Terrace Repair Costs Must Be Borne by Housing Society, Rules Bombay High Court; Petition by Housing Society Rejected
Terrace Repair Costs Must Be Borne by Housing Society, Rules Bombay High Court; Petition by Housing Society Rejected
The Bombay High Court has ruled that the responsibility for terrace repairs in housing complexes rests with the society and not with individual flat owners. The decision comes as a major relief for top-floor residents, who are often forced to pay for seepage and structural damages arising from poor terrace maintenance.
The ruling was delivered while dismissing a petition filed by Saphale Complex, a Navi Mumbai housing society comprising 12 buildings with 312 flats. In 2012, the society’s managing committee had passed a resolution to carry out repair work, including fixing cracks and leakages, and issued bills of ₹10,000 to ₹50,000 to residents. Several members, particularly those on the top floor, objected, arguing that under cooperative housing society bylaws, the terrace is a common area and its upkeep is a collective responsibility.
Justice Milind Jadhav, presiding over the matter, upheld the earlier order of the Cooperative Department, which had directed the society not to recover terrace repair charges from individual residents and to refund any amounts already collected. The court made it clear that the terrace belongs to the society and that repair costs cannot be selectively imposed on certain members.
The judgment provides much-needed clarity for housing societies across Maharashtra, reaffirming that maintenance of common areas, including terraces, must be managed collectively and not at the expense of specific residents.
