Post by : Badri Ariffin

In a significant pre-election development, the Maharashtra government has approved a complete waiver of stamp duty and registration fees for residents of old buildings who receive new homes under Mumbai’s cluster redevelopment scheme. The order, issued on November 18 by the Inspector General of Registration and Controller of Stamps, is expected to reduce a major financial burden for hundreds of families awaiting redevelopment.

The waiver applies to beneficiaries allotted homes between 400 sq ft and 600 sq ft, a size band that covers most tenants living in ageing and unsafe structures across the city. Until now, residents were required to pay full stamp duty on the additional area they received after redevelopment, calculated on construction cost or ready reckoner rates—often leading to expenses beyond their capacity.

Under earlier rules, even small cluster projects faced steep charges. A redevelopment covering 4,000 sq metres attracted full stamp duty on the extra area, inflating overall project costs. With the new decision, concessional valuation will be applied for areas up to 51.975 sq metres, creating measurable savings. In such smaller clusters, developers are expected to save around ₹21.14 lakh per project, easing long-standing cost hurdles.

For larger clusters, the impact will be far greater. A project spread across 50,000 sq metres could see stamp duty savings of over ₹4 crore, increasing feasibility for developers and accelerating stalled proposals across Mumbai’s eastern and western suburbs.

The cluster redevelopment policy ensures each tenant receives a minimum of 35 sq metres of carpet area. On top of this, depending on the cluster size, residents gain 10% to 35% extra area, along with 35% fungible area. All this additional space will now be treated as an exchange for the original premises and valued at a minimal rate, removing a key financial barrier for both residents and builders.

The move is expected to give a fresh push to redevelopment in neighbourhoods where old buildings have been waiting years for approval, funding, or consent. As the city prepares for the upcoming BMC elections, the timing of the announcement has also stirred political reactions, with rivals calling it an election-driven decision. Despite this, the waiver brings immediate relief to thousands of families hoping to return to safer, modern homes.

This policy shift marks one of the most significant steps in recent years to unlock Mumbai’s long-delayed cluster redevelopment landscape, setting the stage for faster reconstruction across congested and ageing pockets of the city.

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