Homebuyers Demand Strict Action Against False Real Estate Ads

Homebuyers’ welfare associations expressed concern over the ever-increasing incidence of misleading real estate advertisements, urging the Government to impose stricter bans on developers misrepresenting information. The Forum for People’s Collective Efforts (FPCE), a national-level advocacy group for homebuyers, has called upon the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to establish strict rules so that deceptive advertising is kept under control.

This call from the group follows alarming findings from the Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), which have revealed that 34% of real estate advertisements in Maharashtra between April and September had violated some existing advertising rules. However, penalties against violators are on the lighter side: arresting an average penalty of only Rs 14,000-15,000 has, therefore, let the FPCE feel this has not been enough to dissuade a developer from false positioning.

“Insolvent developers are more than able to pin their hopes on misguiding innocents and continue to gorge on their life savings,” said Abhay Upadhyay, president-FPCE.”These misleading advertisements usually create the roadmap for revealing homebuyers, leading to their lifelong misery. Hence, it calls for stricter measures for safeguarding consumers.”

While 59% of the flagged advertisements in Maharashtra were either modified or withdrawn, FPCE emphasizes that these actions have not adequately addressed the core issue of consumer harm. The group has urged the Ministry of Consumer Affairs to not only enforce heavier fines but also establish clearer, more robust sector-specific guidelines for real estate advertisements.

FPCE’s recommendations include allowing buyers misled by false advertising to withdraw from projects with interest, mandating substantial compensation for misrepresentation, and expanding advertisement screening criteria to include a broader range of deceptive practices. Also, the group pointed out that consumers do not have recourse to seek restitution, essentially leaving homebuyers without means to claim back their present investments.

The increasing clamor regarding misleading advertisements in the real estate sector also serves to demand that reforms in consumer protection be made. While progress has been made via ASCI’s collab with Maharashtra’s Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA), FPCE continues to insist that it should be done on a national level without much delay to ensure accountability and protection of homebuyers.