Housing society redevelopment in Mumbai: the 2026 rules

The rule

• Who may decide. Only the elected managing committee can take the redevelopment process forward; an authorised officer, administrator or board appointed by the Registrar cannot (para 3).
• Which projects. The order covers redevelopment through a developer agreement, self-redevelopment, cluster redevelopment within a federation and redevelopment by a group of societies (para 2).
• When. Where the competent authority has declared the building dangerous or dilapidated and it is eligible under the development control rules (para 1).
• Fractions in any calculation are rounded up to the next whole number (para 15).
• Sanctions. Office-bearers who breach the order or collude against members face action under sections 79A(3) and 78A (para 16).

The order is in Marathi; the figures below are Payotte’s reading of the text on the state’s GR portal.

Step by step

1. Members ask for a meeting. At least one-fifth of the members send the Secretary a written request with their proposals. The committee records it within 8 days, and the Secretary calls a special general meeting within 2 months, with the agenda sent to every member 14 days before (para 4).
2. Choose an adviser. Before that meeting, the committee collects quotations from at least 3 architects registered with the Council of Architecture or project management consultants on a government or local authority panel. The meeting picks one (para 4). Members can send written suggestions up to 8 days before (para 5).
3. First vote. Quorum is 2/3 of all members. Without quorum, the meeting is adjourned and held again within 1 month on 7 days’ notice; if quorum fails again, the subject cannot return for 3 months. Redevelopment is approved by at least 51% of the total membership. Members abroad, seriously ill, disabled or otherwise unable to attend may join by video conference and are counted, but 51% of all members must be physically present; absent members’ consents do not count (para 6). Example from the order: with 100 members, the quorum is 67 and at least 51 must vote yes.
4. Written consent. Members who voted in favour sign consent letters (para 7). The adviser receives an appointment letter within 30 days (para 8) and submits a project report within 2 months, with a separate comparison for each scheme available under the DCPR or UDCPR (para 9).
5. Tender. The committee meets within 30 days of the report. The tender keeps either the carpet area or the corpus fund fixed so that offers compare. The draft is approved in a general meeting and the tender is advertised in local Marathi and English newspapers (para 10).
6. Open the bids. The list of bids goes on the notice board on the closing day. A general meeting is held within 30 days and the bids are opened in front of those present. If fewer than 3 bids arrive, the period is extended by 15 days, then by 1 week; after that, whatever was received goes forward. Bidders may submit revised offers (para 11).
7. Pick the developer. The society sends the Registrar the minutes, member list, report and bid comparison; the Registrar decides on an authorised officer within 14 days. The selection meeting is held within 1 month, on 14 days’ notice, with the same 2/3 quorum and physical-presence rule. Only members attend, identity is checked, and the meeting is video-recorded. The developer is chosen by at least 51% of the total membership, by show of hands or by secret ballot if one-fifth of members ask in writing. Within 14 days, the minutes and consent letters go to the Registrar, who records the appointment and informs the society and the planning authority (para 12).
8. Sign. The development agreement is signed within 3 months (para 13).

What the development agreement must contain

Under para 13, the agreement includes:

• completion within 2 years of the first or plinth certificate, and in exceptional cases no more than 3 years;
• a bank guarantee whose size and form the general meeting decides (the 2019 resolution had fixed it at 20% of the project cost; the 2026 order does not);
• temporary accommodation, rent and deposit, or a transit camp;
• registration of the development agreement and of each member’s Permanent Alternative Accommodation Agreement under the Registration Act, 1908, the latter within 3 months of registering the development agreement;
• the carpet area due to each member, stated as defined in the RERA Act (see carpet area vs built-up area);
• members vacate only after all approvals are obtained and their own agreement is registered;
• development rights that cannot be transferred;
• a clause sending disputes to the competent court or authority under the law in force;
• flats allotted in a general meeting on 14 days’ notice, by at least 51%, floor by floor as far as possible or by lottery, video-recorded;
• new flat buyers admitted as members within 3 months of completion;
• no committee member or office-bearer, nor a relative, may be the developer.

Not the same as a cessed building or an apartment association

• Cessed buildings in Mumbai fall under a different section 79A, in the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Act, 1976 (a bill of 9 July 2026 proposes to amend it).
• Apartment owners’ associations follow section 6A of the Maharashtra Apartment Ownership Act, 1970: majority consent, and a building 30 years old or declared dangerous. See apartment owners’ association vs co-operative society.

Which professional to consult

An architect or project consultant for the report; a property lawyer (an advocate enrolled with the State Bar Council) for the agreements. This guide is not legal advice.