Society Cannot Charge Maintenance on Square Feet Basis - Major Win for Flat Owners in Mumbai

In a landmark ruling that will impact thousands of flat owners in Maharashtra, the Maharashtra State Co-operative Appellate Court has clearly held that housing societies cannot charge maintenance on square foot basis. Maintenance for common services must be charged on per unit / per flat basis — every flat pays the same amount. Case Details: Appeal No.: A.O. No. 49 of 2025 Appellant: Vatsala Niwas Co-operative Housing Society Ltd., Linking Road, Santacruz (West), Mumbai Respondents: Mrs. Poonam Soni (Unit No. 201) & M/s. Poonam Soni Signature Line Pvt. Ltd. (Unit No. 203) Judgment Date: 12 June 2026 Judge: Dr. Srishty Neelkanth, Member-1, Maharashtra State Co-operative Appellate Court, Mumbai Trial Court Order: Dated 28.04.2025 passed by Co-operative Court No. II, Mumbai in Dispute No. CC/II/313/2024 The society was charging maintenance on sq.ft basis and suddenly raised ₹17.26 lakh arrears without proper explanation. The Appellate Court upheld the interim order restraining the society from recovering the amount and from charging on square foot basis. It directed the society to follow the Government Order dated 29.04.2000 and charge maintenance on per unit basis. Key Legal Points Covered: Government Order dated 29.04.2000 under Section 79A of MCS Act Bombay High Court judgment in Venus CHSL vs. Dr. J.Y. Detwani Importance of transparency in society billing This is a major victory for homebuyer rights and transparency in housing societies. Watch the full story and understand your rights as a flat owner. Keywords: vatsala niwas society, maintenance charges square foot, per unit basis, maharashtra cooperative societies, mumbai housing society, poonam soni, cooperative appellate court, dr srishty neelkanth, government order 2000, venus chsl judgment, homebuyer rights, mumbai real estate news Hashtags: #HousingSociety #MaintenanceCharges #SquareFootVsUnit #MumbaiRealEstate #HomebuyerRights #CooperativeCourt #MahaRERA #FlatOwners #VatsalaNiwas #RealEstateNews