Bengaluru: Maintenance fee ruling sparks debate

A civil court recently ruled that all flat owners should be charged the same fees irrespective of apartment size

A recent ruling by a city civil court has left homeowners and apartment associations confused. The court ruled that the size of a home cannot determine maintenance charges and that all flats must pay the same fees. 

The ruling goes against an earlier Karnataka High Court judgment that maintenance must be collected based on ‘individual share of interest’, says Dhananjaya Padamanabachar, convenor, Karnataka Home Buyers Forum. “Home buyers purchase property based on super built-up area and undivided share of interest in the property. The High Court of Karnataka in an order dated October 8, 2025 highlighted section 10 of Karnataka Apartment Ownership Act (KAOA) 1972 which says that common expenses shall be charged to the apartment owners according to the percentage of the undivided interest (a form of property ownership) in the common areas and facilities,” he elaborates. 

While the KAOA 1972 prescribes maintenance charges on the basis of apartment unit size (per square feet), there are residential communities which feel that there is a need to consider other factors while calculating the maintenance charges, shares K Arun Kumar, general secretary, Bangalore Apartment Federation (BAF). For example, a gym or the swimming pool may not be used by all homes in an apartment complex, the non-users may not want to contribute towards the upkeep and renewal of those amenities. “To address this, BAF has proposed a solution, of ‘usage-based-charges’, to be incorporated in the upcoming Karnataka Apartment Ownership and Management Bill (KAOMA). BAF expects that KAOMA will be implemented soon,” he reveals.

Dr Chandru C M, association president of Skyway Apartments in Jayanagar, notes that the GST on maintenance fees of flats with an area higher than 1,400-1,500 sqft automatically means that bigger apartments incur higher fees. “It is not viable to keep maintenance charges uniform,” he points out. The 14-year-old complex has 71 flats with built-up areas ranging from 1,200 to 4,000 sqft.

Media professional Shivani M K lives in a small apartment block in Rajarajeshwari Nagar, which has a total of nine flats. She owns two flats in the building. “I think it is unfair for smaller flats to be charged the same as bigger flats,” she tells Metrolife.

The best way to determine the charges is to calculate them based on the number of occupants in a flat, notes Shyam Rao, a home owner based in Jayanagar. “A flat with more people will use more water, for instance,” he adds. 

While most homeowners Metrolife spoke to were unhappy with the ruling, some believe it is a step in the right direction. At a 15-year-old apartment complex in Singasandra, fees are currently charged according to the size of the apartment. The building has 42 flats. However, its association members are planning on taking a decision over the next few months following the civil court ruling. “I think all owners should pay the same amount as everyone uses the common resources,” says a resident of the building. While hers is a 1,625 sqft unit, “there are larger ones with a garden area on the ground floor”.