India, May 12 -- Acting on complaints by homebuyers, the Uttar Pradesh Real Estate Regulatory Authority (UP-Rera) has directed all developers to immediately stop handing over incomplete apartments or bare shell units to homebuyers and warned that this could attract penalties up to 5% of the real estate project's total cost.

The order, issued on May 8, said that RERA clearly states that possession can only be offered after full completion of the apartment, all promised amenities are in place, and a registered sale or lease deed has been executed.

The directive, issued under Section 37 of the Rera Act, 2016, aims to protect new buyers from being forced to accept bare-shell flats, a practice that UP-Rera has deemed both illegal and a serio...