How to read circle rates for your area

Every state in India sets a minimum value for property, but each one calls it something different. In Gujarat it is Jantri. In Maharashtra it is Ready Reckoner rate. Karnataka calls it guidance value, Tamil Nadu calls it guideline value, Rajasthan calls it the DLC rate, and in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh it is circle rate. The name changes, but the idea is the same. It is the value on which you pay stamp duty if your deal price is lower.

When you first open a circle rate list, it can look confusing. One area has dozens of zones, each with five or six different rates, some in sq m and some in sq ft. This guide explains how to read the rates for your area on CircleRate, step by step, so you know exactly which number applies to your property.

Start with your district

Open your state, then your district. The district page gives you a quick picture of the whole district:

• The average circle rate for flats in the district, per sq ft and per sq m
• A list of every area with its average flat rate, starting with the costliest areas
• The areas with the highest and lowest rates

The average here is the middle value across all zones, so one very high or very low zone doesn’t pull it up or down. It is a good way to compare one area with another. It is not the rate you will pay stamp duty on.

Open your area

Find your area in the list, or search for it at the top of the page, and open it. At the top you will see the average rate for each type of property, along with the range from the lowest zone to the highest.

For example, if the page shows a range of ₹1,394 to ₹3,670 per sq ft for flats, it means the cheapest zone in the area has a flat rate of ₹1,394 and the costliest has ₹3,670. Your property falls somewhere in that range, depending on its zone.

Find your zone

This is the most important step. Scroll down to the zone wise rates on the area page. Each zone is listed with the land it covers, and states describe this in one of two ways.

Some states list numbers. In Gujarat, for example, each zone lists the survey numbers, block numbers or final plot (FP) numbers it covers. Here is a real zone from Ambawadi, Ahmedabad:

If your plot is FP 5 in this area, zone 21/1 is yours. Our guide on how to find Jantri rate by survey number explains this kind of zone in detail.

Other states describe zones by roads and landmarks. In Mumbai, for example, zones are marked by the roads on each side. Here are two real zones from Bandra East:

Here you match your building’s location with the roads and boundaries given. Look at how much two zones in the same area can differ. The flat rate in zone 29/166 is ₹38,100 per sq m more than in 29/165. On a 60 sq m flat, that is a difference of about ₹22.9 lakh in value.

Your sale deed, property card or 7/12 extract will have the survey, CTS or plot number you need. If you still can’t tell which zone is yours, the Sub-Registrar office can confirm it.

Pick the rate for your type of property

Every zone has separate rates for different types of property. Use the one that matches yours:

• Flat or apartment: the flat (residential) rate
• Plot or land: the open plot rate
• Shop: the shop rate
• Office: the office rate
• Industrial shed or plot: the industrial rate

Don’t use a different rate just because it seems close enough. A shop on the ground floor of a residential building still uses the shop rate, which is usually much higher than the flat rate.

Check the unit

Most states fix circle rates per square metre. CircleRate shows every rate per sq ft as well, so you can match it with the area in your sale deed.

• To change a per sq m rate to per sq ft, divide it by 10.764.
• Plots in Gujarat are often sold in var (square yards). For open plots, CircleRate also shows the rate per sq yd.
• Farmland is sometimes rated per hectare. One hectare is 10,000 sq m, so don’t mix it with the per sq m rates.

Also check whether the rate is for carpet area or built-up area. In Maharashtra, for example, Ready Reckoner rate applies to built-up area. Our guide on carpet vs built-up area explains the difference.

Things that can confuse you

A rate is missing. The government has not set a rate for that property type in that zone. It is not zero. Ask the Sub-Registrar which rate they will use.

You see “/P” after a number. It means only part of that survey number falls in this zone. The rest is in another zone.

A zone covers “all other” survey numbers. It is a catch-all zone for numbers not listed anywhere else in that village.

You see a gamtal or gaothan zone. It is the old village settlement area, which usually has its own rates.

From rate to stamp duty

Once you have the right rate, the rest is simple:

1. Multiply the rate by the area of your property. This is circle rate value.
2. Compare it with your deal price, and take whichever is higher.
3. Calculate stamp duty and registration fee on that amount.

Suppose you are buying a 120 sq m plot in Ambawadi zone 21/1. The value is ₹70,000 × 120 = ₹84 lakh. If your deal price is ₹80 lakh, stamp duty is charged on ₹84 lakh, because that is higher.

The property value calculator and the stamp duty calculator can do this for you.