A Complete Guide to Carpet Area, Built-Up Area and Super Built Up Area


A Complete Guide to Carpet Area, Built-Up Area and Super Built Up Area

In Chennai, the real estate market has witnessed remarkable growth in the past few years due to rapid urbanization and increasing demand for housing. As a potential home buyer, you would have come across terms like 3 BHK carpet area, built-up area, and super built-up area but have a hard time figuring out the exact meaning of these. No worries! We have prepared a complete guide for home buyers like you with valuable information around these terms!

Significance of Carpet Area, Built Up Area and Super Built Up Area

Homebuyers often encounter many challenges especially while estimating the price of a property, and that's where the concept of carpet area, built-up area, and super built up area emerges. How can I ensure the accuracy of the area measurements provided by the developer or seller? What exactly includes in the carpet area? What about the walls and other built-in structures? Whether common areas such as corridors, lobbies, and staircases are part of the built-up area, etc., are just a few of the endless questions a home buyer struggles to find answers while buying a property. Understanding the nuances of carpet area, built up area and super built up area is crucial for making the right decision while buying a property and ensuring transparency in real estate transactions.

Carpet Area, Built-up Area, and Super Built-up Area: Understanding the Differences

The terms carpet area, built-up area, and super built-up area are commonly used to define and quantify the space and have significant implications for the overall pricing of the property. 

Carpet Area: It represents the actual usable space within the walls of a property. As the name suggests, it includes the floor area that can be covered by a carpet or other floor coverings. The carpet area does not include total built up area such as common spaces, external walls, or other shared amenities. It is solely an area the homeowner can utilize for their needs, like for example placing furniture.

How to Calculate Carpet Area From Built Up Area?

RERA carpet area percentage is approximately 70% of the built-up portion.

Here is the formula to calculate the carpet area of the property

Total Usable Area – Breadth/Thickness of the Inner Walls = Carpet Area

Total Usable Area – Breadth/Thickness of the Inner Walls = Carpet Area

Carpet Area as Per RERA:

The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, (RERA) defines carpet area as the net usable floor area of an apartment or a residential unit that can be covered by a carpet or any other floor covering. It includes the portion within the walls but excludes the areas occupied by the external walls, common areas, and any other areas excluded by RERA carpet area guidelines.

What is the Meaning of Built up Area?

Built-up Area: It encompasses the carpet area to built up area, the portions occupied by the walls and other structural components. The built-up area includes private spaces, such as rooms, and a proportional share of the common areas, like lobbies and staircases. The comprehensive measurement gives buyers a clearer picture of the total construction area.

How to Calculate the Built-up Area?

Built-up area includes carpet area, walls, and structural areas, which typically includes a patio, veranda, etc.

The formula for calculating the built-up area of a property is as follows:

                                                                      Built-up Area = Carpet Area + Area of Walls and Structural Elements

Difference between Carpet Area and Built-up Area

The key difference between these two concepts lies in the inclusion/elimination of certain elements and the overall scope of measurement.

Carpet area is measured from the inner edges of the walls. It specifically focuses on the functional space that can be utilized by the occupants, excluding the portions occupied by walls and structural elements.

On the other hand, the built-up area to square feet is measured from the outer edges of the walls. It encompasses carpet area, balconies, staircases, and other structural elements.

Plinth Area Vs Built up Area

Although plinth area and built up area are used for villas/ independent houses, and apartments, respectively, these are two different measurements.

Here are the differences between the two:

Attributes

Plinth Area

Built up Area

Definition

Refers to the total covered area of a building at the floor level, including the external walls.

Represents the total floor area of a building within the walls of the property.

 

Inclusions

Includes the area covered by the walls, columns, and other structural elements.

 

Includes all the covered spaces within the building, including rooms, corridors, balconies, staircases, and other internal spaces.

Exclusions

Does not include any open areas within the building.

Does not include the thickness of the walls or any other structural elements.

Measurement

Measured by considering the external dimensions of the building at the plinth level.

 

Calculated by measuring the floor area and carpet area within the walls of the building.

 

Purpose

Used for assessing land utilization, property taxes, and building regulations.

Residential or commercial use, and for determining property valuations.

Usage

Considered in the initial stages of construction and for regulatory compliance.

 

Used for marketing, sales and determining the usable space.

 

What is a Super Built-up Area Meaning?

The super built-up area also known as the saleable area or the super area goes beyond the built-up area. It includes the private area, common areas, and the proportionate share of the amenities and facilities provided by the developer, such as clubhouses, swimming pools, and gardens. The concept of the super built-up area incorporates all the additional spaces that enhance the lifestyle offerings of the property.

Super Built-up Area Calculation

Add the built-up area and the proportionate share of common areas together to obtain the super built-up area. This represents the total area that includes the individual unit's usable space and a proportional allocation of the shared spaces.

Here is the formula to calculate the super built-up area

                                                                           Super Built-up Area = Built-up Area + Proportionate Amenities Area

What Is the Saleable Area as per RERA?

Saleable Area as per RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority) refers to the total area of property available for sale to the buyers. It includes the carpet area of the individual unit along with a proportionate share of common areas and amenities within the project.

Saleable Area Calculation

The saleable area is calculated by adding the carpet area of the unit to a percentage of the common areas, which typically includes lobbies, corridors, staircases, lifts, and amenities such as swimming pools, gyms, gardens, and other shared spaces.

Conclusion

The pricing of a property is often influenced by its carpet area, built-up area, and super built-up area, and being aware of these terms and measuring techniques allows you to assess the value of the property. We hope this comprehensive guide provided useful insights of these aspects and will help you estimate and compare the property value in terms of size measurements to buy a legally sound and properly documented property!