Loading Factor in Residential Apartments Rises Across Top Indian Cities: ANAROCK
The loading factor, the difference between the super-built-up area and carpet area, in residential apartments is steadily increasing across India’s top cities, reveals the latest ANAROCK Research Q1 2025 data. This trend reflects the growing demand for premium amenities and common facilities within housing projects.
Dr. Prashant Thakur, Regional Director & Head of Research & Advisory at ANAROCK Group, explained, “While RERA mandates developers to specify the carpet area for buyers, no regulation currently limits the loading factor in residential projects. Our latest figures show that, on average, only 60% of the total space homebuyers pay for is liveable carpet area, with the remaining 40% allocated to common areas such as elevators, lobbies, staircases, clubhouses, amenities, and terraces.” Back in 2019, the average loading factor was just 31%.
Among the top 7 cities, Bengaluru has witnessed the sharpest rise in loading factor, jumping from 30% in 2019 to 41% in Q1 2025. The city’s growth correlates with increasing inclusion of high-end amenities to meet the lifestyle expectations of its IT-centric population.
Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) continues to have the highest loading factor at 43% in Q1 2025, steadily growing from 33% in 2019 and 39% in 2022. This increase signals a rising emphasis on common amenities in the region’s premium residential projects.
Chennai shows the lowest rise in loading factor, reaching 36% in Q1 2025 from 30% in 2019. This aligns with the city’s buyer preference for paying more for usable carpet area rather than common spaces.
Other cities’ loading factors in Q1 2025 are as follows:
- NCR: 41% (up from 31% in 2019)
- Pune: 40% (up from 32% in 2019)
- Hyderabad: 38% (up from 30% in 2019)
- Kolkata: 39% (up from 30% in 2019)
The rising loading factor trend reflects a shift in residential real estate towards enhanced lifestyle amenities and shared facilities, although buyers need to be aware of the actual usable space they are purchasing.
"In the past, a loading of 30% or less was thought to be typical," says Dr. Thakur. "Today, higher amenity loading has become the norm across most projects, partly because homebuyers are no longer satisfied with basic lifestyle amenities - they expect fitness centres, clubhouses, park-like gardens, and grand lobbies. Collectively, these features may improve comfort, community liveability, and also resale value; however, homebuyers effectively lose on actual usable space within their apartments. "
Essential infrastructure in modern housing projects now typically includes more lifts with bigger passenger capacities, amplified utility areas, and fire escapes that meet regulatory safety protocols. In high-density urban developments, optimizing space for both private and shared use is crucial for a better living experience and long-term value, making some level of extra loading an inescapable fact of life.
“In most cases, buyers across cities, except in Maharashtra, are unaware of how much they pay towards the overall usable space within their apartment. Respective state RERAs should ideally enforce provisions wherein each project clearly mentions how much buyers are paying for the total usable space within the apartment, and for the amenities.”
