Century Heights

Century Heights stands in Koramangala, the planned locality on the south-east side of Bengaluru that runs to about 1,800 acres and is divided into numbered blocks. The developer has not published the block, the street or the pincode, so ask for the exact address before you set out. Indiranagar and Domlur are reached by road from here.

Living in Koramangala changes the shape of a day. Schools, hospitals, restaurants and shops are already in the locality, so many errands are a walk or a short auto ride rather than a drive, and the evening out does not need the car. The commute is the thing to test, because a central address means city streets rather than a highway. Drive to your workplace at your usual hour and back at the evening peak.

A small site of about 32,000 sq ft on a built-up street means the approach road and the parking arrangements matter more than usual. Ask how many parking bays come with a 5,000 sq ft home, where visitors park, and how the entry and exit work at peak hours. Walk the surrounding lanes as well, since an established block can be lively late into the evening.

Century Heights has one layout to consider: a four-bedroom apartment of roughly 5,000 sq ft. Carpet area has not been published, so ask for the plan and confirm whether the 5,000 figure is built-up or super built-up before you compare it with anything else in Koramangala. The developer has not published the number of homes or floors either, so ask which floors the remaining units are on.

The price starts at Rs. 7.78 Crore. On 5,000 sq ft that is about Rs. 15,600 per sq ft, and the developer's own rate is stated as Rs. 15,555. Only the one figure has been published, and in a building where every home is the same size the price difference between units comes from floor and facing, so ask for unit-wise pricing.

Because possession began in December 2018 and the home has its occupancy certificate, no GST is payable. Stamp duty and registration apply in Karnataka on the full sale value. Ask for a cost sheet that shows:

• Base price and the area it is charged on
• Floor and facing premium for the unit you want
• Car parking bays included and any charge for extra bays
• Clubhouse membership and the maintenance deposit
• Confirmation that GST is not charged, with the occupancy certificate as the reason
• Stamp duty and registration on the full consideration

Century Heights has no RERA registration number published, and the developer describes the building as BBMP/BDA approved. Possession from December 2018 falls after registration became compulsory, so ask Century Real Estate for the number or for the reason there is none. Check the Karnataka RERA website, rera.karnataka.gov.in, before you pay a booking amount.

Because the building is finished, your first document is the occupancy certificate. With that in hand, ask for:

• The occupancy certificate for the building
• The sanctioned building plan showing your flat
• Title documents and the mother deed for the 32,000 sq ft site
• An encumbrance certificate for the property
• The khata and the latest property tax receipt
• A draft sale deed, since a completed home is registered on a sale deed rather than an agreement to sell

If you are buying from an existing owner rather than the developer, add the seller's registered sale deed, the chain of title before it and a no-dues letter from the owners' association. Have a lawyer read the title chain and the encumbrance certificate before you pay an advance. At registration the sale deed goes into your name, and the khata transfer follows.

Century Heights is a single building on a plot of about 32,000 sq ft, with the pool, the clubhouse and the play area fitted into the ground around it. The developer has not published the number of homes, the floor count or the open-space share, so ask for the sanctioned site plan and walk the ground. Because the building is finished, you are looking at what exists, not at a render.

A day here is simpler than in a township. The morning swim is a lift ride away, and the clubhouse is the place for a game of table tennis or carrom in the indoor games room on a wet evening. Children have a play area inside the compound, which in central Koramangala is worth more than it sounds. Security at the gate, an intercom to the lobby and 24-hour power backup take care of the basics.

The trade-off is plain. There is no sports campus, no jogging track and no large garden, and a 5,000 sq ft home makes the flat itself the main amenity. Ask how many households share the pool and clubhouse, what the monthly maintenance comes to, and how the facilities have been kept since 2018. With few homes sharing the cost, the maintenance per flat can be high, so get the number before you decide.