Comparison

3 BHK or 4 BHK penthouse

Not simply one more bedroom. A penthouse differs in what the deed conveys, what the terrace legally is, how the maintenance is apportioned and how narrow the future buyer pool becomes.

What this page is

"3 BHK" and "4 BHK penthouse" are usually presented as two rungs of the same ladder. The documents treat them as more different than that. A penthouse typically sits on the top floor or floors, often carries private terrace area, and its undivided share in the land is proportionately larger — which changes how the estate's costs are apportioned to it for as long as it exists.

One term on the cost sheet does the heaviest lifting and is the only one defined by statute: carpet area, defined in section 2(k) of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016. Built-up and super built-up are not defined in that Act at all. A penthouse quoted on super built-up area against a 3 BHK quoted the same way can differ in usable space by more than the two headline figures suggest, and only the carpet areas are comparable.

Private terrace area is the second thing to read carefully. Whether a terrace is part of your apartment, an exclusive-use right over common area, or a common area you happen to be next to, is a documentary question with real consequences for maintenance, alterations and any future sale. It is answered in the agreement, not in the floor plate drawing.

What this page will not do

Quote a price or a rate per square foot. No price appears on this website. The cost sheet is where a real number belongs, and it is issued against a specific unit.
Say a penthouse is the better asset. That is an appreciation and resale claim, and it is not checkable. The pages on this site do not make them.
Describe a terrace as yours. Whether a terrace is yours, exclusively usable by you, or common, is set out in the agreement for sale for the specific unit. We will not generalise it.
Print a maintenance figure. Apportionment is set out in the agreement and the association's rules. Ask what basis is used before you compare two homes on monthly cost.

Facts on this page last reviewed on 25 August 2026. Registrations, statutes and administrative practice all change; check the source as well as this page.

Side by side

9 differences you can check against a document

Each row states the position on both sides, and names the document, register or statute that settles it for a specific project. Where a row touches a figure that moves by notification, it names the body that publishes the figure instead of printing one.

The area figure that is comparable

3 BHK: Carpet area as defined in section 2(k) of the RERA Act — the net usable floor area within the walls of the apartment, computed as that section provides. Ask for it, in writing, and compare it against another home's carpet area rather than against a super built-up figure.
4 BHK penthouse: The same definition applies. A penthouse's built-up figure can carry a larger loading — private terrace, double-height volume, additional service area — so the gap between the headline figure and the carpet area is often wider than for a standard floor plate.

Settled by The carpet area stated in the agreement for sale, which section 2(k) of the RERA Act defines and which the promoter is required to state.

The undivided share in the land

3 BHK: A proportionate share of the project's land, held in common and conveyed with the apartment. It cannot be divided, fenced or sold separately.
4 BHK penthouse: The same instrument, a larger proportion. That larger share is what a bigger apartment gets, and it is also what a larger apportionment of common cost is usually calculated against.

Settled by The undivided share stated in the sale deed. Ask for the figure and the basis on which it was arrived at.

The private terrace, and what it legally is

3 BHK: Usually a balcony forming part of the apartment, with its treatment in the area statement set out in the agreement.
4 BHK penthouse: Often a private terrace — which may be part of the apartment, an exclusive right of use over what remains common area, or common area with no exclusive right at all. These are three different things with three different consequences for maintenance, waterproofing liability and alteration.

Settled by The agreement for sale and the sale deed for the specific unit. If the terrace is not described in either, it is not yours, whatever the sales floor plan shades in.

Being under, or on, the roof

3 BHK: A standard floor has apartments above and below it, so roof waterproofing and terrace drainage are common concerns dealt with by the association.
4 BHK penthouse: A top-floor home meets the roof directly. Heat gain, waterproofing and drainage are experienced first here, and who bears the cost of remedying them depends on whether the surface above is common area or part of your apartment.

Settled by The common-area schedule, plus the agreement's maintenance and defect-liability clauses. Section 14(3) of the RERA Act deals with defects notified within the period it specifies.

How the monthly cost is apportioned

3 BHK: Usually apportioned by area or by undivided share, in the manner the agreement and the association's bye-laws set out.
4 BHK penthouse: The same basis, applied to a larger number. A penthouse ordinarily carries a proportionately larger share of every common cost — permanently, and irrespective of how many people live in it.

Settled by The apportionment clause in the agreement for sale and the association's bye-laws. Ask which basis is used before comparing two homes on monthly outgo.

