Understanding Carpet Area, Built-up Area, and Super Built-up Area

Homebuyers who understand the concept of carpet area, built-up area, and super built-up area are better suited to make decisions over those who may not be able to differentiate one from another. A proper understanding of all this real estate jargon ensures that you aren’t overwhelmed when you encounter them.

When buying a house, you usually pay for the number of square feet you are going to be occupying. It is best to know what it is that you will be paying for and why. This is where builders, developers, and even brokers will use terms such as Carpet Area, RERA Carpet Area, Built-up Area, Loading Factor, Super Built-up Area, etc. Here, we have simplified all these terms with relevant formulae and examples for your understanding. A quick glance through this before you head out hunting for your ideal home is enough to keep you ahead of the game.

What is the Carpet Area?

The area of an apartment that can be covered by a carpet or the net usable area is known as the carpet area. It is the distance between the inner walls. The carpet area would include the areas of the bedroom, living room, kitchen, bathrooms, balconies & staircases within the house/flat. It does not include the external and internal walls, terraces, common areas, lifts, corridors, utility ducts, etc.

What is RERA Carpet Area?

According to the RERA Act 2016, The RERA Carpet Area is the net usable floor area of an apartment or house excluding the external area, common areas, exclusive balcony, or veranda area, and exclusive open terrace area, but includes the area covered by the internal partition walls.

Note: As used herein, “exclusive balcony or verandah area” refers to the area of the balcony or verandah, as the case may be, which is attached to the net usable floor area of an apartment, reserved for the exclusive use of the allottee (house owner); and “exclusive open terrace area” refers to the area of open terrace which is attached to the net usable floor area of an apartment, reserved for the exclusive use of the allottee (house owner).

What is the difference between RERA Carpet Area & Carpet Area?

The Only difference between RERA Carpet Area and Carpet Area is the thickness of the internal partition walls. In RERA Carpet Area, the thickness of the internal walls is included while in the general Carpet Area it is excluded. Approximately, there is a 5% difference between both the carpet area. RERA Carpet Area is 5% more than the general Carpet Area.

How to Calculate Carpet Area & RERA Carpet Area?

General Carpet Area Calculation

The carpet area can be calculated by a simple formula which is:

Carpet area = (area of bedroom + living room + kitchen + balconies + toilets) – the thickness of the inner walls.

In most cases, the carpet area in your apartment typically comprises between 70% to 90 % of its total built-up area

Let’s take an example of a real apartment carpet area calculation-

Suppose an apartment has a 1392.65 sq. ft. built-up area, and 82.8 % of that is the General Carpet Area.

Then, 82.8% of 1392.65 sq. ft. = 1153.11 is the General Carpet Area.

RERA Carpet Area Calculation

According to The RERA Act 2016, The RERA Carpet Area can be calculated by-

RERA Carpet Area = Net Usable Area of the Apartment (exclude external walls, Terrace Area, Balcony area, & Verandah Area) + Areas of the Internal Partition Walls

As we saw the above, Approximately, there is a 5% difference between the General Carpet Area & RERA Carpet Area. If you have 1153.11 sq. ft. of General Carpet Area, then the RERA Carpet Area will be calculated as 1211 sq. ft.

What is a Built-up Area?

The built-up area is the sum of the carpet area and the area of both the exterior and interior walls, balcony, the exterior staircase, and other liveable areas if any. If there is an exclusive terrace, then that too is included in it. The built-up area comprises around 70-80% of the super built-up area.

How to Calculate Built-up Area?

The built-up area is calculated by adding a Carpet Area or, RERA Carpet Area, Both Interior & Exterior Wall areas, Exclusive Balcony, and Corridor if any.

Built-up Area= Carpet Area + Wall Areas + Terrace and Balcony + Exclusive Corridor

Usually, the Built-up area is 10% to 15% more than the Carpet Area So, if your RERA Carpet Area is 1211 sq. ft., then the built-up area will be between 1332.1 sq. ft. and 1392.65 sq. ft.

Carpet Area Vs Built Up Area

The difference between Carpet Area and Built-up Area is- As per RERA, the Carpet Area is measured by adding the area of the bedroom, living room, kitchen, Balconies, Toilets, and the thickness of the internal partition walls, while the built-up area is the summation of Carpet Area, External Wall Area, Terrace, or Balcony if any and Exclusive Corridor if any.

The Built-up Area is always more than the Carpet Area and it excludes common areas such as the lift, security room, lobby, clubhouse, etc.

What is a Super Built-up Area?

Super built-up area is referred to as the ‘saleable area’ and homebuyers are usually charged based on this value. It is the sum of the exclusive built-up area, and common areas including the lift, corridors, staircase, clubhouse, and other amenities.

However, it does not include the area of compound walls, open-to-sky swimming pools, parks, driveways, open sports facilities, inaccessible garden areas, play areas, underground sinks, water tanks, and septic tanks.

The proportionate share of common areas is referred to as the “Loading Factor” and is assigned a percentage that usually ranges from 25% to 60% of the carpet area.

If the loading factor is 50% and your carpet area is 1211 sq. ft., then the super built-up area would be 1816 sq. ft.

How to Calculate Super Built-up Area?

Super built-up area is calculated by adding the built-up area and the proportionate common area.

It can also be calculated by multiplying the carpet and 1 + loading factor.

(E.g., 1211 sq. ft. [RERA Carpet] x 1+0.50 [loading factor 50%] = 1816 sq. ft.)

Assume you own a 1000 sq. ft. flat on the third floor, and your friend owns a 2000 sq. ft. flat on the same floor. If the total area of the common area is 1,500 sq. ft., the builder would split the common area in the ratio of the built-up area.

In this case, the ratio is 1:2 and hence, the builder will add 500 sq. ft. to your apartment and 1000 sq. ft. to your friends. Now, the super built-up area of your property will be 1500 sq. ft. and your friend’s super built-up area will be 3000 sq. ft.

What is The Loading Factor?

The difference between the super built-up area and the carpet area of the flat is known as the Loading Factor. This is used to add constructed spaces that are not exclusive to you, such as the elevators, lobby, maintenance room, parking, etc. If the Loading Factor is 1.50, it suggests that the builder has added 50% to your carpet area.

How to Calculate the Loading Factor?

If the super built-up area is 1816 sq. ft., and the carpet area is 1211 sq. ft., then:

Loading Factor = Super Built-up Area – Carpet Area

Loading Factor = 1816 – 1211 sq. ft.

Loading Factor = 605 sq. ft. [50% of Carpet Area]

The loading factor, therefore, is 50%.

Why You Should Know About the Loading Factor?

An ideal Loading Factor for luxury apartments would be below 60%. Any value above that would mean that there is a higher super built-up area and a smaller carpet area. This means that homebuyers would be settling for smaller homes. With this value in mind, homebuyers can make an informed decision about how much they are paying and for what.

Built-Up Area Vs Super Built-up Area

A built-up area includes all the area of the carpet, balcony, exclusive corridor, terrace, staircase, etc., as well as the thickness of all walls, while a Super Built-up Area includes an exclusive built-up area plus common areas, such as lifts, common corridors, staircases, a clubhouse, and other amenities, and is also known as a “saleable area“.

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