Under Construction vs Ready Possession: Which to Buy

The entry price is lower, sometimes materially so, and payment is spread across construction milestones rather than demanded at once. For a buyer whose funds arrive over time, that structure is often the deciding factor.

Selection is also better early in a project: floor, view and orientation are chosen from a fuller inventory. And in a project that completes on schedule, the difference between purchase price and completed value accrues to the buyer.

There is no delivery risk. The building exists, it can be physically inspected, and its occupancy certificate confirms the local authority considers it fit for occupation and compliant with approved plans.

You stop paying rent immediately, or start earning rent immediately. GST applies to under-construction purchases and generally does not apply to a completed property with an occupancy certificate, which narrows the effective price gap more than the headline figures suggest.

And what you see is what you get — finishes, common areas, actual light and ventilation, rather than a rendering.

The risk in an under-construction purchase is not merely that possession is late. It is that your capital is committed and illiquid while the project runs behind, and that your own housing costs continue in the meantime.

MahaRERA improves the position substantially — escrowed collections, published timelines and a complaints route — but it does not make delay impossible. Read the delay clause in the builder-buyer agreement before booking, and check the developer's delivery record on previous projects rather than the marketing for this one.

A conservative approach is to weigh the discount you are being offered against the number of months of delay you could absorb without difficulty.