Dependence on the lift

3 BHK: Real but bounded — on a lower floor the stairs remain an option for most people.
4 BHK penthouse: Higher, and for a top-floor home in a tall building, near-total. Ask how many lifts serve the core, whether one is on standby power, and what the service arrangement is.

Settled by The lift specification in the amenities schedule, the standby power provision, and the maintenance contract the association holds.

How many of them exist

3 BHK: The configuration a project typically builds in volume, so there are comparable units within the same building and across the corridor.
4 BHK penthouse: Few by definition — a penthouse exists only where the building has a top floor to give it. That scarcity cuts both ways, and this page will not tell you which way it cuts for you.

Settled by The sanctioned plan and the unit schedule filed with the registration, which state how many of each configuration the project actually contains.

Where the current figure is published Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA) — the register of real estate projects and agents in Karnataka, with each project's registration, promoter and filings. We print no rate.

Who you are eventually selling to

3 BHK: A wide pool of buyers and, if you ever let it, tenants.
4 BHK penthouse: A narrower pool, because fewer households are looking for a home of that size at that budget in that location. Narrower is a fact about the number of interested parties. It is not a statement about value, and we make none.

Settled by Nothing on this website. This row states a structural fact about supply and demand categories, not a forecast — treat any claim about resale outcomes, including ours, as unproven.

How a lender looks at it

3 BHK: A standard home loan against a standard configuration. Lenders will still make their own valuation and apply their own policy.
4 BHK penthouse: Also a home loan, but the lender's valuer has fewer comparable transactions to work from, which can make the sanctioned amount harder to predict. The loan-to-value norms lenders work within are set by the Reserve Bank of India, and each lender applies its own policy inside them. We publish neither.

Settled by The lender's own sanction letter and valuation report for the specific unit.

Where the current figure is published Reserve Bank of India — the prudential directions lenders work within, including loan-to-value norms and the rules on how floating rates are reset. We print no rate.

3 BHK compared with 4 BHK penthouse across 9 dimensions, each with the document that settles it. No recommendation is made.
Dimension	3 BHK	4 BHK penthouse
The area figure that is comparable	Carpet area as defined in section 2(k) of the RERA Act — the net usable floor area within the walls of the apartment, computed as that section provides. Ask for it, in writing, and compare it against another home's carpet area rather than against a super built-up figure.	The same definition applies. A penthouse's built-up figure can carry a larger loading — private terrace, double-height volume, additional service area — so the gap between the headline figure and the carpet area is often wider than for a standard floor plate.
Settled by The carpet area stated in the agreement for sale, which section 2(k) of the RERA Act defines and which the promoter is required to state.
The undivided share in the land	A proportionate share of the project's land, held in common and conveyed with the apartment. It cannot be divided, fenced or sold separately.	The same instrument, a larger proportion. That larger share is what a bigger apartment gets, and it is also what a larger apportionment of common cost is usually calculated against.
Settled by The undivided share stated in the sale deed. Ask for the figure and the basis on which it was arrived at.
The private terrace, and what it legally is	Usually a balcony forming part of the apartment, with its treatment in the area statement set out in the agreement.	Often a private terrace — which may be part of the apartment, an exclusive right of use over what remains common area, or common area with no exclusive right at all. These are three different things with three different consequences for maintenance, waterproofing liability and alteration.
Settled by The agreement for sale and the sale deed for the specific unit. If the terrace is not described in either, it is not yours, whatever the sales floor plan shades in.
Being under, or on, the roof	A standard floor has apartments above and below it, so roof waterproofing and terrace drainage are common concerns dealt with by the association.	A top-floor home meets the roof directly. Heat gain, waterproofing and drainage are experienced first here, and who bears the cost of remedying them depends on whether the surface above is common area or part of your apartment.
Settled by The common-area schedule, plus the agreement's maintenance and defect-liability clauses. Section 14(3) of the RERA Act deals with defects notified within the period it specifies.
How the monthly cost is apportioned	Usually apportioned by area or by undivided share, in the manner the agreement and the association's bye-laws set out.	The same basis, applied to a larger number. A penthouse ordinarily carries a proportionately larger share of every common cost — permanently, and irrespective of how many people live in it.
Settled by The apportionment clause in the agreement for sale and the association's bye-laws. Ask which basis is used before comparing two homes on monthly outgo.
Dependence on the lift	Real but bounded — on a lower floor the stairs remain an option for most people.	Higher, and for a top-floor home in a tall building, near-total. Ask how many lifts serve the core, whether one is on standby power, and what the service arrangement is.
Settled by The lift specification in the amenities schedule, the standby power provision, and the maintenance contract the association holds.
How many of them exist	The configuration a project typically builds in volume, so there are comparable units within the same building and across the corridor.	Few by definition — a penthouse exists only where the building has a top floor to give it. That scarcity cuts both ways, and this page will not tell you which way it cuts for you.
Settled by The sanctioned plan and the unit schedule filed with the registration, which state how many of each configuration the project actually contains. Where the current figure is published Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA) — the register of real estate projects and agents in Karnataka, with each project's registration, promoter and filings. We print no rate.
Who you are eventually selling to	A wide pool of buyers and, if you ever let it, tenants.	A narrower pool, because fewer households are looking for a home of that size at that budget in that location. Narrower is a fact about the number of interested parties. It is not a statement about value, and we make none.
Settled by Nothing on this website. This row states a structural fact about supply and demand categories, not a forecast — treat any claim about resale outcomes, including ours, as unproven.
How a lender looks at it	A standard home loan against a standard configuration. Lenders will still make their own valuation and apply their own policy.	Also a home loan, but the lender's valuer has fewer comparable transactions to work from, which can make the sanctioned amount harder to predict. The loan-to-value norms lenders work within are set by the Reserve Bank of India, and each lender applies its own policy inside them. We publish neither.
Settled by The lender's own sanction letter and valuation report for the specific unit. Where the current figure is published Reserve Bank of India — the prudential directions lenders work within, including loan-to-value norms and the rules on how floating rates are reset. We print no rate.

