When a residential project fails to meet its stated completion date, the developer requests an extension, and the regulator approves it. This process itself is not unusual, as construction can be delayed for numerous reasons, some of which are beyond the developer's control. Sometimes, a project only requires a few months to provide housing to buyers. However, complexity arises when the wait turns into an endless series of postponements.
Often, figures can be misleading. Take the Indraprasthanagari Phase 1 project in Pune as an example. In one application to MahaRERA, it was reported that the project was 98% complete. In another application, the percentage dropped to 95%, and in a subsequent one, it reached 98% again. Meanwhile, the deadline was changed from December 2022 to May 2023, and then to June 2024. An engineer's certificate from January 2023 valued the project at 16.62 crore rupees, with an additional 1.66 crore rupees still needing to be spent. The architect's certificate for the same period indicated that finishing work and services in Building A were 80% complete, while in Buildings B and C, they were 90%; these same figures appeared a year later when the project was assessed as 94% complete. A later order referred to work completion at the 76% level, using construction progress information that was more than two years old.
The Project That Was 97% Complete in 2020
Gajanan Plaza in Borivali, Mumbai, demonstrates how long the gap between 'almost ready' status and actual handover can be. In January 2020, the promoter informed MahaRERA that 97% of the project was completed on site. Furthermore, some buyers had been promised housing since 2012.
The Main Issues
Extensions Constitute a Large Part of the System
Annual reports from MahaRERA itself give insight into the volume of regulatory work now dedicated to extensions. In 2025-26, the regulator registered 4204 new registrations, 2488 amendments, and 3687 deadline extensions. This accounts for nearly 88 extensions for every 100 new registrations. Extensions made up 35.5% of these three categories. This does not mean that 88% of new projects were delayed, as an extension granted in 2025-26 might relate to a project registered many years ago.
When 100% Still Doesn't Mean Possession
Out of 110 projects studied by TOI, at least 12 instances were found where the promoter's application described the project or overall construction as being at least 95% complete while requesting more time. At least five projects explicitly claimed 100% completion. Four or more projects applied for completion at 95% or higher more than once.
What Happens When Another Deadline Is Needed?
TOI also analyzed 10 orders issued by MahaRERA in 2025 under Section 7(3). This section allows the authority, instead of cancelling the project registration, to permit it to continue working provided certain conditions are met. All 10 recorded cases showed that the promoter failed to obtain consent from 51% of all owners, as required by MahaRERA procedure. Nevertheless, an extension was granted in all cases. This in itself is not a violation. However, the reasoning in all these orders is largely similar: denying continuation could halt the project and harm buyers, so the 'balance of convenience' leans towards allowing continuation subject to compliance.
The Law Allows More Than One Route
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act was passed in 2016 and came into full force on May 1, 2017, after many years of demands for establishing a legislative framework to regulate a sector where buyers had little protection against delays. This is the central law administered at the state level: each state and territory forms its own rules and appoints its own bodies. MahaRERA, which began operations in 2017, is one of the oldest and busiest.
The Necessary Database
Even official assessments show a high level of housing stress. A committee appointed by the government and headed by Amitabh Kant referred to estimates by the Indian Banks' Association, which indicate about 4.12 lakh units of stressed housing related to outdated frozen projects worth 4.08 lakh crore rupees. FPCE indicates a much larger sum—12.44 lakh crore rupees—affecting approximately 27.6 lakh families, according to its estimates. This figure is a model calculation, not a count per project.