Society Transfer Fee on a Resale Flat in Mumbai: What Your Society Can and Can't Charge

You've agreed the price, the buyer has a loan sanction, and then the society secretary mentions a "transfer charge" of a few lakh. It happens more than it should. The good news is that Maharashtra's rules put a firm limit on it.

How much can a housing society charge as transfer fee in Maharashtra?

Legal experts quoted by Business Standard say Maharashtra does not permit a society to charge more than Rs 25,000 to transfer a flat into the buyer's name, with a small additional fee, a few hundred rupees, for changing the name on the share certificate.

Under the Model Bye-laws (bye-law 38(e)(iv)), the general body sets the transfer premium within limits fixed by the Co-operation Department, and the bye-law bars any additional "donation or contribution to any other fund" from the buyer or seller (Indian Cooperative). Your own society's bye-laws should be in line with this.

Can a society refuse a transfer or demand an NOC?

Business Standard notes that an NOC isn't required under Maharashtra's model bye-laws, and a missing NOC can hardly be a reason to deny membership. Societies can, however, insist that the seller clears all maintenance arrears before transfer.

It also reports a 2020 Pune case where the deputy district registrar dissolved a society board that had passed a Rs 1.25 lakh transfer charge, and barred its directors from contesting elections for six years.

Who pays the society transfer fee?

It is usually agreed between buyer and seller. Arrears of maintenance are the seller's responsibility. Repairs, sinking fund and other regular contributions are separate from the transfer charge.