Several terms above — undivided share, carpet area, occupancy certificate, encumbrance certificate, khata, FAR — are defined in full, with the statutory wording where a statute defines them, in our glossary.

Neither answer is the right one

Who each of them suits

Two paragraphs, one for each side, and then the honest weaknesses of both. We are not going to end this page by recommending the thing we happen to sell more of.

Who 3 bhk suits

A 3 BHK suits a household that wants the space it actually uses, a smaller share of every common cost, less dependence on a lift, and the widest possible set of comparable homes to check its own decision against.

Who 4 bhk penthouse suits

A 4 BHK penthouse suits a household that genuinely needs the volume and the outdoor space, wants the top floor for the light and the quiet rather than for the label, and accepts a permanently larger share of common costs and a narrower future buyer pool as the price of it.

And where each one is weaker

Stated plainly, because a comparison that lists only advantages on both sides has told you nothing. Neither of these paragraphs is a reason not to buy — they are the things worth knowing before you do.

3 BHK

Less outdoor space, ordinary floor position, and — in a building where the penthouses got the architectural attention — sometimes a plainer set of internal volumes.

4 BHK penthouse

A permanently larger apportionment of common cost, complete dependence on the lift, direct exposure to the roof, a terrace whose legal status must be read carefully rather than assumed, and fewer comparable transactions for anyone valuing it.

Take these with you

Questions with documentary answers

Every one of these has an answer that exists on paper. A seller who cannot produce the paper has given you an answer of a different kind.

01What is the carpet area, as defined in section 2(k) of the RERA Act, for this exact unit?
02Is the terrace part of the apartment, an exclusive-use right, or common area?
03On what basis is the monthly maintenance apportioned between unit types?
04What is the undivided share for this unit and how was it arrived at?
05How many lifts serve this core and which of them runs on standby power?

Sources, not figures

Where the numbers we did not print are published

Stamp duty, registration fees, GST, loan-to-value norms and interest resets all move by notification or circular. This page names the body that publishes each of them and links to it, so you get the current position rather than a figure that was current once.

Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (K-RERA)

Publishes the register of real estate projects and agents in Karnataka, with each project's registration, promoter and filings.

https://rera.karnataka.gov.in

Reserve Bank of India

Publishes the prudential directions lenders work within, including loan-to-value norms and the rules on how floating rates are reset.

https://www.rbi.org.in

Bring the documents question

Ask us for the registration certificate, the sanctioned plan, the encumbrance certificate, the draft agreement and the carpet area. We would far rather answer a well-informed question than an easy one.

See our RERA registrations +91-76077 12345