Who Owns the Clubhouse in Your Mumbai Project? RERA's Rules on Common Areas
A Mumbai buyer's guide to how the RERA Act treats clubhouses, community and commercial facilities, open parking and garages, when common areas must be conveyed to the association, and what to ask the builder before booking.
The sales gallery for a new Mumbai tower spends more time on the clubhouse than on the flats. There is a rooftop pool in the rendering, a gym, a party hall, a row of shops at the podium level and a line on the brochure about "world class amenities". A buyer comparing two projects on the Western Express Highway might reasonably ask a simple question that the brochure does not answer: once the building is finished, who owns all of that?
The short answer. Under the RERA Act, "common areas" include all community and commercial facilities provided in the project, along with open parking areas, terraces, parks, play areas and central services. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' FAQs say community and commercial facilities are an integral part of the project, to be handed over to the association of allottees, and that open parking areas, being common areas, cannot be sold to allottees. The promoter must convey the undivided proportionate title in the common areas to the association and hand over their physical possession. The trade-off: owning the clubhouse collectively means owners also inherit the job and the cost of running it, so the facilities that sell a project can become a large line in the maintenance budget.
What does RERA count as a common area?
A long list. Section 2(n) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 defines common areas to mean the entire land for the project, or for a phase where registration is sought phase by phase; staircases, lifts, lobbies, fire escapes and common entrances and exits; common basements, terraces, parks, play areas, open parking areas and common storage spaces; premises for staff employed to manage the property; installations of central services such as electricity, gas, water, sanitation and air conditioning; water tanks, sumps, motors and similar apparatus for common use; all community and commercial facilities as provided in the project; and all other portions of the project necessary or convenient for its maintenance and safety and in common use.
Clause (vii) is the one that matters for the clubhouse. It names "all community and commercial facilities as provided in the real estate project" as common areas, without carving out the ones a promoter might prefer to keep.
Does the clubhouse belong to the owners or the builder?
To the owners, through their association. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' FAQs on the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, dated July 2025, answer the question directly. They say Section 2(n) defines common areas to include community and commercial facilities, "thus they are an integral part of the project, to be handed over to the Association of Allottees."
The Act sets out how that handover happens. Section 17(1) says the promoter shall execute a registered conveyance deed in favour of the allottee along with the undivided proportionate title in the common areas to the association of allottees or the competent authority, and hand over physical possession of the common areas to the association, within the period specified under local laws. Where there is no local law, its proviso sets three months from the date of issue of the occupancy certificate.
Paperwork for the facilities has to follow too. Section 17(2) says that after obtaining the occupancy certificate and handing over physical possession, the promoter is responsible for handing over the necessary documents and plans, including of the common areas, to the association of allottees or the competent authority as per local laws. In the absence of a local law, the proviso sets thirty days after the occupancy certificate. For a clubhouse, those documents are what let the society maintain the pool, lifts and plant rooms properly.
Until the society takes over, the promoter carries the running. Section 11(4)(d) says the promoter shall be responsible for providing and maintaining the essential services, on reasonable charges, till the taking over of the maintenance of the project by the association of allottees. Ask early what those charges cover, because the same facilities will sit in the society's own budget once it takes charge.
Mumbai buyers will know the next step as conveyance to the society. Our guide to conveyance and deemed conveyance for a Mumbai housing society explains what happens when that transfer is delayed.
Can a builder sell you an open parking space?
No. The MoHUA FAQs say Section 2(n) defines common areas to include open parking areas, "thus open parking areas cannot be sold to the allottees." A garage is different. Section 2(y) of the Act defines a garage as a place within a project having a roof and walls on three sides for parking any vehicle, and says it does not include an unenclosed or uncovered parking space such as open parking areas. The FAQs add that a garage can be sold to the allottee independent of the apartment.
For a Mumbai buyer, the practical test is physical. A covered space with a roof and walls on three sides fits the garage definition. An open, uncovered slot in the compound is a common area. If a cost sheet carries a separate price for an open space, ask the promoter in writing which category it falls in and why.
What about shops or a commercial podium inside the project?
