Resident Welfare Association (RWA): Role, rules and power

A residential housing society has an association known as the Resident Welfare Association (RWA) that works towards the welfare of the people living in the society. This represents the owners and tenants living in the society and is responsible for managing the facilities and services in a building complex and problems faced by the residents and taking care of the rights of the property owners. In this guide, we detail the roles and responsibilities of a Resident Welfare Association (RWA) and the power that it has.

How is RWA formed?

An RWA is made of a group of home owners in the building complex who have been elected by the members of the society. Once the members are elected, the RWA is registered under the Societies Registration Act of 1860. Every state has some aspects that they give prominence to and RWA follows the rules set by that particular state and does not do whatever they wish to. The financial year of a RWA is April 1 to March 31.

Resident Welfare Association: Quick facts

Who can nominate themselves to become a RWA managing committee member?

Any house owner who is interested in contributing to the development of the society can nominate himself to become a RWA member. On the basis of election, the final committee will be chosen. Note that all members have to follow the terms and conditions of the society without any discrimination related to caste, religion, creed etc.

How are the RWA members selected?

The RWA members are selected for a period of five years generally through election in a general body meeting in which residents can raise their hands or cast their votes in a secret ballot. In any RWA, the members should not be less than seven. These members should be attested by outgoing office bearers and should be filed with the societies’ registrar.

Is RWA mandatory for all housing societies?

Under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development)Act 2016, a RWA must be established within three months from when most houses in the complex are occupied/ booked. If the builder doesn’t form the society, the home owners can come together and form the RWA and get it registered with the registrar.

Do the RWAs have any statutory powers?

The RWA is a voluntary association who have power and authority to get things done for the benefit of the society. But they don’t have any authority on the right of your property in the housing society.

What are the roles of RWA?

The RWA is responsible for improving and maintaining internal roads in the complex, its cleanliness, common area facilities such as park, drainage, street lights, water and electricity. In case of gated communities, an RWA is also expected to monitor the commercial activities in shops, bazaars and banks, healthcare facilities etc. The RWA decides the subscription amount in the form of maintenance charges for all the property owners in the housing society. This amount is used towards the upkeep of the society such as security, housekeeping, the many AMCs that the society will have to get serviced, sinking fund and repair fund.

Office bearers of the RWA

The RWA is made of members that correspond to the number of housing units in a society. Among these members are three posts that are very important and they run the show. They are also known as the office bearers.

Chairperson

•     Also known as the president, he is responsible for the overall working of the society and his approval in all society related matters are important. He should be well aware about the happenings in the society and that people are happy and have no grievances with respect to the working of the society.
•     The chairperson has the right to access the society’s bank accounts and should ensure that all the expenses made in the housing society are made only towards the society and people are content with it.
•     He can monitor the work done by other office bearers and members of the RWA.
•     In case of legal disputes, he has to defend the RWA. He can sue people for violations in society.

Secretary

•     A secretary represents the housing society in a private or public office.
•     The secretary is responsible for managing the concerns highlighted by every member of the housing society by coming up with proper resolutions.
•     He is responsible to document and maintain all records related to the housing society.
•     A secretary is responsible for carrying out the general body meetings- be it annual general meeting (AGM) or special general body meeting (SGBM), whenever it is required. These meetings give updates on how the housing society is being maintained to the members of the housing society. These meetings also act as decision making meetings when a collective decision has to be taken and incorporated by the housing society.
•     A secretary is responsible for jotting the minutes of the meeting and circulating it to homeowners after the meeting.
•     The secretary is also responsible to call for the RWA members meeting and has to write the minutes of the meeting once the meeting is done.
•     The secretary is allowed to access the society bank account.

Treasurer

This member is responsible for collecting and maintaining the society funds. The treasurer is expected to document all the expenses done by the society and maintain any income it generates. Since it involves handling money of all the members living in the society, a treasurer should be experienced and manage everything effectively.

The other elected functionaries of the RWA help in the day to day task of the housing society.

Powers of the Resident Welfare Association

The membership with the housing society is open to all. However, the RWA has the right to refuse memberships and communicate the reason to the member in writing. Some of the instances of canceling RWA membership include: death of the owner, non-payment of the maintenance charges and the penalty attached to it, caught in activity that harms the reputation and the people of the housing society etc.

RWA bank account

The RWA has to have a bank account in a scheduled bank. This account can be accessed by the chairman, secretary and the treasurer.

What are the limitations of a RWA?

While RWA has control over maintenance, record keeping and resident memberships, there are some limitations to RWA.

•     An RWA cannot have commercial transaction or own a property
•     An RWA cannot file a legal complaint in front of the deputy direct registrar.
•     He cannot own anything in the society
•     Cannot interfere with ownership rights of any property.
•     No steps can be taken by the RWA in which inconvenience is caused to other members of the society.

What are the common complaints that an RWA receives from the housing complex members?

•     Misuse of the society’s communication channel like Whatsapp groups.
•     Arguments with respect to parking spaces.
•     Keeping plants on the balcony on the parapet which may pose a security risk.
•     Encroachment of a common area
•     Not following the external colour code of the building, thereby spoiling the external façade.

Housing.com POV

The RWA is an important body for the effective functioning of a society. It is important that the office bearers, functionaries of the managing committee and the members of the RWA are aligned with the effective functioning of the society. People who are interested in participating in societies’ development with integrity and have the time should take responsibility.