Undivided Share of Land

Most of the buyers often decide their property purchase based on the factors like built-up area offered and the additional amenities attached to the flat. However, the most important factor in any real estate purchase, which is the actual land that one will own, is often overlooked. This is more so in the case of the apartments. When an apartment is purchased a certain value of the land will also be allocated in the name of the buyer. This portion is called as ‘Undivided Share of Land’ (UDS). It is a part of the plot given to the owner of the flat in an apartment complex on which the entire structure is built. This share of land has no defined boundaries and each and every flat built on that particular plot will have associated UDS.

Importance of UDS
1. The building itself isn’t of lot much importance because the value of the constructed area depreciates. The older the construction, the lower the market value of the property.
2. Price Appreciation in real estate is actually the appreciation of land prices because technically the building depreciates over the time. This is the reason that the amount of land one owns would matter. A smart buyer would actually look at the UDS of that place and invest on that.
3. In case the owner has no undivided land share, he may not be able to sell the property or enjoy good returns on the investment.

Legal Implications of UDS
1. The legal implication of undivided land share makes it an intrinsic part of any real estate deal.
2. Suppose the building in which the owner resides is to be reconstructed ten years down the line or it comes under the Government acquisition project and made available for demolition, the compensation administered to the flat owner will depend on the percentage of the undivided land share in the property.
3. The sum of all the undivided shares for each apartment owner must be proportionate to the area of the land in which the apartment has been constructed.
4. In case of co-operative housing societies, the UDS must legally be in the name of the society since the flat owners are the shareholders of the society.

Calculation of UDS
It is determined by a simple formula. It is calculated by multiplying the total land area with the size of the individual apartment and dividing the result by the total area of all apartments in the project.
Example for UDS Calculation
Let us take 10 equally sized apartments of 500 sq feet each that are built on land that measures 3500 square feet. The UDS can be calculated by multiplying the size of the individual apartments with the total land area (500*3500) and dividing it by the total area of all the apartments in the project (500*10)=
UDS comes out to be= 500*3500/500*10= 350 square feet per apartment


Ownership of Parking Space
1.  An allotted car park is a very prized possession for the calculation of UDS. If owner have a car park, the UDS becomes UDS calculated + car park land in sq ft. Thus, it is important to ensure that the developer documents the car park in owner’s name.
2.  As per Indian law, an open car parking can only be sold as part of a common area and cannot be legally included as part of the floor area for individual apartments.

Important points to be kept in mind regarding the UDS factors while buying the property
1. Most of the builders are reluctant to show the agreement copy done between the seller and the buyer. Therefore, the buyer has to ensure that the agreement copy is being provided to him.
2. The agreement copy should hold all the important details of the property in question including the details of the UDS.
3. The same figure of the UDS mentioned in the agreement must also be there in the Title Deed when the registration is being done.