Read the project's disclosures carefully. The definition in Section 2(n)(vii) covers community and commercial facilities "as provided in the real estate project", and the MoHUA FAQs treat them as an integral part of the project to be handed over to the association. That makes the project's own documents the key evidence of what was provided as a facility for residents.
The Act gives you a way to see those documents early. Section 11(3)(a) says that at the time of booking and issue of the allotment letter, the promoter shall make available to the allottee the sanctioned plans, layout plans and specifications approved by the competent authority. Section 19(3) says the association of allottees is entitled to claim possession of the common areas as per the declaration given by the promoter under Section 4(2)(l)(C).
Can the builder change the clubhouse after you book?
Not freely. Section 14(2) of the Act says that after the sanctioned plans, layout plans, specifications and the nature of the fixtures, fittings, amenities and common areas are disclosed to a buyer, the promoter shall not make additions or alterations to the apartment's plans and the amenities described, without the buyer's previous consent, subject to minor changes allowed under the proviso. For other changes to the plans or common areas of the building, the Act requires the previous written consent of at least two thirds of the allottees, other than the promoter, who have agreed to take apartments in that building.
The MoHUA FAQs summarise the same rule: minor additions or alterations need only approval of the competent authority and disclosure, while a major modification needs approval from two thirds of the allottees, with apartments held by the promoter excluded from the count.
How do the different spaces compare?
This table sets out how the Act and the MoHUA FAQs treat the spaces a brochure usually shows.
| Space | Status under RERA | Can it be sold separately? | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clubhouse, gym, pool, party hall | Community facility, part of common areas | Handed over to the association | Section 2(n)(vii); MoHUA FAQ 12 |
| Commercial facilities provided in the project | Part of common areas | Handed over to the association | Section 2(n)(vii); MoHUA FAQ 12 |
| Open parking area | Part of common areas | No, cannot be sold to allottees | Section 2(n)(iii); MoHUA FAQ 11 |
| Garage with roof and three walls | Defined separately as a garage | Yes, independent of the apartment | Section 2(y); MoHUA FAQ 16 |
| Terrace, parks, play areas | Part of common areas | Undivided title conveyed to the association | Section 2(n)(iii); Section 17(1) |
What should you check before booking?
Take these questions to the sales office and ask for answers in writing.
- Ask for the sanctioned layout showing every facility in the brochure.
- Ask which facilities are listed as common areas in the promoter's declaration.
- Check whether any commercial space is shown as a project facility.
- Ask whether parking offered is a garage or an open space.
- Check the cost sheet for any separate charge for open parking.
- Ask when the conveyance of common areas to the society is planned.
- Keep the brochure and layout as a record of what was promised.
The brochure matters more than it looks. Section 12 of the Act says that a person who makes an advance or deposit on the basis of information in an advertisement or prospectus, or a model apartment, and suffers loss because of an incorrect or false statement in it, shall be compensated by the promoter. For a project with a published MahaRERA number, such as the one on our page for Prestige Garden Trails in Mira Road, compare the brochure with the sanctioned layout and the project's MahaRERA registration details. Our explainer on carpet area versus super built up area under RERA shows how common areas affect the price you are quoted.
Frequently asked questions
Is the clubhouse in a Mumbai project a common area under RERA?
Yes. Section 2(n) of the RERA Act includes all community and commercial facilities provided in the project within common areas. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' FAQs say these facilities are an integral part of the project and are to be handed over to the association of allottees.
Can a builder sell open parking to flat buyers?
No. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' FAQs on RERA say Section 2(n) includes open parking areas within common areas, so open parking areas cannot be sold to allottees. A garage, defined in Section 2(y) as a space with a roof and walls on three sides, can be sold independently of the apartment.
When must the builder hand over common areas to the association?
Section 17(1) of the RERA Act says the promoter must convey the undivided proportionate title in the common areas to the association and hand over their physical possession within the period set by local laws. If there is no local law, the conveyance must be carried out within three months of the occupancy certificate.
Can the builder remove a promised amenity after I book?
Section 14(2) of the RERA Act bars additions or alterations to the disclosed plans and amenities of your apartment without your previous consent, apart from permitted minor changes. Other changes to the building's plans or common areas need the previous written consent of at least two thirds of the allottees, excluding the promoter.
Last updated 2026-10-21. PropNewz Team.
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