Know the difference between What is carpet area and a super built-up area. Carpet area vs built-up area vs Super built-up area in building
While buying a flat, terms like carpet area, built-up and super built-up area etc. can confuse you. They all sound alike but there is a big difference between them. If you don’t know the meaning of these words then property dealer/builder can fool you too.
Here all these jargon have been explained in easy language for you.
What is Carpet Area?
As the name suggests, the carpet area refers to the area inside the flat that can be used for laying the carpet. In other words, it is the internal area excluding the thickness of the walls of the flat.
This is the real space used in the house, which includes bedroom, living room, hall, kitchen, bathroom, store room. This does not include the space of the balcony, lobby, terrace, elevator or stairs.
What does the carpet area cover?
-bedroom
-dining room
-dressing room -kitchen
-study -store
-other
room -bathroom -indoor balcony -indoor staircase
What is not covered in the carpet area?
-exterior or interior walls
-common area
-terrace
What else does RERA say in carpet area?
Builders are now legally allowed to measure carpet area and quote prices. During the construction of an under construction project, provisions have also been made for increasing and decreasing its measurement. If the carpet area decreases during construction, the builder will have to return the outstanding amount to the customer within 45 days along with annual interest. However, if the carpet area increases, the developer can demand an additional amount from the customer. But RERA has stipulated that the upper limit for the increase in carpet area should not exceed 3%.
How to make sure you are not duped in terms of carpet area?
If you are buying a house in a mega housing society, the builder will have to tell you the carpet area of the unit under the provisions of RERA. Take a technical expert to the flat to calculate the area. If you are applying for a home loan, the bank will send a technical expert to inspect the unit. Also check with them whether the carpet area is the same as the builder has told you. If any discrepancy is found then you should inform the builder about it and negotiate the price.
One thing should also be kept in mind while buying a property that one should not run away from the numbers of built-up area and super built-up area. After all, the carpet area will be the real area that you will use in your everyday life. Make sure that all three numbers have a perfect balance and the carpet area shares the highest.
How to Calculate Carpet Area :
To calculate the carpet area, the total built-up area of the flat has to be subtracted from the wall thickness and the balcony area. Usually the carpet area is 70% of the built-up area. For example, if the built-up area of a flat is 1000 square feet, then less the wall and balcony space, the carpet area will be 700 square feet.
Formula:Carpet Area = Built-up Area – Area covered by walls and balcony.
What is built-up area?
Built-up area = carpet area + area covered by walls and balcony.It includes bedroom, living room, hall, kitchen, bathroom, interior wall, verandah, balcony etc.
Formula for Calculating Build-up Area
Buildup area = Carpet area + Wall area + Balcony area
What does the build-up area cover?
– Carpet area
– External and internal walls – Electricity
, water supply area
What is a super built-up area?
Super built-up area = built-up area + common area (corridor, lobby, lift, staircase or security room etc.).
There are many such places in the housing society, which are used by all. The customer has to pay some money every month for the maintenance of these places. He will also have to pay a proportionate share of these places at the time of purchase. Builders generally use loading factor – the space on the carpet area is not specifically allotted to the buyer to reach the super built-up area.
Developers add the total built-up area to the areas occupied by the common area like corridors, lift lobbies, elevators, etc. to arrive at the super built-up area of a flat. In some cases, builders add amenities such as pools, gardens and clubhouses to the common area.
RERA has now made it mandatory for builders to sell flats on the carpet area. But before this happened, due to lack of clarity in the calculation of the space, builders used the super-built up area as the unit of measurement of space. The use of super built-up area as the unit of measurement helped them to reduce the cost per square foot of the property. This gave the customer the illusion that they were investing in a bigger house, but it was not.
Sunworld Group CEO Vijay Varma says, “Super built up area is a big number through which developers market their projects. They reach this number by connecting the common area to the built-up area. The super built-up area is referred to as the ‘sold area’ as it becomes a yardstick for developers to quote their buyers. He said, if there is more than one apartment on the floor, then the super built-up area is calculated in different ways.
Suppose the carpet area of a house is 1000 square feet, which costs 2000 per square feet. In such cases, the total value of the property will be Rs 20,00,000. To make the marketing more attractive, the developer will give a super built-up area say (1300 sq ft) and price the property around Rs 1800 per sq ft. In such a situation, the total value of the property would be Rs 23.40 lakh. For the gullible buyer, the latter will be more attractive than the former.
What does the super built-up area cover?
-Build-up area of the flat
-Club house
-Air ducts
-Pipe/shafts Ducts
-Lifts
-Stairs
-Lobby
-Swimming pool
-Gym -Any
other public facilities
Note: Based on the loading factor used by the builder, the additional area is added to the carpet area.
Formula to calculate super built-up area
Super Build-up Area = Build-up Area + Relative Common Area
Super Build-up Area = Carpet Area (1+ Loading Factor)
Note: Loading can range from 15 to 50 percent depending on the builder and exact location.
Example of calculation of super built-up area
When there is more than one apartment on a single floor, the super built-up area is calculated in a different way.
Suppose Sanjay Mehta has an apartment on the fifth floor of the housing society, whose build-up area is 1000 square feet. Amit Lal has an apartment on the same floor, whose build up area is 2000 square feet. The total common area on the floor is 1500 square feet.
Now to calculate the super build up area of both the apartments, the builder will divide the build-up area ratio of the apartments (1:2 in this case) and add 500 square feet of additional space to the total build up area of Mehta and Lal’s build up area. 1000 square feet in up area. Now the super built up area of Mehta’s apartment will be 1500 square feet and Lal’s will be 3000 square feet.
Can the customer refuse to pay if the builder increases the carpet area?
There have been many instances where the builder increases the total value of the property because there is some change in the plan and the carpet area increases. As per the provisions of RERA, the customer will have to pay additional charges. Maharashtra RERA recently made it clear that the customer will have to pay additional money. The institution passed this order in a case filed by Ashley Neil Serrao and Mark Clement Serao, who had bought a flat in the Runwal Greens project built by Propel Developers Pvt Ltd.
Maharashtra RERA said in the order, ‘The increase in the carpet area in relation to the price of the apartment is done on the basis of the ratio, which is mentioned in the sale deed, it cannot be said to be in contravention of the sale deed.’
Tips to calculate the usable area of your future home
Always ask the builder about the carpet area of the property and negotiate the price on the basis of this number, so that there is no scope for any manipulation on this front. You can take the help of a private technical appraiser to re-verify the carpet area of the property.
Those who are buying property through housing finance are in a better position as the bank itself will send its own legal and technical appraisers. The same people will check every detail of the property.
One thing to note is that if the builder is quoting the property price on the carpet area, then they increase the price per square foot so as to cover the super build up and built up area. Try to find out the price of similar projects in the same locality to confirm that the price quoted by your builder is correct. If not, then the customer has the option of bargaining and can get the prices cut.
We hope this clears up all your doubts regarding the floor area and how the prices are calculated. This will make it easier for you to take decisions. If you have any other questions? so ask us below
Here, there is Part 2 of Real Estate Basics, where we will go through the steps of OSR, FSI, loading and construction.
FAQ
The carpet area is the area that can be covered by carpet or that area of the apartment, which does not include the thickness of the inner walls.
The carpet area is the area that can be covered by carpet whereas the build-up area is the area that comes after adding carpet area and wall area.
The carpet area includes exterior walls, service shafts, special balconies or verandah areas, and an open terrace.
If a builder puts 1.25 as the loading factor, it means that 25% of the space has been added to the carpet area of the flat.
If you know the exact built-up area, you can calculate the carpet area.
According to RERA, the area used in the apartment is called the carpet area.
