACANT. I AM NOT STAYING IN SAID FLAT NOR RENTED THE FLAT. WHETHER I AM LIABLE FOR PAYMENT OF 100% MAINTENANCE CHARGES TO SOCIETY OR NOT.. IS THEIR ANY CLAUSE IN GOVT ACTS FOR PAYMENT OF 100% MAINTANANCE CHARGES IF FLAT IS VACANT...

Mr. Ganesh, As per CHS byelaw you need to pay 100% maintenance, irrespective of whether you say or not. Unless the General Body decides on lesser %.

Mr. Ganesh, As per CHS byelaw you need to pay 100% maintenance, irrespective of whether you stay or not. Unless the General Body decides on lesser %.

A member of our society who owns a duplex flat, has sealed off (in a temporary manner) the upper level where he resides with his family, from the lower level. For a number of years he has given the lower level (which is actually a self contained 1 BHK flat) to a family (to reside) whom he claims to be relatives of his, on the basis of which he determined that he doesn't owe the society any charges. I would like to know if the MCS Act has defined which persons are termed as relatives of a member, because many other members are doubtful about his claims. Since he was a senior MC member all this while, the matter went unquestioned. In case he is proved to be in default what are the various society charges that he can be liable for and can the same be recovered from him in retrospect, by the new MC?

Dear Mr. Dennis, this is what the Govt order says on the Relatives:

"In case members have given their tenements/flats to their close relatives viz. mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-inlaw, sister-in-law, sadu (husband of wife’s sister), granddaughter, grandson etc. and to other relatives recognized by the society, in such cases, non-occupancy charges shall not be recovered."

Read this "other relatives recognized by the society" so need to see if his claim comes under "OTHER RELATIVES"

If proved wrong, he should pay NOC charges.

If newly formed soceity is not registered then non occupancy charges of any amount is illegal
.Taka legal action as per various clauses of civil law.Action can also be taken as per consumer protection act. However registerd society can charge as per govt guidlinen.Else above actions can be taken

can society recover 10% as non occupancy charges over service charges + on common electric charges +on water charges

Dear Bharat, Common electricity charges is part of the Service charges. Water charge for common area(Garden/ Society office) will be also part of the Service charges. NOC is 10% of service charge.

I am staying at Ltd co operative society one of my flat givenon rent, society has applied Rs.75 subletting charges.
As per byelaw 64(xi), Non occupancy charge is applicable on flats/units given on rent or having paying guest, details of the same is provided by the r Govt.Order No.SAGRUYO-1094/15165/ case No. 317/14-C /Mantralaya Extension, Mumbai- 32 dated 1st August 2001.
which states, For flats given on Rent / lease / Having paying guest:- additional Non Occupancy charges of
Max 10% of service charges are to be collected.
In case members have given their tenements/flats to their close relatives viz. mother, father, sister, brother, son, daughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, sister-in-law, sadu (husband of wife’s sister), granddaughter, grandson etc. and to other relatives recognized by the society, in such cases, non- occupancy charges shall not be recovered / charged.
In case of CHS Flats owned by Trusts or Corporate’s, Non-Occupancy Charges CANNOT be levied on the Guests staying in such flats. {Guests = Bonafide Staff members (Directors, Executives, Managers and so on}, for this the Company should submit a Board of Directors (BOD) resolution, to the Society detailing the name of person who is authorized to stay in the flat. Besides the BOD resolution, the company NEED NOT submit any other document. A Company-Owned flat cannot be used as a regular Transit / Guest house.


The amount to be charged is 10% of the service charges, the details related to service charge is given in byelaw 65.
What Can i do for this matter

Hi..I have question our is Proposed Society in Navi Mumbai. Our society is charging Non Occupancy Charges as per new Govt Order i.e. 10% of maintenance , which comes to Rs.150/- per flat . However, society decided raise fund therefore they have started charging Rs.200/- for 4 wheeler and Rs.100/- for two wheeler for owners and also those who stay on rent. Is it logical where where Govt Order ask for 10% of service charges , may having some logic behind it where in our case the human being staying is valued less and vehicles parking are charged more. As the maximum committee members have given their flats on rent and earning Rs15000/- per month from rent , where as actual owners who have occupied flats and also paying housing loans are burden by this charges. In short the owners who rented flat are earning more and contributing less for society where as those owners who are occupied their flat are paying more. In the name of raising fund they looted us. Is there any solution that the parking charges can be reduced or bring at par with Govt order of 10% of service charges.

