A flat advertised at ₹75 lakh rarely costs ₹75 lakh. By the time you get the keys, GST, registration, car parking, deposits and a handful of smaller charges can add 15% or more. Most of these charges are legitimate. The problem is that they're usually spread across the cost sheet, the agreement and the handover letter, so buyers only see the full number at the end.
Here's every cost to ask about before you book, and roughly what each one adds.
1. GST (under-construction flats only)
If you buy a flat before it receives its completion or occupancy certificate, you pay GST:
- 5% for most flats
- 1% for flats that qualify as affordable housing: carpet area up to 60 sq m in metro cities like Chennai (90 sq m elsewhere) and value up to ₹45 lakh
Ready-to-move flats with a completion certificate, and resale flats, attract no GST. See our comparison of under-construction vs ready-to-move flats.
2. Stamp duty and registration
This is the single largest extra cost, and the rate depends on who you buy from.
New flat, first sale from the builder. Since December 2023, Tamil Nadu registers first sales of flats and villas through a single sale deed on the composite value (land share plus building), at reduced rates:
| Composite value | Stamp duty (incl. transfer duty) | Registration fee | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Below ₹50 lakh | about 4% | 2% | about 6% |
| ₹50 lakh to ₹3 crore | about 5% | 2% | about 7% |
| Above ₹3 crore | 7% | 2% | 9% |
Resale flat, house or plot. Charged at 7% stamp duty plus 4% registration, or 11%, on the higher of sale price or guideline value. Our stamp duty guide covers resale in detail.
If you registered a construction agreement under the older two-deed system, Tamil Nadu now allows the stamp duty and registration fee you already paid to be set off against the final sale deed. Ask your builder and lawyer whether this applies to you.
3. Car parking
Many Chennai builders price covered car parking separately. Ask whether the quoted price includes a parking slot, whether it's covered or open, and whether it's allotted in the sale deed. Under RERA, open parking areas count as common areas, so be cautious if you're asked to "buy" an open slot.
4. Preferred location and floor rise charges
Corner flats, park-facing or road-facing units and higher floors often carry a PLC (preferred location charge) or a floor rise charge per sq ft. These can add a lakh or more on a mid-sized flat. Check the cost sheet for every unit you compare, not just the base rate.
5. Corpus fund and advance maintenance
At handover, most gated communities collect:
- A corpus fund (also called a sinking fund): a one-time deposit, usually charged per sq ft, that the residents' association uses for major repairs later.
- Advance maintenance, typically for 12 to 24 months, charged per sq ft per month.
Ask for both amounts in writing at booking. They're often only mentioned in the handover letter.
6. Utility connections and deposits
Builders usually pass on the cost of the electricity service connection (and the deposit to the electricity board), plus water and sewerage connection charges, and sometimes generator backup and piped gas. Together these can run into the lakhs on larger projects. Ask whether they're "included" or "at actuals".
7. Clubhouse and amenity charges
Clubhouse membership, amenity charges or "infrastructure development charges" appear in many cost sheets. Some are one-time; some convert into monthly fees later.
8. Home loan costs
- Processing fee: usually a fraction of a percent of the loan amount, sometimes waived during offers.
- MODT charges: a stamp duty and registration fee for recording the bank's mortgage (memorandum of deposit of title deeds). Tamil Nadu caps these, so they're small compared with the sale deed charges.
- Legal and technical verification fees charged by the bank.
Remember that your home loan will not cover stamp duty, registration or GST. These come out of your own savings. See our guide to home loan eligibility.
9. Legal fees
Budget for an independent lawyer to check title, the approved plan and the sale agreement before you sign. It's a small cost relative to the risk it covers.
10. Interiors and moving in
New flats are usually handed over without wardrobes, a modular kitchen, lights, fans or curtains. Even modest interiors for a 2BHK can cost several lakh. It isn't a statutory charge, but it hits your bank balance in the same three months as everything else.
A worked example
A buyer books an under-construction 2BHK with a base price of ₹75 lakh (including car parking). It doesn't qualify as affordable housing.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Base price | ₹75,00,000 |
| GST at 5% | ₹3,75,000 |
| Stamp duty and registration (about 7%) | ₹5,25,000 |
| Corpus fund and advance maintenance | ₹1,00,000 to ₹2,00,000 (varies) |
| Utility connections and deposits | ₹75,000 to ₹1,50,000 (varies) |
| Loan, legal and documentation costs | ₹50,000 to ₹1,00,000 |
| **Total before interiors** | **about ₹86 lakh to ₹88.5 lakh** |
That's roughly 15% to 18% above the base price, before a single wardrobe is fitted. The statutory figures above are fixed; the ranges in between are illustrative and differ between projects, so ask for each line in writing.
Get your exact government charges with our free Stamp Duty & Registration Calculator.
How to avoid surprises
- Ask for a full cost sheet with every charge listed, not just the per-sq-ft rate.
- Confirm which charges are fixed and which are "at actuals".
- Compare projects on total cost, not base price.
- Keep 10% to 12% of the property value aside, beyond your down payment, for these costs.