MahaRERA Upholds Sunteck Realty's Right to Cancel Sale Agreements Over Payment Defaults

The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) has upheld the right of builders to cancel registered agreements for sale when homebuyers repeatedly default on payments. In an order dated December 18, 2025, a coram of Chairman Manoj Saunik decided six complaints arising from the “Sunteck West World” residential project at Naigaon East, Palghar district.The complaints were filed by the project developers, Sunteck Realty Limited, along with its co-developers DDPL Global Infrastructure Pvt.Ltd. and Unicorn Infrastructure and Estates Pvt. Ltd. The sought to cancel the agreements for sale after several allottees (homebuyers) failed to pay installments despite the project receiving its Occupation Certificate on May 20, 2022. Five of the complaints were filed by the developers seeking confirmation of termination of registered agreements for sale, alleging that the allottees were persistent defaulters.A sixth complaint was filed by an allottee (homebuyer), Ashish Kumar Tiwari, seeking a refund of Rs 1.62 lakh paid as a booking amount.MahaRERA noted that once the Occupation Certificate was granted, the homebuyers were required to make installment payments as per their agreements. The authority observed that in five of the complaints, registered agreements for sale were in place, and the buyers had repeatedly failed to pay the balance consideration despite reminders and termination notices. The developers argued that the cancellations were carried out strictly in accordance with the agreements for sale and Section 11(5) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.They said continued defaults had disrupted the financial discipline of the project. Some allottees contended that they had already paid substantial amounts and alleged selective encashment of post-dated cheques. MahaRERA, however, held that the buyers had failed to perform their statutory duty of timely payment under Section 19(6) of the Act. The Authority confirmed the cancellation deeds and directed the allottees to complete the formalities. The authorities held that “the termination of the agreement for sale by the complainant is valid,” noting that the buyers had committed persistent payment defaults.A different finding was recorded in the sixth complaint. The homebuyer, in this case, argued that no binding agreement for sale had been executed and that the flat allotted to him was later found to be double-booked. MahaRERA relied on the builder's own email acknowledging that it was “a double-booking case” and seeking confirmation to process a refund.In this case, the authority held that the homebuyer could not be treated as a defaulter since there was no valid agreement for sale. MahaRERA directed the builder to refund the amount paid within 60 days, excluding statutory charges.MahaRERA ultimately allowed all six complaints, confirming termination of agreements in five cases of payment default and ordering a refund in the double-booking case.Case Title: Sunteck Realty Limited & Ors. v. Sapna Arjun Solanki & Ors. (and connected matters)Complaint Numbers: CC006000000395937, CC006000000395940, CC006000000395941, CC006000000395938, CC006000000395939, CC006000000197341For Developers: Advocate Rupesh Geete; Advocate Gayatri TikaleFor Homebuyers: Advocate Gulnaz Khan for some allotteesClick Here To Read/Download Order

MahaRERA Upholds Sunteck Realty's Right to Cancel Sale Agreements Over Payment Defaults

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