Dear Mr. Patil, yes society can charge Parking charges as per Byelaw; Service charge is different from parking charges.

Refer byelaw no's 64(viii), 66a(vii), 82 and 83. The charges for the same should be approved in the General Body meeting of the society. The charges will be based on the parking allotment to the members. Even if the member is using the allotted parking or not, he/ she need to pay the charges.

Is the by-law is common for all the states? I'm from Tamilnadu and still I hope the rule is same everywhere. Can you please confirm?

Dear Thulasi, the byelaws vary from state to state.

What is the justification for non-occupancy charge? Why should the society make 10% more money, whoever is staying in the flat, as long as the normal society charges are paid? I find this clause difficult to digest. Please explain.

Hi,if I have made partition and given a part of my existing flat on lease after making agreement ,and I am staying with my family in the other part do I have to pay non occupancy charges?

Dear Vaz, NOC is limited to maximum 10% of the service charge of the Manintenance amount. And this max limit is fixed my Govt. If your society does not want to collect, it is up to the managing committee.


Resident Owners: When owners move into the flat, the material shifting of the house hold happens only once(assuming they dont change the resident).

Non Resident owners: For flats given on rent:--The tenant keeps on changing, during moving in and moving out, there is movement of house hold material, there could be damage to the common area, lift etc, additional work done by the admin staff of the office to upkeep of the new tenants documents, additional security(if available), to monitor the material movement etc.....for this extra work NOC is charged. This is legal.

Dear Rodrigues, yes you need to pay NOC charges. Even if you have Paying Guest(PG), you need to pay NOC charges.

Hi,

I want to understand a bit more on what grounds non-occupancy charges are provisioned in society by-laws and whether there are any ways to get exemption.

In my case, my flat in Pune is the only property registered on my name where I used to reside till 2015, but due to job transfer, I got transferred to Mumbai. Now I have given my flat in Pune on rent and paying even higher rent in Mumbai, since I can't afford to buy a new flat here. I have to bear maintenance charges for the flat in Pune in addition to rent difference. There is no financial benefit for me by giving the flat on rent, I am paying rent received from my flat as rent in another city.

So if an individual not getting any direct financial benefit from a property still have to pay non-occupancy charges?
I can understand that people investing in multiple properties and not using them for residential purpose gain financial benefit and they need to be charged. But can we get some exemptions from Registrar under certain circumstances where flat owners are not getting any direct financial benefit by renting the flat?

Joint Registrar mail id listed on Maharashtra gov website is: djrcs.pune@gov.in
Is there any other mail address where I can post my queries?

@ Shiv Naik, Non occupancy Charges inclusion or exclusion is up to the General Body of the society. MC can propose the same in the GBM and the GB can take call on this.

Dear Team,

Greeting for the day.

I am having one flat in Biwandi / Thane. our society is propose to be register as a co- operative housing society. we have almost 75 flats in our society and builder is charging Rs. 5000 Per flat for registration.
Is this valid amount ???
Kindly give me basic idea about the registration cost and also who will be the registrar ?????

Thanks in Anticipation.

Dear Anisha, for "society" registration Rs:5000/- per member is not correct. Pls check your sale deed documents, if the builder has already taken the society registration charges during purchase.

Dear Anisha,

Addition to my earlier comment.

Pls check the below link, please download the "Co operative Housing Societies Manual _ English", read chapter -2. (from page-9 onwards)

https://sahakarayukta.maharashtra.gov.in/Site/Information/ListingUploadOtherPdf.aspx?Doctype=96486630-E637-4534-9C22-C60BAB1A3DA5

Hello SocietyHive,
I have a flat in Andheri (Mumbai) which I have put on rent. I am aware of the non occupancy charges, but however I feel there is an unjust matter that I am facing with parking charges.

So I have reserved a parking in my building that is allocated to my unit (for which I paid 5 lakhs to the builder). Apart from the maintenance, and non occupancy charges (10%) that I pay every month, I am also required to pay parking charges. Since I am a non occupant "my monthly parking charges (INR 1000)" are placed to be 90 % higher than the "parking charges for occupants (INR 100)". Since the society members are composed of owners that are occupants, I feel that this society rule that they've passed is completely biased and unfair.
Bye-Iaw does it state hat non occupants have to pay higher parking charges, and if so what extra percentage do they actually have to pay compared to the occupants ?

