News: MahaRERA: Brokerage Disputes Are Civil Matters, Not RERA-28-05-2026
A real estate agent’s claim for a 2% brokerage fee from a Mumbai-based developer has been turned down by the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA), which held that disputes over brokerage and commission are civil matters that cannot be adjudicated under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 (RERA).
The agent’s case
The complainant said he was a registered real estate agent for Arkade Developers’ project ’Arkade Aura’ in Santacruz West, Mumbai, and had been taking prospective buyers on site visits since 2023. In September 2025, after talks with two homebuyers over another flat configuration did not work out, he shared details of a 4 BHK apartment with them. He submitted that, at the clients’ request, he obtained the 4 BHK floor plan from the developer’s representative on September 8, 2025, and forwarded it along with an indicative price.
He alleged that he later learnt the buyers had closed the deal through a third-party referrer, with a tacit understanding between them, in order to avoid paying him the 2% brokerage.
The developer’s response
The developer denied the allegations and said the complainant had no role. It submitted that the first site visit for the 4 BHK flat took place only on September 17, 2025, when the clients were accompanied by Shrikant Prasad, a member of Vivek CHS, whose referral was recorded in the company’s Member Referral Register. It argued that the agent neither registered nor tagged the purchasers for the 4 BHK flat within the prescribed period, did not show them the flat and took no part in the negotiations or finalisation. Merely introducing a client for a different flat type, it said, does not entitle a broker to brokerage on another independent transaction.
The order
In its order dated May 24, 2026, MahaRERA noted that no written brokerage or commission agreement had been executed between the agent and the promoter setting out the percentage, the conditions for entitlement or the obligations of either side. The complainant relied mainly on an alleged oral understanding, market practice and earlier interactions with the purchasers.
The regulator took the prima facie view that questions about entitlement to brokerage, the existence of an oral understanding, the role of intermediaries, market practice and alleged loss of commission would need detailed evidence and adjudication of contractual and civil rights, and could not be decided in summary proceedings under RERA. It said there is no explicit provision under RERA to grant such relief. The Act, it observed, mainly regulates the relationship between promoter and allottee and also provides for registration and regulation of real estate agents.
The complaint, MahaRERA said, sought to enforce a brokerage claim arising from a disputed commercial arrangement, which would more appropriately fall within the jurisdiction of a competent civil court or forum. Rejecting it for want of merit, the authority left the agent at liberty to approach such a court or forum in accordance with law.
Reactions
Amit Jain, Chairman and Managing Director at Arkade Developers, welcomed the order, saying it had reaffirmed the company’s position, and added that the firm remained committed to transparent, ethical and process-driven business practices within applicable regulatory frameworks.
The real estate agent, the homebuyers and the third-party referral could not be reached for comment.
Trupti Daphtary, an advocate and solicitor based in Mumbai, said the complaint was rejected because there was no written agreement specifying the brokerage percentage, entitlement conditions or obligations. She noted that the order acknowledges RERA provides for registration and regulation of agents. In her view, where an agent has a written agreement, MahaRERA could in an appropriate case examine whether the agent is entitled to brokerage, which would bring greater clarity to the issue.
