Nitesh Rio

Nitesh Rio has its plots in Upper Jayanagar, south Bengaluru, reached off Kanakapura Main Road, with Vakil Garden City as the neighbouring layout. This is a settled, green part of the city, with banks, hospitals, schools, colleges, malls and cinemas already around it rather than promised for later. No distances have been published, so none are quoted here.

For work trips, the NICE road passes close by and connects this side of the city with Mysore Road, Bannerghatta Road and Electronic City. Closer in, Jayanagar, JP Nagar and Banashankari are reached along the city roads. Drive to your office at your usual hour before you commit, and repeat the trip in the evening, because Kanakapura Road traffic changes a good deal through the day.

The wider area also includes an Art of Living centre, and ISKCON has planned its Krishna Leela Park here. For a plot, the most important check is the road right outside it. Walk the layout, note the width of the road in front of each plot you like, and see how water drains after rain.

Nitesh Rio sells land, not a finished home. Plot sizes start at about 2,400 sq ft, and the full list of sizes and dimensions has not been published. Ask for the plot list with each plot's length, width, facing and the road in front of it.

The starting price is Rs. 1.47 Crore, and the rate is given as Rs. 5,750 per sq ft. Multiplied out, a 2,400 sq ft plot at that rate comes to about Rs. 1.38 Crore, so the two figures do not match exactly. Ask which plot the starting price belongs to and whether it includes development charges. Stamp duty and registration apply to every plot purchase, and you should ask whether any part of the price attracts GST. Your cost sheet should show:

• Plot area, dimensions and rate per sq ft
• Premiums for corner, park-facing or wider-road plots
• Development, water and electricity charges
• Any GST, as a separate line
• Stamp duty and registration
• The payment schedule and the date of registration

Nitesh Rio is described as a BBMP or BDA approved layout. No RERA registration number has been published, so ask Nitesh Estates for it and look it up on the Karnataka RERA website (rera.karnataka.gov.in) before you pay a token. A plotted layout that is still being developed should normally carry a RERA registration.

For a plot, the land papers are what protect you. Ask for:

• Title deeds and an encumbrance certificate for the whole layout
• The land conversion order for residential use
• The approved layout plan from the planning authority
• The release order that frees your plot for sale
• The RERA registration certificate
• A draft sale deed describing your plot by number, boundaries and area

At registration the sale deed passes the plot to you. Then apply for a khata in your name and keep paying property tax, since you will need both when you apply for a building plan sanction.

Nitesh Rio has not published its layout plan; the developer shares it on request. Ask for it early, because on a plotted project the plan is the whole product. It shows which plots face the main road, which are corners, where the parks and civic spaces are, and how wide the internal roads will be.

No list of shared facilities has been published either. Before you book, ask what the developer will actually build: paved roads, storm-water drains, a water supply line, underground power and street lights, and any landscaped open space. Get the list in writing, with a date for each item.

Life here will look quite different from a gated tower. You design your own home, choose your own neighbours' distance through your plot position, and set your own pace for building. In return, you handle the architect, the building plan sanction and the contractor. Visit a few finished houses in the neighbourhood to see what can be built on a plot of this size, and talk to owners about water and power supply.