Please do help me out, I would really appreciate this legal advice

A Member has leased out his flat to a lessee and the lessee has a vehicle whereby is parked in the attached parking slot of that flat. Our Society has a parking slot for every flat to park the first vehicle. The second vehicle is to be parked in the open space for a nominal fee as decided by the Committee. So the question is, can the Member park his vehicle in the open space while he resides outside the Society premises?

@ Benedicta Menezes, society can charge parking fee as approved in the GB, if the GB has approved for higher parking fees, you can re appeal to the GB for reduction in the charges.

@ Edward Fernandes, once you are not staying in the society, unless you have allotted parking,and if your tenant is not having car, you can park, otherwise no. If there are ample parking space, check with your Society MC and park paying nominal fee.

a paying guest in the society attract non occupation charges pl clarify.

PG staying with member in a signal room he is working student.
pl guide

Non registered soceity can not charge non ocupacy charge.If they do so please lodge police complaints. In case of registered soceity if they charge more than 10% of service charge in that case instead of registrar of co-operative please lodge complaint with district consumer forum for over charging of non occupancy charges. This is also applicable in case of paying guest staying with member also.List of relative staying in flat are treated as family member & in that case soceity can not charge non ocupacy charge. However you should be able to produce documentary proof of that relationship

Non registered soceity can not charge non ocupacy charge. If they do so please lodge police complaints for demand of extortion. If registered soceity is charging more than 10 % of service charge then instead of lodging complaint with registrar of Cooprative lodge a complaint with consumer forum for over charging of non occupancy charges & ask for compensation in financial way. If any relative as specified in govt circular DT 1Aug 2001 soceity is staying with you then soceity can not charge non ocupacy charge. But you should have documentary proof of that relationship

I HAVE PURCHASE FLAT IN VIRAR.WHICH IS VACANT FROM THE PURCHASE.I AM REGULARLY PAYING RENT RS 500 AND THE SAID CO OP SOCIETY IS NOT REGISTRED YET.MY FRIEND SAID IF ROOM IS VACANT NO NEED TO PAY FULL MAINTENANCE CHARGES,JUST PAY MINIMUM MAINTANCE CHARGES. AND IN NEXT MONTH I AM LEASING FLAT TO MY MAMA (UNCLE). WHETHER NON OCCUPANCY CHARGE WILL APPLY

If society is charging more than 10% for non occupation charge than what to do??

Only registered soceity can charge 10%of Stevie charge as non occupancy charge. Non registered soceity can not charge the same.If soceity is charging more then instead of registrar ,lodge straightaway to either consumer forum or civil court

Is this Non-Occupancy charge applicable to all state societies ?

I understand that this charge of 10 % of service charge applicable to State of Maharashtra.

Is this applicable to all states ?

I ask this as my society in WB charge 10 % of Rent and not 10 % of Service charge.

While deciding non ocupacy charge in terms of Mumbai High court order rent criteria was also considered but was finally dropped 10% of service charge has been arrived refer Govt circular DT 01 Aug 2001.It is matter of state & varies accordingly.In WB if 10% or rent is charged better to challenge by referring the case of Mumbai High court

I went through your webpage but I have got a little confusion in regards to nonoccupancy charges when it comes to shop. If a shop is used by son whereas it is registered in the name of father then any charges are to be levied by the Society in such instance. Kindly clarify.

Hi Mr Senthilmani,
I had communicated with you earlier on October 16, 2016, to be precise, and was very grateful for your prompt response. Just a brief re-cap, it was regarding an MC member (who in fact was the Secretary at the time) who had temporarily separated the two floors of his duplex flat and had let out the lower portion to a person who, he claimed was a relative, and thus the situation did not warrant payment of NOC charges.
At the time, there was not much we could do by way of an investigation, but quite recently, we discovered that despite his claim that the person was his relative, he had indeed executed LL contracts for period of 2-3 years . Our question is, if the tenant was indeed a relative, then what was the need of an LL contract?
In light of this new available information, would it be possible for this ex-Secretary to be billed in retrospect for NOC charges for the period of the LL contracts?
By the way who constitute "other relatives" and is this extended facility covered by another Government Order like SAGRUYA, SAGRUVA etc.?

Our Society is charging Rs.5000/- as misc. charges for keeping a tenent on leave & license basis, over and above the non occupancy charges. Also charged Rs. 2500 Find for submission of leave & licence documents to society by a month.
Is there any such laws where society can charge members please clarify.

Mr M.S. Balkrishnan Please refer THANE CONSUMER FORUM'S Judgement of case no CC/439/2016 .It is totally illegal & straightaway file complaint in nearest consumer forum for over charging. Refer judgement on CONFONET site