Hiranandani Devanahalli

Hiranandani Devanahalli stands at Ward 1 in Prasannahalli Village, Chikkasanne, in Devanahalli Taluk, pincode 562110. This is the northern edge of Bengaluru, a taluk with more open land than the older parts of town. The developer has not published distances to offices, stations, schools or hospitals, so none are quoted here.

Inside the gates, 80 acres change the daily routine. A walk to the clubhouse or to the retail spaces may be a real walk, depending on where your home is placed. Children can cycle to the play area within the campus. Outside the gates, most errands and every commute will need a car.

Because this is a resale, you can test the location for real rather than on a map. Drive from the gate to your workplace at your usual hour, and back again in the evening. Note the width of the approach road, where the nearest school and hospital you would use are found, and how long each takes to reach on a weekday.

Hiranandani Devanahalli has sold every home through the developer, so read this as a guide to what was built and what to check before a resale. The tower flats come in two-, 2.5-, three- and four-bedroom plans. Chancery has plans of about 1,100, 1,125 and 1,550 sq ft. Calgary has about 1,188, 1,440, 1,473, 1,540, 1,633 and 1,668 sq ft. Cross Gate offers about 1,190, 1,750, 1,902 and 1,920 sq ft, and Cypress about 1,835, 2,077, 2,133 and 2,734 sq ft.

Cottages come as three- or four-bedroom homes on 30 x 50 or 30 x 60 foot plots, from about 2,121 to 2,820 sq ft. Villas start at about 2,850 sq ft on a 60 x 40 plot and reach about 4,770 sq ft on a 60 x 80 plot. All figures are built-up area, so ask for the carpet area and the plot area separately.

A resale price is whatever the owner asks, so compare it with recent sales of the same format. No GST applies to a finished home bought from its owner; stamp duty and registration do. Ask the seller to put in writing:

• The agreed price and the fittings it includes
• Car parking allotted to the home
• Maintenance dues cleared to date
• Any association transfer fee
• Stamp duty and registration on the sale value

Hiranandani Devanahalli has no RERA registration number published for this township. Handover began in December 2016, so search the Karnataka RERA website (rera.karnataka.gov.in) for any entry, but expect the completion papers and the seller's title to carry more weight in a resale.

For a villa or cottage you are buying land as well as a building, so the title work goes further than for a flat. Ask the seller for:

• The occupancy or completion certificate for the home
• The approved layout plan and the sanctioned building plan
• The seller's registered sale deed and the earlier title chain
• A recent encumbrance certificate for the property
• Khata in the seller's name and the latest property tax receipt
• A no-dues letter from the owners' association

If the seller has a home loan running, the bank must hand back the original documents at closing. Have a lawyer read the title before you pay an advance. At registration you sign a sale deed, then apply to move the khata and the utility accounts into your name.

Hiranandani Devanahalli spreads 80 acres three ways: four apartment towers, rows of cottages on smaller plots and detached villas on larger ones, with the clubhouse and gardens shared by all. The developer has not published the share of open space, so walk the campus and see how the formats are placed. Any render you are shown is as planned by the developer; here the built version is there to compare.

A Saturday might start on the jogging track and move to the gymnasium or the pool in the clubhouse. Children split their time between the kids' play area and the activity area, while older ones take the outdoor courts or the table tennis tables. The games room covers a wet afternoon.

Evenings are for the landscaped gardens, and birthdays go to the party area. Retail spaces within the campus handle small daily needs. With homes handed over from December 2016, the facilities have had years of use, so ask the owners' association what the maintenance charge covers and look at the pool and courts yourself. Also check how far your unit is from the clubhouse, since the campus is large.