Bhubaneswar: In a bid to address the concerns of apartment owners in Odisha, Housing and Urban Development has issued a clarification regarding the registration of apartments under the Odisha Apartment (Ownership and Management) Act, 2023 (OAOM Act).
The clarification aims to remove ambiguities and inconsistencies in the registration process.
The OAOM Act, which came into force on June 28, 2023, was enacted to consolidate and streamline laws related to apartment ownership and management in Odisha. However, apartment owners have been facing difficulties in registering sale deeds and transfer deeds due to perceived ambiguities in the application of the Act.
The main issue was the misconception that the OAOM Act has a retrospective effect, leading to inconsistencies in registration processes. Registration officers were interpreting the provisions of the OAOM Act and the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA) differently, causing disparities in decision-making across cases.
To address these concerns, the Housing and Urban Development Department has clarified that Registration Authorities shall not deny the registration of any apartment citing provisions of the OAOM Act, if the apartment was completed before the commencement of RERA in the state, i.e., prior to February 25, 2017.
The Department of Revenue & Disaster Management will also issue suitable instructions to the Registration Officers to facilitate the registration of such apartments. This notification is issued for the guidance of all concerned.
