UP RERA fines Max Estate 105, Sobha Rivana Rs 5 lakh each for pre-registration ads

The penalty

At its 198th authority meeting, reported on 19 March 2026, UP RERA imposed penalties of Rs 5 lakh each on three projects for violating Section 3 of the RERA Act, which bars advertising, marketing, booking or selling a project before it is registered. Two of the three are in the NCR:

• Estate 105 by Max Estates, Sector 105, Noida (listed on our site as Max Estate 105).
• Sobha Rivana by Sobha Limited, Greater Noida.

The third was a Lucknow project. According to the report, the authority found the projects being promoted on websites before registration, considered the promoters’ replies to its show-cause notices unsatisfactory, and imposed the fines under Section 59. The report also said UP RERA had penalised 13 projects a total of about Rs 63 lakh over the preceding six months for similar violations.

Why it matters

Rs 5 lakh is small compared with the value of luxury projects, so the fine itself is unlikely to change developer behaviour. Its importance is that it puts a regulatory record against these projects and signals that UP RERA is monitoring online “pre-launch” campaigns, including those run by channel partners.

Penalty orders of this kind do not cancel a project. Buyers who book after a project is registered are covered by the registered terms; anyone who paid before registration should check that their allotment was later documented on those registered terms.

What buyers should take from it

• A large or well-known brand does not guarantee compliance – check registration yourself.
• “EOI”, “priority pass” or “soft launch” collections before registration are exactly what Section 3 prohibits.
• If you paid before registration, get a written allotment on the registered price list, carpet area and completion date.

How to check

• Search the project name or promoter on the UP RERA portal and note the registration date.
• Compare that date with when you first saw ads or were asked to pay.

Both developers are listed companies with large NCR pipelines, so this is also a reminder that regulators’ online monitoring now covers brokers’ and aggregators’ listings, not just developers’ own websites. Keep screenshots of any advertisement you rely on when booking, including the date you saw it.