Should you prefer a gated community over standalone land?

You must be well aware that there is a concept of gated community of land plots where plots are sold inside a secured community with compounded walls. Usually this communities have all amenities inside it like recreation facilities, different gaming and sports facilities like volleyball, basketball, cricket, etc. There are other amenities provided as well like temple, swimming pool, club house and a host of other facilities. There are options of homes as well inside such gated communities. The buyers are confused as to what should they go for. Whether they should buy land outside or within a gated community or should they buy a home straight away in this society. A lot depends on the personal choices and preferences. Even then there are both pros and cons for each type of options. We discuss those below.

The advantages of buying land in a gated community:

1. In closed society the security and maintenance are a shared costs unlike in an own land where you have to arrange for everything and bear the cost single handedly.

2. In this community everything is planned while in a land you may be surrounded by anyone and anything. Moreover the roads and pathways and the surroundings are picturesque with everything being meticulously planned.

3. In a single owner property it is very costly to add amenities like swimming pool, gym or any other amenities which are provided in a gated community at the same cost.

4. The gated communities are safe and secure and are ideal for investment purposes as there is no risk of the land getting dispossessed.

5. The socioeconomic background of the neighbors may not be the same in case of a standalone land which is not the case in this community. In case of gated communities the buyers are expected to be more or less from the same socioeconomic background.

These are precisely the disadvantages of buying a standalone land but there are obviously few advantages of buying a standalone land too. These are the disadvantages of buying a land/plot in a gated community which we enumerate below.

1. In case of land plot you can break up the financial resources into two parts - the first part being the cost of the land – the second being the cost of building the house.

2. As you are in full control you can build a house of as many floors the local authorities permit and can customize it according to your needs and desires. For example if one needs an own swimming pool or an indoor courtyard one can build it as one is the sole owner of the place.

3. There is no need to pay maintenance charges or society charges or collective charges.

4. Addition and alteration for the properties can be made at any stage over time.

The conclusion:

So the experts feel that for a young couple with supposedly a modest income should go for a gated community with all amenities. In case if one likes to go for a second home for peaceful stay after residing in an apartment, a gated community would be a better choice. In case of an older couple also a gated community is a good choice for the reasons of all amenities like nearby small markets, availability of things and 24 hours security. Buying a standalone land can be recommended if one is really very wealthy and one wants to see one’s dream home in reality.

Few things that one should be cautious of while buying a plot in the gated community are:

1. A gated community, many a times attracts many investors who would never build a house and are just buying for investment purposes. Thus one buyer desirous of building a home may end up in a deserted and empty land with very few neighbors.

   One must make sure that the developer provides all the amenities that are promised and the community is inhabited by residents for the availability and accessibility of all amenities and facilities.

Check out for the land buying documents and it should be verified that the title of the land is clear with clear sell able rights.

This is Raju a Real Estate market research analyst at tgslayouts.