Building a house is always a dream for most of us. It takes years of hard work and determination coupled with savings to achieve this ultimatum. When it comes to life events, this gets an important place in the long list which includes Education, Marriage, Kids, Kids Education & Marriage, Retirement etc.,
There are lot of things which goes into building a property and when it takes it final shape, you would be more than contented because only you would know as to how much pain and efforts had gone into it.
You may have disposable cash or deposit to buy an already built house or a flat. If this is the case, you need not have to exercise much caution except to verify the documents whether the property was built according to the plan and whether the property and the land documents were approved by the respective authorities. Of course, you might also have to look a the goodwill of the builders or the flat promoters as that would ensure that what you are getting is free from encumbrance and also of superior quality. This topic itself would take another blog post and hence we would look at it at a later date.
What I am penning down here is my own experience and it may differ from person to person,
Whenever you enter into a contract with a so-called or self-proclaimed builder, verify his credentials because in reality, he may just be a co-ordinator and not a builder or a qualified engineer. He might have done few projects in the past but you would not know unless you and verify with his clients whether he has completed the projects on time. While delay in the projects are a normal phenomenon due to various reasons like climatic conditions, inordinate delays cannot be given as a excuse especially when the funds were released on time.
Entering into an agreement is the first and foremost thing. The builder would specify that he agree to a fixed rate of xxxx amount per sq.ft and he would surely quote other amenities would be charged extra or should be shared equally. This is where few but major trouble comes into picture. These amenities includes compound wall, septic tank, sump, overhead tank, elevation, wall painting, floor railing etc to name a few. Since these were usually done in the end of the project, the builder would demand sums which in reality would be double its actual cost. You might be pushed to shell out the money as you would have already invested a substantial sum and any further delay may put your investment at risk from accruing income. A simple example would make you understand this. The builder would quote the cost of the tank in litres capacity i.e Rs.300 per litre. Remember this is just an example. This is where you would start enquiring outside and you would be given rates varying from 75-150 and nothing ore than that. When you come and quote this to the builder, he would say that he uses the best raw material and labour itself would cost more.
The above mentioned scenario is just an example. You can see how cleverly, the builder tries to manipulate things. He may not handover your putta and other documents until the end and keeping it as a hod. It is always safe to get it from him as soon as you have given major portion of the money and you may include this clause as well in the agreement so that there is no question of breaking the trust.
What needs to be mentioned most importantly in the document is the cost for delay. While you may have invested a substantial amount, the builder will show no mercy and will complete it as per is wish. I am not accusing all of them here but there are few who does this and hence it is always safe to mention the clause - Penalty in case of delay because end of the day, it is your money which looks like a dead investment since the property is not complete.
It is also good for you to personally be present as much as possible to supervise the project because you may not know what raw materials were being used. He may quote one brand but in reality may end up using another brand whose cost is much cheaper. Raw Materials is where these builders compromise making more profits. Ensure you are either present or you appoint someone who is our confidante.
My example also goes like this - apart from paying the cost per sq,ft for building the property, when we asked the builder to make a provision for the lift, he demanded Rs.200 extra per sq.ft even though the provision was to be made within the building which I don't think is fair and justified. Ensure he uses ISI branded electrical wires and fittings as these may also play a very vital role.
Last but not the least, try to purchase the land or property by yourself without engaging the middlemen because majority of them would jack up the price for their own sake of getting that additional money. He would get few thousands extra but you may have to pay few lakhs to the owner which is not correct.
Hope you find this article helpful. If you did, do circulate it among your friends as it may be helpful for sure for the first time buyer or for building the house for the first time.
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