Many flat purchasers are having doubts about the area of the flat they are going to purchase. In order to help them, the following details are given:
Definitions:
Carpet area: As the name suggests, it is the area where we can put a carpet literally. So, it is the area which we use on a daily basis. If a usable terrace (private terrace) is there within the flat, then the area of the terrace is calculated and 50% of it is added to the carpet area.
Built-up area ((BUA)): In addition to the carpet area, we have to add up the area of walls and ducts. Normally, it is 10% more than the carpet area. This is also called the plinth area and it includes external wall/internal wall within the rooms also.
Super-Built-up area ((SBUA)): This is actually the saleable area which every builder quotes. It includes the built-up area plus common space areas like staircases, gymnasium, security room, motor room, walkways, lifts, terrace of the building, etc. Usually, it is normally 15% more than the built-up area.
In order to understand the concepts of all the above, one simple illustration is given below:
Room Dimension Carpet area in sqft
Living room 10 x 15 150
Master Bedroom 12 x 15 180
Bedroom -2 10 x 12 120
Dining room 8 x 10 80
Kitchen 12 x 10 120
Toilet -1 8 x 5 40
Toilet -2 10 x 7 70
Private Terrace 10 x 6 30 (within the flat premises)
Passages within flat 10 x 5 50
Since terraces are considered within the carpet area by halving their actual area (50% of 60 sqft). In this case, it is 30 sqft. So, the total carpet area is 840 sqft. The builder may quote nearly 1050 sqft as saleable area to the purchaser which includes the carpet area plus walls plus common areas for the said flat which are allowed to be freely used by them. This does not include car parking for which a separate rate is calculated and charged. Thus, the thumb rule is to take 1.25 as the multiplying factor to calculate the super-built-up area or saleable area. But this 1.25 differs from project to project based on common amenities.
Apart from this, there will be several extra charges like electricity backup charges, parking charges, maintenance charges for amenities, security charges, etc. So, we need to consider and compare all of these charges before thinking of choosing the right project to buy a property. We should give a hard thought to how many of the amenities we are actually going to use, and how much we are going to get charged for them. Whether it will be a good thing to buy into a no-frills project and join a gymkhana club rather than paying maintenance charges for the swimming pool which we are not going to use. Also nowadays there is not much cooperation among the flat residents and hence a lot of problems are faced in running common amenities which becomes dud in the long run and useless.
So when you go in for the purchase of flats, just check the carpet area and other things among various alternatives including the importance of locality, floor number, and travel facilities before deciding on any single flat. It is better to go for the first or second floor rather than the ground and other floors as a lot of problems are coming in times of crisis.
In this connection, we should know about FSI also. FSI means Floor Space Index. This is the ratio between the total plot area to the total built-up area of the building. Every flat owner has the right in the plot area and it is apportioned based on the super-built-up area or built-up area as per the agreement.
Before purchasing the flat,
Check whether the builder has the right to put up a structure over the land as the owner or contractor. If so, check the title of land ownership with the help of a good advocate.
Also, we should check whether the builder is building without any violation and the construction of our flat is as per the plan given to us.
Check whether the total floors are as per the building map.
We should ensure that the floor we are buying is an approved one as nowadays many flats are sold without any approval and the purchasers face the problem of demolition.
We should also check the reputation of the builder and also we should obtain that NOC for urban land ceiling is obtained by the builder.
Obtain the electrical and water pipelines maps from the builder which will be helpful in getting help for any major repairs or alteration.
From India, Madras
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5Definitions:
Carpet area: As the name suggests, it is the area where we can put a carpet literally. So, it is the area which we use on a daily basis. If a usable terrace (private terrace) is there within the flat, then the area of the terrace is calculated and 50% of it is added to the carpet area.
Built-up area ((BUA)): In addition to the carpet area, we have to add up the area of walls and ducts. Normally, it is 10% more than the carpet area. This is also called the plinth area and it includes external wall/internal wall within the rooms also.
Super-Built-up area ((SBUA)): This is actually the saleable area which every builder quotes. It includes the built-up area plus common space areas like staircases, gymnasium, security room, motor room, walkways, lifts, terrace of the building, etc. Usually, it is normally 15% more than the built-up area.
In order to understand the concepts of all the above, one simple illustration is given below:
Room Dimension Carpet area in sqft
Living room 10 x 15 150
Master Bedroom 12 x 15 180
Bedroom -2 10 x 12 120
Dining room 8 x 10 80
Kitchen 12 x 10 120
Toilet -1 8 x 5 40
Toilet -2 10 x 7 70
Private Terrace 10 x 6 30 (within the flat premises)
Passages within flat 10 x 5 50
Since terraces are considered within the carpet area by halving their actual area (50% of 60 sqft). In this case, it is 30 sqft. So, the total carpet area is 840 sqft. The builder may quote nearly 1050 sqft as saleable area to the purchaser which includes the carpet area plus walls plus common areas for the said flat which are allowed to be freely used by them. This does not include car parking for which a separate rate is calculated and charged. Thus, the thumb rule is to take 1.25 as the multiplying factor to calculate the super-built-up area or saleable area. But this 1.25 differs from project to project based on common amenities.
Apart from this, there will be several extra charges like electricity backup charges, parking charges, maintenance charges for amenities, security charges, etc. So, we need to consider and compare all of these charges before thinking of choosing the right project to buy a property. We should give a hard thought to how many of the amenities we are actually going to use, and how much we are going to get charged for them. Whether it will be a good thing to buy into a no-frills project and join a gymkhana club rather than paying maintenance charges for the swimming pool which we are not going to use. Also nowadays there is not much cooperation among the flat residents and hence a lot of problems are faced in running common amenities which becomes dud in the long run and useless.
So when you go in for the purchase of flats, just check the carpet area and other things among various alternatives including the importance of locality, floor number, and travel facilities before deciding on any single flat. It is better to go for the first or second floor rather than the ground and other floors as a lot of problems are coming in times of crisis.
In this connection, we should know about FSI also. FSI means Floor Space Index. This is the ratio between the total plot area to the total built-up area of the building. Every flat owner has the right in the plot area and it is apportioned based on the super-built-up area or built-up area as per the agreement.
Before purchasing the flat,
Check whether the builder has the right to put up a structure over the land as the owner or contractor. If so, check the title of land ownership with the help of a good advocate.
Also, we should check whether the builder is building without any violation and the construction of our flat is as per the plan given to us.
Check whether the total floors are as per the building map.
We should ensure that the floor we are buying is an approved one as nowadays many flats are sold without any approval and the purchasers face the problem of demolition.
We should also check the reputation of the builder and also we should obtain that NOC for urban land ceiling is obtained by the builder.
Obtain the electrical and water pipelines maps from the builder which will be helpful in getting help for any major repairs or alteration.
From India, Madras
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Really good information, Mr. Lakshminarayanan. When someone mentions "built-up area," "carpet area," and other terms while purchasing a flat, I used to listen to their explanations with confusion. Your definition has clarified it for me. Thanks for sharing.
From India, Kumbakonam
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From India, Kumbakonam
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