DELHI APARTMENT OWNERSHIP ACT, 1986
(1) This Act may be called the Delhi Apartment Ownership Act, 1986.
(2) It extends to the whole of the Union territory of Delhi.
(3) It shall come into force on such date1as the Administrator may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.
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1. 11.10.1987
The provisions of this Act shall apply to every apartment in a multistoreyed building which was constructed mainly for residential or commercial or such other purposes as may be prescribed, by--
(a) any group housing co-operative society; or
(b) any other person or authority, before or after the commencement of this Act and on a free hold land or a lease hold land if the lease for such land is for a period of thirty years or more:
Provided that where a building constructed, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, on any land contains only two or three apartments, the owner of such building may, by a declaration duly executed and registered under the provisions of the Registration Act, 1908, 16 of 1908 indicate his intention to make the provisions of this Act applicable to such bu
(a) "Administrator? means the Administrator of the Union territory of Delhi appointed by the President under article 239 of the Constitution;
(b) "allottee? in relation to an apartment, means the person to whom such apartment has been allotted, sold or otherwise transferred by the promoter;
(c) "apartment? means a part of any property, intended for any type of independent use, including one or more rooms or enclosed spaces located on one or more floors or any parts thereof, in a multi-storeyed building to be used for residence or office or for the practice of any profession, or for the carrying on of any occupation, trade or business or for such other type of independent use as may be prescribed, and with a direct exist to a public street, road or highway, or to a common area leading to such street, road or highway, and includes any gara
(1) Every person to whom any apartment is allotted, sold or otherwise transferred by the promoter, on or after the commencement of this Act, shall, save as otherwise provided in section 6, and subject to the other provisions of this Act, be entitled to the exclusive ownership and possession of the apartment so allotted, sold or otherwise transferred to him.
(2) Every person to whom any apartment was allotted, sold or otherwise transferred by the promoter before the commencement of this Act shall, save as otherwise provided under section 6 and subject to the other provisions of this Act, be entitled, on and from such commencement, to the exclusive ownership and possession of the apartment so allotted, sold or otherwise transferred to him.
(3) Every person who becomes entitled to the exclusive ownership and possession of an apartment under
Subject to the provisions of section 6, each apartment, together with the undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to such apartment, shall, for all purpose constitute as a heritable and transferable immovable property within the meaning of any law for the time being in force, and accordingly, an apartment owner may transfer his apartment and the percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to such apartment by way of sale, mortgage, lease, gift, exchange or in any other manner Whatsoever in the same manner, to the same extent and subject to the same rights, privileges, obligations, liabilities, investigations, legal proceedings, remedy and to penalty, forfeiture or punishment as any other immovable property or make a bequest of the same under the law applicable to the transfer and succession of immovable property;
Provide
Where any allotment, sale or other transfer of any apartment has been made, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, in pursuance of any promise of payment, or part payment, of the consideration thereof, the allottee or transferee, as the case may be, shall not become entitled to the ownership and possession of that apartment on to a percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and facilities apurtenant to such apartment, until full payment has been made of the consideration thereof together with interest, if any due thereon, and where any such allottee or transferee has been inducted into the possession of such apartment or any part thereof in pursuance of such allotment or transfer, he shall, until the full payment of the consideration has been made, continue to remain in possession thereof on the same terms and conditions on which he was so inducted into possession of such apartment of part thereof.
Each apartment owner shall comply strictly with the bye-laws and with the covenants, conditions and restrictions set forth in the Deed of Apartment, and failure to comply with any of them shall be a ground for action to recover sums due for damages, or for injunctive relief, or both, by the Manager or Board on behalf of the Association of Apartment Owners, or, in a proper case, by an aggrieved apartment owner.
(1) Where any land is given on lease by a person (hereafter in this section referred to as the lessor) to another person' (hereafter in his section referred to as the lessee, which term shall include a person in whose favour a sub-lease of such land has been granted), and any multistoreyed building has been constructed on such lease-hold land by the lessee or by any other person authorised by him or claiming through him, such lessee shall grant in respect of the land as many sub-lease as there are apartments in such multi-storeyed building and shall execute separate deeds of sub-lease in respect of such land in favour of each apartment owner,--
(a) in the case of a multi-storeyed building constructed before the commencement of this Act, within three months from such commencement, or
(b) in the case of a multi-storeyed building constructe
Notwithstanding anything contained in the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, 4 of 1982 or in any other law for the time being in the force, any person acquiring any apartment from any apartment owner by gift, exchange, purchase or otherwise, or taking lease of an apartment from an apartment owner for a period of thirty years or more, shall,--
(a) in respect of the said apartment, be subject to the provisions of this Act; and
(b) execute and register an instrument in such from, in such manner and within such period as may be prescribed giving an undertaking to comply with the covenants, conditions and restrictions, subject to which such apartment is owned by the apartment owner aforesaid.
