Property Questions, Answered
The questions people actually ask before buying, selling or renting property in Pakista
Understanding Sizes and Terms
A Marla is the standard unit of land area in Punjab, Islamabad and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. There are two Marla standards in use in Pakistan: 225 square feet and 272.25 square feet.
Most older schemes use the 272.25 square foot Marla, which equals 30.25 square yards. Many newer housing societies, including large parts of DHA and Bahria Town, use the 225 square foot Marla.
The difference is more than 20 percent, so always confirm which standard a society uses before comparing plots on price per Marla. You can convert between units using our area unit converter.
One Kanal equals 20 Marla. One acre equals 8 Kanal, or 160 Marla. One acre is 43,560 square feet.
Plot is used directly in Urdu as پلاٹ. The broader word for land is زمین (zameen) or اراضی (arazi). A residential plot is a رہائشی پلاٹ and a commercial plot is a کمرشل پلاٹ.
You will also see گھر (ghar) for house, فلیٹ (flat) for apartment, and کرایہ (kiraya) for rent on Pakistani listings.
A plot is a specific, numbered piece of land in a scheme. It has a location, a plot number, and a possession status you can verify on the ground.
A file is a right to be allotted a plot at a future date. It has no plot number yet and no physical location assigned. Its value depends entirely on the developer delivering the scheme and completing balloting.
Files cost less and trade faster, and they carry substantially more risk. Before buying a file, check the scheme’s approval status, the developer’s record on delivering previous phases, and exactly what your legal position is if balloting is delayed.
A west open plot has its open side or road access facing west, which many buyers prefer for ventilation and light. Corner plots have road access on two sides. Park facing plots back onto or face a green area.
These attributes usually carry a price premium over an equivalent standard plot in the same block.
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Documents and Verification
At minimum:
The fard, which is the record of rights showing current ownership.
The registry or sale deed for registered property, or the allotment and transfer letters for society property.
The approved layout plan showing your plot number in the approved scheme.
A no demand certificate from the society, confirming no outstanding dues.
The seller’s CNIC, matched against the name on the ownership record.
The society’s approval from the relevant development authority.
Do not rely on photocopies. Verify the ownership record independently before any payment.
Q7. How do I check land records in Punjab?
The Punjab Land Records Authority maintains a computerised record of rights. You can verify ownership and obtain a fard through an Arazi Record Centre in the relevant tehsil, or through the PLRA’s online service.
You will need the property’s location details and, in most cases, the khasra or khewat number. Bring your CNIC.
For property inside private housing societies, the society’s own transfer office holds the record rather than the revenue department.
Land record in Sindh is maintained through the provincial land administration system, and lease documents for leasehold property in Karachi are held by the relevant land-controlling authority. Which authority applies depends on where the property sits: the Karachi Development Authority, the Malir Development Authority, the Lyari Development Authority, a cantonment board, or a private housing society’s own office.
Establish which authority controls your specific area first, because the verification route is different for each. For property in a cantonment area, the cantonment board holds the record, not the city authority.
Every legitimate housing scheme is approved by a development authority. Which one depends on the city:
Lahore: Lahore Development Authority (LDA)
Rawalpindi: Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA)
Islamabad: Capital Development Authority (CDA)
Karachi: Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) and the relevant development authority
Multan: Multan Development Authority (MDA)
Punjab rural and periphery: Punjab Housing and Town Planning Agency (PHATA)
Each publishes a list of approved and unapproved schemes. Check the list directly rather than accepting a developer’s word.
Approval is also phase specific. A scheme approved for Phase 1 is not automatically approved for Phase 4.
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