Maharashtra Committee to Streamline Flat Ownership in Land Records

Maharashtra has taken a significant step towards simplifying property transactions and loans by forming a high-level committee to create a uniform framework for recording individual apartment ownership in land records. The committee, chaired by Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue) Vikas Kharge, is tasked with suggesting how names of individual flat owners can be reflected in official land documents such as the 7/12 extract or the Property Register Card, rather than just in cooperative society records.

At present, most apartment owners in Maharashtra, especially in Mumbai’s multi-story buildings, hold ownership proofs such as sale deeds and share certificates issued by housing societies. However, their names are not individually recorded in land revenue documents. This often leads to difficulties in securing bank loans, delays in redeveloping buildings, and opportunities for disputes or procedural hurdles, according to senior revenue department officials.

The Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, provides for recording property rights under Sections 149 to 151. However, the current process only captures the name of the land-holding entity, typically the cooperative society or developer, and not the specific flat owners. There is also no standard approach across cities and districts, and entries for apartments are inconsistent or absent, as stated in the government resolution issued on October 30.

The new committee is expected to study legal frameworks and practices adopted by other states for registering vertical property ownership. This comes as the state is finalizing new vertical property rules, which are critical in Mumbai, where most residential ownership exists in stacked apartment units rather than horizontal plots.

The committee includes Additional Chief Secretary (Cooperation) Pravin Darade, Additional Chief Secretary (Urban Development–I) Aseem Gupta, Principal Secretary (Law and Judiciary) Suvarna Kewale, Principal Secretary (Rural Development) Eknath Dawale, Settlement Commissioner Suhas Divase, Inspector General of Registration and Controller of Stamps Ravindra Binwade, and the Deputy Secretary (Land Records) as member secretary.

The panel will draft rules to enable the recording of the ownership of each apartment in multi-story buildings directly in land records. They will also clearly define how the underlying land and common areas, such as access spaces and amenities, are to be reflected. The committee has been directed to submit its report within one month.

Senior officials said the move is expected to streamline mortgage approvals, reduce legal ambiguities in property transactions, and help resolve bottlenecks in redevelopment projects involving older buildings in Mumbai and other urban centers. This initiative is a significant step towards modernizing property records and enhancing transparency in the real estate sector.