If any apartment is acquired by any person, whether by allotment, sale or otherwise with the consideration thereof paid or provided by another person, the acquirer shall, notwithstanding anything contained in the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, 4 of 1982 or in the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 2 of 1982 or in any other law for the time being in force, be deemed to be the real owner of such apartment, and no court shall entertain any claim of the person paying or providing such consideration for title to such apartment on the ground that the acquisition of the apartment was made on behalf of such person or on behalf of someone through whom such person claims.
No apartment owner shall do any work which would be prejudicial to the soundness or safety of the property or reduce the value thereof or impair any easement or hereditament or shall add any material structure or excavate any additional basement or cellar without first obtaining the consent of all the other apartment owners.
Explanation.--In this section, reference to apartment owners shall be construed, in relation to a multi-storeyed building in any block, pocket or other designated area, the apartment owners of the concerned multi-storeyed building in such block, pocket or other designated area.
(1) The owner of each apartment may create any encumbrance, only against the apartment owned by him and the percentage of the undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to such apartment in the same manner and to the same extent as may be created in relation to any other separate parcel of property subject to individual ownership.
Provided that where any such encumbrance is created, the apartment in relation to which such encumbrance has been created shall not be partitioned or sub-divided.
(2) No labour performed or material furnished with the consent, or at the request, of an apartment owner or his agent or his contractor or sub-contractor, shall be the basis for a charge or any encumbrance under the provisions of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, 4 of 1982 against the apartment or property of any other apartm
(1) Whenever any allotment, sale or other transfer of any apartment is made, the promoter shall,--
(a) in the case of an allotment, sale or other transfer made after the commencement of this Act, within three months from the date of such allotment, sale or other transfer, or
(b) in the case of any allotment, sale or other transfer made before the commencement of this Act, within six months from the date of such commencement,
execute a Deed of Apartment containing the following particulars, namely:--
(i) the name of the allottee,
(ii) description of the land on which the building and the common areas and facilities are located, and whether the land is freehold or lease-hold, and lease-hold, the period of s
(1) Every Deed of Apartment and every endorsement thereon relating to the transfer of the apartment shall be deemed to be a document which is compulsorily registrable under the Registration Act, 1908, 16 of 1908 and shall be registered with the Registrar accordingly, and the words and expressions used in this section but not defined in this Act, shall have the meanings respectively assigned to them in the Registration Act, 1908.
(2) In all registration officers, a book called "Register of Deeds or Apartments under the Delhi Apartment Ownership Act, 1986" and an index relating thereto shall be kept in such form and shall contain such particulars as may be prescribed.
(3) Whenever any endorsement on a Deed of Apartment is registered, the concerned Registrar shall forward a certified copy thereof to the competent authority to enable that au
(1) There shall be an Association of Apartment Owners for the administration of the affairs in relation to the apartments and the property appertaining thereto and for the management of common areas and facilities:
Provided that where any area has been demarcated for the construction of multi-storeyed buildings, whether such area is called a block or pocket or by any other name, there shall be a single Association of Apartment Owners in such demarcated area.
(2) The Administrator may, by notification in the Official Gazette, frame model bye-laws in accordance with which the property referred to in sub-section (1) shall be administered by the Association of Apartment Owners and every such Association shall, at its first meeting, make its bye-laws in accordance with the model bye-laws so framed, and in making its bye-laws the Association o
(1) The Board or Manager--
(a) shall have, if requested so to do by a mortgagee having a first mortgage covering an apartment, the authority to, and
(b) shall, if required so to do by the bye-laws or by a majority of the apartment owners, obtain insurance for the property against loss or damage by fire or other hazards under such terms and for such amounts as shall be so requested or required.
(2) Such insurance coverage shall be written on the property in the name of such Board or Manager as trustee for each of the apartment owners in the percentages specified in the bye-laws.
(3) The premia payable in respect of every such insurance shall be common expenses.
(4) The provisions of sub-sections (1) to (
If within sixty days of the date of damage or destruction to all, or part of any property, or within such further, time as the competent authority may, having regard to the circumstances of the case, allow the Association of Apartment Owners does not determine to repair, reconstruct or re-build such property, then, and in that event,--
(a) the property shall be deemed to be owned in common by the apartment owners;
(b) the undivided interest in the property owned in common, which shall appertain to each apartment owner, shall be the percentage of the undivided interest previously owned by such owner in the common areas and facilities;
(c) any incumbrances affecting any of the apartments shall be deemed to be transferred in accordance with the existing priority to the percentage of the undivided
(1) Without prejudice to the rights of any apartment owner, action may be brought by the Board of Manager, in either case in the discretion of the Board on behalf of two or more of the apartment owners as their respective interest may appear, with respect to any cause of action relating to the common areas and facilities or more than one apartment.
