Area & Measurement
Price Per Square Foot: The Number Everyone Compares Wrongly
The single most-quoted number in Indian real estate, and the one most reliably used to mislead you.
The short answer
Everyone quotes price per square foot of SUPER BUILT-UP area.
That number is meaningless for comparison — because the loading factor differs between projects. One builder loads 25%. Another loads 45%.
Compare price per square foot of CARPET. It is the only definition fixed in law, and the only one that means the same thing everywhere.
Why the usual number lies
Because they are not measuring the same thing.
Super built-up area = your carpet + your walls + your share of the lobbies, lifts, staircases, clubhouse, gym, pool and corridors.
How much of that gets loaded on is entirely the builder's choice. There is no legal cap. It can be 25%. It can be 45%.
So when you compare ₹9,000/sq ft against ₹10,000/sq ft, you may be comparing a flat with a 45% loading against one with a 25% loading — and the 'cheaper' one is the more expensive.
That is not a coincidence. It is why the industry quotes super built-up.
The same money, two flats
Project A — the "cheaper" one
- Quoted rate (super built-up)
- ₹9,000/sq ft
- Super built-up area
- 1,400 sq ft
- Price
- ₹1,26,00,000
- Loading factor
- 45%
- Carpet area you actually get
- 966 sq ft
- REAL price per sq ft of carpet
- ₹13,043
Project B — the "expensive" one
- Quoted rate (super built-up)
- ₹10,000/sq ft
- Super built-up area
- 1,250 sq ft
- Price
- ₹1,25,00,000
- Loading factor
- 25%
- Carpet area you actually get
- 1,000 sq ft
- REAL price per sq ft of carpet
- ₹12,500
Same money — roughly ₹1.25 crore.
Project A: 966 sq ft of actual floor. ₹13,043 per carpet sq ft.
Project B: 1,000 sq ft of actual floor. ₹12,500 per carpet sq ft.
Project B gives you 34 more square feet AND costs less per square foot.
And it was the one quoting the higher rate. That is the whole trick, and it works on almost everybody.
How to compare properly — three steps
- Get the CARPET area for each flat. In writing. From the RERA filing, not the brochure. It is a legal disclosure and they must give it to you.
- Get the TOTAL price — all-in. Base price, floor rise, preferential location charge, parking, club membership, corpus, advance maintenance. Everything.
- Divide. Total price ÷ carpet area = the only number you can honestly compare.
An under-construction flat attracts 5% GST. A ready flat with its completion certificate attracts none.
So a ready flat priced 5% above an under-construction one is the same money.
Almost nobody makes that adjustment. It flips a great many comparisons.
What price per square foot still hides
Even done correctly, it is one number and it cannot capture:
- Your undivided share of the LAND. Two flats with identical carpet can carry wildly different UDS — and the land is the part that appreciates.
- The floor, the facing, the view. A 4th-floor flat facing a generator is not the same asset as a 14th-floor flat facing a park.
- The efficiency of the layout. 1,000 sq ft with a bad plan lives smaller than 950 with a good one.
- Ceiling height. Not in any area figure, and it changes how a room feels enormously.
- The maintenance charge — which is usually levied on super built-up, forever. A high loading factor costs you every month for the rest of your life, not just at purchase.
Maintenance is typically charged per square foot of super built-up area.
Which means a 45% loading factor doesn't just inflate your purchase price. It inflates your monthly maintenance bill for as long as you own the flat.
On a 1,400 sq ft super built-up flat at ₹4/sq ft, that is ₹5,600 a month — against ₹5,000 for the 1,250 sq ft flat with the same carpet.
₹600 a month. Every month. For thirty years. On floor space you never see.
Frequently asked questions
How do I compare price per square foot between projects?
Only on CARPET area. Get the carpet area from the RERA filing for each flat, get the total all-in price (base, floor rise, PLC, parking, club, corpus, maintenance), and divide. Comparing per square foot of super built-up is meaningless, because the loading factor differs between projects and there is no legal cap on it.
Why is a cheaper price per square foot sometimes more expensive?
Because the two figures aren't measuring the same thing. A flat at Rs 9,000/sq ft with a 45% loading gives you 966 sq ft of carpet for Rs 1.26 crore — Rs 13,043 per carpet sq ft. A flat at Rs 10,000/sq ft with 25% loading gives you 1,000 sq ft for Rs 1.25 crore — Rs 12,500 per carpet sq ft. The 'expensive' one is cheaper AND bigger.
Should GST be included when comparing prices?
Yes, and almost nobody does. An under-construction flat attracts 5% GST; a ready flat with its completion certificate attracts none. So a ready flat priced 5% above an under-construction one is actually the same money. That adjustment flips a great many comparisons.
Does the loading factor affect my maintenance bill?
Yes, and permanently. Maintenance is usually charged per square foot of SUPER BUILT-UP area — so a 45% loading factor inflates your monthly bill for as long as you own the flat, not just your purchase price. That is several hundred rupees a month, for thirty years, on floor space you never see.
What does price per square foot not tell me?
Your undivided share of the land — which is the part that actually appreciates, and which varies enormously between flats with identical carpet. The floor, the facing and the view. The efficiency of the layout. And the ceiling height, which appears in no area figure at all but changes how a room feels.