Real estate scams are an unfortunate reality but it wouldn’t be wrong to say that property fraud isn’t as common as it used to be, thanks, in part, to technology. With more digital tools, such as real estate portals like Zameen.com, at our disposal today, we have more resources than ever to quickly confirm if the land or house we want to buy is legal or illegal. Although the government of Pakistan has launched several crackdowns against illegal residential societies over the past decade, buyers still remain apprehensive about the legitimacy of a project. But this is where we can help. Whenever you’re mulling over a property option, the first thing you ought to confirm is if it’s been approved by the city’s development authority. In Rawalpindi, for instance, all legitimate real estate projects must be approved by the Rawalpindi Development Authority, aka RDA. To help you narrow down your search for your dream home, we’ll share a list of all RDA-approved housing societies in Rawalpindi, as of July 2021.

RDA-APPROVED HOUSING SOCIETIES IN RAWALPINDI FOR SAFE INVESTMENTS

Pending and are under process.

• New City Housing Scheme (Phase-II)
• Wapda Town (Wapda Employees Cooperative Housing Society)

Few residential societies have been merged in the For an approved housing scheme, a series of approvals are required from the designated development authority. Until and unless a builder or developer has all these approvals, the investment in such a residential scheme will be risky and deemed unapproved/illegal. It is also not in the best interest of people to consider investing in housing societies that have only secured preliminary approvals.

So, here is a list of all the RDA-approved housing societies in Rawalpindi where your investment will be secure and you can also plan to build a home too in future. The list is also available on the Rawalpindi Development Authority website.

• Airport Green Garden (Revised & Extension)
• Al-Haram City
• Bahria Golf City
• Banker City
• Capital Smart City
• Commoners Sky Garden
• Dream Valley
• Elite Reverie Housing
• Faisal Town (Rev & Extension)
• Faisal Hills
• Faisal Margalla City
• Gandhara City
• Judicial Employees Cooperative Housing Society
• Kohistan Enclave
• Marble Arch
• Multi Gardens
• Pakistan Employees Cooperative Housing Society K, K-Ext, M
• Pakistan Govt. Employees
• PIA Officers Cooperative Housing Society 
• Qurtaba City
• Rabia Residency
• Safari Enclave II (Land Subdivision)
• Safari Valley
• Taj Residencia
• Taj Residencia (Extension)
• Top City

There are some residential schemes that have also acquired preliminary planning permission over a certain area.

• Bahria Town Phase-VIII
• Rehber Colony
• Safari Valley

Some housing societies have approvals DHA.

• Army Welfare Housing Scheme (Defense-I) – Phase 1 is merged in DHA
• Garden Villas
• Municipal Corporation Co-operative Housing Scheme (Sectors A & B)
• Revenue Employees Cooperative Housing Society

The LDA City commercial plots have been launched in the society’s Jinnah Sector on easy installment plans. The booking period was launched on Aug. 16, 2021, and will last through 15^th September, 2021.

APPLICATION PROCESS FOR LDA CITY COMMERCIAL PLOTS

To cater to a large pool of investors especially during the coronavirus pandemic, the LDA City has launched online application forms. The link for this is available on the LDA Website. The entire application process will not take anyone more than a few minutes to fill and all prospective applicants are only required to submit their CNIC copies and a passport picture to create an account.

Once you create your account, you can submit as many applications as you want. However, please remember that for each application submitted, an application fee has to be paid, which is non-refundable.

Properties ON OFFER 

The following commercial plots are available.

These are the charges that you have to pay per application submitted for balloting. The prices of commercial plots in LDA City are PKR 3.1 million per marla, including development charges, while a 20% down payment is required after the announcement of ballot result, that too within 30 days. If the down payment isn’t made within the mentioned time, then LDA City will automatically withdraw the application.

After the down payment, the remaining amount is to be paid over 48 months. While the second ballot (for the acquisition of plot numbers) will only be held after the applicants have submitted at least 50% of assessed plot value, which comes after the payment of the third instalment.

For people who pay a lump sum amount upfront, a 10% discount will be given. However, if you want a plot with premium features, i.e. overlooking park, or a corner plot, or located on main road (60 feet wide for plots of 5-marla, while 75 feet wide for plots over 5-marlas), the following additional charges will be levied, as a percentage of total value of plot:

• 10% with plot having one premium features
• 15% with plot having two premium features
• 20% with plots having three premium features

After the allotment of plot, the plot owners can transfer the property by paying government taxes and transfer fee which is levied PKR 25,000/ marla to the LDA.

For any delays in payment, a penalty of PKR 1,000/day for each day delayed up till a period of 60 days, after which the LDA has the authority to cancel the allotment. The plot owner can ask for re-allotment within 90 days of cancellation by the LDA, after promising that they will submit all pending dues in addition to two advance installments. All of these payments have to be made within the 90-day period. However, if the plot owner does not file for re-allotment within the 90-day period, the LDA will refund the deposited amount after deducting 20%.