-- Girish Mohan, Delhi

The term carpet area is the sum total of the area within the walls and excludes the space occupied by the walls and the balconies. The term built-up area on the other hand is inclusive of the area occupied by the walls and also the balconies. You can always ask the builder to separately indicate to you the area of balconies and open terraces if any that may have been included in the built-up area computation.

The super area on the other hand adds onthe built up area as above and the proportional share of any common areas such as stair cases, landings, porch and the common facility areas such as an electric sub-station, pump house, fire prevention and control room, security hut, quarters for watch and ward staff, club house, hall for community usage, office space and other accommodation occupied by the estate management staff etc.

Where as the carpet areas can be easily calculated by adding up the available living spaces comprising various rooms, verandahs and balconies the computation of built-up area is little more complicated because one would need to know the thickness of the outer and inner walls tocalculate the actual area occupied by these walls and then add on the same to the carpet area to arrive at the built up area. As a thumb rule the built up area could be 130 to 135 per cent of the carpet area.

The computation of super area is even more complicated and requires deft handling, for one the level and scope of services and common areasprovided in each building varies and so does the number of flat owners amongst whom the cost of such areas is to be shared and to complicate matters further each builder adopts a method of allocation that is unique to him.

In many instances, the agreements to sell executed by the builders with the respective flat buyers do lay down ratio limits between the super and the built-up area. In such cases one can undertake a rough estimation to determine that the built up area on offer is generally in conformity with this commitment. As a thumb rule, the super area could be 135 to 140 per cent of the built up area or in other words the carpet area could be about 75 to 80 per cent of the built up area or 53 to 58 per cent of the super area.

My mother-in-law owns a house at Dehra Dun that my father-in-law built for her in early 1940s. My mother-in-law, who is 90 years old, wishes to sell the house but finds it inconvenient to travel to Dehra Dun to either register the agreement to sell or transfer the propertythrough a deed of sale.

For the past 10 years she has been living with us and we have been looking after her affairs but she herself has been signing whatever letters or papers need to be signed. There is an offer to purchase the house and this involves entering into an agreement to sell and register the same, secure 37 [I], Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation Act and section 34 [a] clearance under the Income Tax Act etc. What would be the best way to handle this sale?

-- Sharad Saxena, Saharanpur, (UP)

Your mother-in-law, assuming apart from physical infirmities attributable to old age, is in good mental health is always free to appoint any person (you or your wife) as her duly constituted "General Power of Attorney" -- that is, a person who would do various deeds, things and acts on her behalf and she in turn would undertake to ratify such actions of her Attorney as if done by her. This Power of Attorney has to be registered with the Sub-Registrar/Registrar of Assurance in the city whereyour mother-in-law is currently resident and shall remain valid throughout her lifetime unless revoked by her previously.

In case of aged persons, it is also a common practice to simultaneously draw up and register a will which will take effect only upon the death of the person who has made the will. You should therefore consult a lawyer to draw up the requisite will and the power of attorney and arrange to have the same registered.

However, if your mother-in-law is unable to take the physical strain of a personal appearance before the registrar, then an application can also be made on her behalf to the registrar to appoint a court commissioner who would call upon her at her residence to complete the various formalities that would otherwise have been completed in the registrar's court.

This provision in law should be utilised only in cases where it is absolutely necessary to have the registrar call upon the incapacitated person at home. Needless to say that such practice is both cost and time intensive.Do consult your lawyer for guidance and compliance.

An individual received an allotment of a 900 sq mt plot from a house building co-operative society of which he was a member and by virtue thereof he became a sub-lessee of the Delhi Development Authority in 1979. He built on it a multi-storeyed building comprising a basement, with three floors (each floor containing two apartments), two garages and on top of the garage block one mezzanine floor apartment and yet another duplex apartment comprising the first and second floor areas.

In all, eight residential apartments have thus been carved out and sold to various individuals. Similarly, the basement has been divided into three parts, while the middle basement is being used for commercial purposes, the other two basements that are owned by the ground floor flat owners are being used as a part of the living quarters.

None of the basements has a WC or water connection nor are they assessable from within the ground floor apartment areas. The middlebasement is being used for storage and display of antique wooden furniture and is also being used as an office and a repair shop by the basement owners and their staff who undertake repairs of the furniture on a day to day basis. They also receive visitors throughout the day. The trucks and tempos also regularly come to the building for delivery and despatch of furniture.

While the middle basement has a separate electricity and telephone connection, the other two basements are serviced through a common electricity meter servicing each of the ground floor flats. The middle basement is not manned at night and thus presents a constant fire hazard for the families residing in the building. As a matter of fact, there have been a few occasions of fires in the building.

Is it legal for the builder/developer to sell the basement to a party who is not an owner of a residential apartment in an all-residential building and for the basement owner to use the premises for commercial purposes as an unmanned store and anarea for storage of highly inflammable materials like paints, varnishes and packing materials including plastic films, laminated papers and tapes etc. and also use the place as a furniture showroom. The builder-developer also has not apportioned any ground rent payment liability on to the owners of basement areas.

-- Ashok Chand, Vikaspuri, Delhi

The builder-developer is both morally and legally incorrect in selling the basement area in an all-residential building to a non-resident of the building even ostensibly for storage purposes and that too for unmanned storage of hazardous goods.

The Delhi Vidyut Board is also at fault for permitting misuse of an exclusive domestic light and fan electric connection in the middle basement for commercial purposes, particularly when no other basement in the building has been provided with a separate electric connection.

The builder developer ought to have apportioned the ground rent amongst various owners of built-up spaces in the building in proportionof the area occupied by them as a percentage of the total built up area of the building including the garage block.

The other apartment owners/occupiers are certainly within their rights to either collectively or individually take up the matter with the concerned authorities including the builder-developer on grounds of unwarranted risk to their life and property and invasion of their privacy. If the area under commercial usage exceeds 25 per cent of the total built-up area of the building, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi is also legally within its rights to levy and recover property taxes at the commercial rate.

Furthermore, to conduct any commercial activity other than storage (excluding hazardous goods) you also require a licence under the Delhi Shops & Establishment Act. It should also be ascertained whether such a licence has been obtained and is being displayed in the premises. I would however recommend that you exercise restraint and act collectively.

-- G P Khungar is a real estateconsultant and a former director (corporate affairs) of Ansals Ltd

(Readers are requested to send in their queries to the Features Editor, The Financial Express, Express Building, 9&10 Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi-110 002)