Carpet Area, Built-Up Area & Super Built-Up Area: Know the difference

Devika
Devika
Aug 29, 2017 · 3 min read

While buying a house, there are certain terms which you should be aware of! Let’s admit that you’re not familiar with all those things. Actually in every plan of a house, these are three ways of calculating the area or while mentioning the square footage. And there is a big difference between carpet area and built-up area and the super built-up area! Knowing all these terms is not a big thing but still these are the things which you need to be aware of! There are many apartments for sale in Chennai and here is just a little idea on this before buying a home.

Here are some of the basics which you should know:

Carpet Area

Carpet area is the area which can be covered by a carpet. It is actually the area of your apartment excluding the thickness of inner walls. And it doesn’t include the space which is covered by lobby, lift, play area etc and it is the actual area which you get for use in a housing unit. When you buy a home, it is very important to check for the carpet area and make your decision because it is the actual space which you will get. You need to focus on this and it is the usable area where you will have the living room, bedroom, kitchen etc. And many builders won’t disclose this carpet area to the customers and they charge based on the built-up and super built-up area. It is usually around 70% of the built-up area.

Built-Up Area

Built-up area is the area that comes when you add both the carpet area and the wall area (thickness of inner walls of a unit). The wall area will be around 20% of the built-up area and the built-up area consists of a dry balcony, flower beds, etc., which includes 10% of the built-up area. The usable area is only 70% of the built-up area which means around 30% is not usable.

Super Built-Up Area

Super Built-up is the area which is calculated by adding the built-up area and common area. In the super built-up area you will find the corridor, lift lobby, lift, etc. Some builders even include amenities like pool, garden and clubhouse in the common area and they will charge you on the basis of the super built-up area. Because of this reason, it is known as ‘saleable’ area.

Here is a sample to make you understand all these terms in ease.

Consider you are buying a home which has a rate of Rs. 4,000 per square foot and the super built-up area is 2,000 square feet, then the base cost will be 80 Lakhs.

Let’s consider a case where there is more than one apartment on a floor, then the super built-up area is calculated in a different manner.

— The area of Apartment 1 is 2000 square feet

— The area of Apartment 2 is 4000 square feet

— The total common area is 2500 square feet,

— The total common area of Apartment 1 is 1000 sq. ft.

— The total common area of Apartment 2 is 2000 sq. ft.

— The super built-up area of Apartment 1 is 3,000 sq. ft

— The super built-up area of Apartment 2 is 6,000 sq. ft.

And the super built-up area is divided in the ratio of the apartments’ built-up areas.

Certain builders who usually charge their apartments based on super built-up area, and they are unaware of the difference between carpet area and built-up area. Actually the usable area is much lower than the super built-up area. Some builders consider the carpet area while charging you, but this is rare. Maximum of the builders calculate based on the super built-up area. The more amenities they provide and the more it will occupy the super built-up area proportionally. Keep this in mind!

It is little complicated if you are unaware of this terms and if you are aware, then you can make an informed decision. Hope you got the idea of how the builders calculate all these areas in your apartment and how the prices are calculated. Analyze all these factors before you buy your dream home! There are many apartments in Chennai where you will find good lifestyle and choose the right one!

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