Bangalore Apartments’ Federation Welcomes Enactment of KAOMA 2026

The Bangalore Apartments’ Federation (BAF) has welcomed the enactment of the Karnataka Apartment Ownership and Management Act (KAOMA) 2026 in Bengaluru, describing it as a major upgrade over the state's 1972 legal framework.

According to the federation, the new legislation places a sharper focus on empowering residents’ associations, enforcing promoter accountability, protecting common areas, granting legal recognition for future development rights, and ensuring building safety and redevelopment.

BAF president Satish Mallya stated on Monday that the law has the potential to become one of India’s strongest frameworks for apartment governance, noting that effective implementation will now serve as the key priority.

The federation pointed out that the new law ensures promoters remain accountable under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, even after apartment handovers and management transfers are complete. The provisions also explicitly prohibit promoters from retaining control over common areas once management has been handed over to the association.

Under the new Act, promoters are required to facilitate the formation and registration of an association within three months of a majority of apartments being allotted. If a promoter fails to meet this requirement, the competent authority is empowered to intervene.

Sujatha G., policy lead at BAF, remarked that the concept of a single statutory association for each project will introduce greater structure to apartment governance. She noted that recognising a registered association as a body corporate—with perpetual succession and the legal capacity to sue and be sued in its own name—marks an important step forward.

BAF general secretary K. Aun Kumar noted that while the Act establishes a stronger mechanism for transferring management and administration, management and ownership rights must move together. He stressed that statutory and deemed conveyance of land and common-area rights will require a clear, time-bound, and enforceable mechanism.