Understanding the Complete Cost of Buying a Home in Hyderabad

The base price is only the starting point

A Hyderabad price sheet usually quotes a rate per square foot on super built-up area, then adds a preferential location charge for a corner or a view, a floor-rise charge for higher floors, and a separate amount for each car parking space. Ask for the cost sheet of the exact unit you are considering, not a sample. The difference between the headline rate and the unit price is often 8 to 12 percent before any tax.

GST, stamp duty and registration

Under-construction homes attract GST at 5 percent of the agreement value without input tax credit, or 1 percent for homes that qualify as affordable housing. Ready-to-move homes with a completion certificate attract no GST, which is one reason a completed project can cost less than its price sheet suggests. On registration, Telangana charges stamp duty, transfer duty and a registration fee that together come to about 6 percent of the registered value for a sale deed. Rates change, so confirm the current figures with the sub-registrar office or your lawyer before you sign.

One-time charges developers add

These are the items most often missing from a first quote. Each is legitimate, but each should be in writing in the cost sheet and the agreement of sale, not mentioned later.

• Maintenance deposit or corpus fund, usually quoted per square foot
• Advance maintenance for the first one or two years
• Clubhouse or amenities membership
• Electricity, water and sewerage connection charges
• Infrastructure or development charges
• Legal and documentation charges
• Extra car parking beyond the allotted space

Home loan costs

If you are borrowing, budget for the processing fee, the valuation and legal checks the bank runs, and the insurance the lender will ask you to take on the loan or the property. On an under-construction home you pay pre-EMI interest on the amount disbursed so far, often while you also pay rent elsewhere, so ask the developer for the construction schedule and work out how long that overlap could last. Projects already approved by major lenders save you time and a round of due diligence.

The costs that continue after you move in

Monthly maintenance in gated communities is charged per square foot and rises with the number of amenities and the age of the project; ask what residents in the developer's completed projects pay today. Property tax is paid to the GHMC or the local municipality every year. Add society charges, generator fuel recovery for power backup, and water tanker costs where borewell supply is unreliable in summer. These are small individually, but they shape the real monthly cost of the home.

Ask for the all-inclusive cost sheet

Before you compare two projects, ask each for an all-inclusive cost sheet for the specific unit: base price, PLC and floor rise, parking, every one-time charge, GST where applicable, and the estimated registration cost. Brolly Realty asks developers for this sheet on your behalf and walks you through it before a site visit, so the number you compare is the number you will pay.

Ask us for a cost sheet →