In recent years, there has been a steady rise of housing society woes owing to varied reasons and circumstances. Homeowners, who often dreamt that their issues will end with the possession of the property, now find themselves dealing with multiple problems related to the management of the housing societies.
Here are 5 common conflicts that every housing society faces, without any concrete resolutions.
1. Formation of the housing society
The formation of the general body of the housing society is the most common area of conflict. Established for the benefit of the residents in the society, the Community Housing Society is the basic unit of local governance. The managerial positions of President, General Secretary, Treasurers and Account managers are nominated or elected from the group of applicants, living in the society.
In most cases, the positions are filled through majority. However, there are instances where two or groups of residents clash during the formation of the society, leading to split decision, resulting in conflicts.
2. Maintenance fund collection and audits
Maintenance of the basic infrastructure, repair works, employing security personnel and garbage collection require sizeable funds. Builders, at the time of booking, collect maintenance cost for up to 3 years from the house owners. When the society is formed, the fund collection is revised to include additional services. However, the conflicts arise when funds are disproportionately used or reported through erroneous financial reports.
Every housing society faces the lack of funds and non-closure of audit reports to the residents leading to conflicts. There could be dozens of defaulters in the housing society, costing the society lakhs of rupees every quarter. Again, these defaulters are a major source of conflicts in urban and suburban societies.
3. Water usage, treatment, and sewage
Housing societies face major issues in the supply of clean water, especially during the summers when most Indian cities face acute water shortage. In major townships, water usage expense is calculated as per family size, the area of the unit or the floor rise. Bigger families, living in larger houses on higher floors have to pay more for water expenditure. Most families find this biased, leading to conflicts with the housing society management.
In some cases, the inability of the housing society to arrange water tankers, pump failures or poor maintenance of the sewage treatment plants also cause major showdown, creating unavoidable tussles.
4. Pets and trivial parking issues
Residents regularly parking at places reserved for others become the reason for conflicts in the society. House owners with reserved parking often have a hard time dealing with visitors lining their vehicle in their spot.
Families with pets, especially dogs, have also become a source of disagreement in the society. Pets often create a nuisance, barking loudly or by biting strangers and kids. Many societies have strict provisions against pets, which creates ruckus between them and the animal lovers.
5. Bachelors and female tenants
Many housing societies don’t let house owners rent their unit to bachelors and female tenants. This affects the income of the house owner and leads to quarrels. The housing societies not allowing such tenants are directly contradicting the Fundamental Right of the house owner and tenants, for which legal procedures can be initiated.
Believe it or not, non-adherence to the housing society rules can result in loss of membership to live in the society or even legal notice slammed by the members.
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