(2) The service of process on two or more apartment owners in any action relating to the common areas and facilities or more than one apartment may be made on the person, designated in the bye-laws to receive service of process.
(1) The common profits of the property shall be distributed among and the common expenses shall be charged to, the apartment owners according to the percentage of the undivided interest of the apartment owners in the common areas and facilities.
(2) Where the apartment owner is not in the occupation of the apartment owned by him, the common expenses payable by such apartment owner may be recovered from the person in the occupation of the apartment.
No apartment owner may exempt himself from liability for his contribution towards the common expenses by waiver of the use of enjoyment of any of the common areas and facilities, or by the abandonment of his apartment.
All sums assessed by the Association of Apartment Owners, but unpaid for the share of the common expenses chargeable to any apartment, shall constitute a charge on such apartment prior to all other charges except only--
(i) the charge, if any, on the apartment for payment of Government and municipal taxes; and
(ii) all the sums unpaid on a first mortgage of the apartment.
(1) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in any law relating to local authorities, each apartment and its percentage of undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to such apartment (including an apartment in respect of which the provisions of this Act were applied under the proviso to section 2 shall be deemed to be separate property for the purpose of assessment of tax on lands and buildings leviable under such law and shall be assessed and taxed accordingly; and for this purpose a local authority shall make suitable regulations to carry out the provisions of this section.
(2) Neither the multi-storeyed building nor the property nor the common areas and facilities referred to in sub-section (1), shall be deemed to be separate properties for the purpose of the levy of such taxes.
(1) Upon the sale, bequest or other transfer of an apartment, the purchaser of the apartment or the grantee or legatee or the transferee, as the case may be, shall be jointly and severally liable with the vendor or the transferor for all unpaid assessments against the vendor or transferor for his share of the common expenses up to the time of the sale, bequest or other transfer, without prejudice to the right of the purchaser, grantee, legatee or transferee to recover from the vendor or the transferor any amount paid by the purchaser, grantee, legatee or transferee therefor.
(2) Any purchaser, grantee, legatee or transferee referred to in sub-section (1) shall be entitled to a statement from the Board or Manager setting forth the amount of the unpaid assessment against the vendor or transferor, as the case may be, and such purchaser, grantee, legatee or transferee shall not be liab
(1) The provisions of this Act shall have effect notwithstanding anything inconsistent therewith contained in any other law for the time being in force or in any contract, undertaking or other instrument and all apartment owners, tenants of owners, employees of owners and tenants, or any other person who may, in any manner, use the property or any part thereof to which this Act applies, shall be subject to the provisions of this Act and the bye-laws and the rules made thereunder:
Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall affect the right, title or interest acquired by any allottee or other person in common areas and facilities from any promoter on or before the 28th day of February, 1986.
(2) All agreements, divisions and determinations lawfully made by the Association of Apartment Owners in accordance with the provision
(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, reduce or remit, whether prospectively or retrospectively from a date not earlier than the date of commencement of this Act,--
(a) the stamp duty with which, under any law relating to stamp duty for the time being in force, instruments or documents executed by or on behalf of a promoter, apartment owner or Association of Apartment Owners relating to any of the purpose of this Act are respectively chargeable;
(b) any fee payable by or on behalf of any promoter, apartment owner or Association of Apartment Owners in relation to instruments or documents referred to in clause (a) under any law relating to registration of documents or to court fees, for the time being in force, and which the Central Government is competent to levy.
&
For the removal of doubts, it is hereby declared that the provisions of the Transfer of Property Act, 1882, 4 of 1882 shall, in so far as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, apply to the transfer of any apartment, together with its undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant thereto, made by the owner of such apartment, whether such transfer is made by sale, lease, mortgage, exchange, gift or otherwise, as they apply to the transfer of any immovable property.
(1) The Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules to carry out the provisions of this Act.
(2) In particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:--
(a) the purposes, other than the purposes specified in section 2, for which any multi-storeyed building may be utilised;
(b) the type of independent uses, other than the uses specified in clause (c) of section 3, which may be made of an apartment;
(c) the community and commercial facilities which may be included in common areas and facilities under sub-clause (vii) of clause (j) of section 3;
(d) the scales of composition fees
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