“84% open space” is one of the most persuasive numbers in a Bengaluru brochure, and one of the least examined. Sattva City publishes exactly that figure across 50 acres — while carrying a reported 3,460 apartments, which works out near 69 homes an acre. Both are true. Here is what the percentage actually counts.
Key takeaways
- Open space percentage is land not covered by building footprint — not land you can use.
- It routinely includes driveways, setbacks, fire tender paths and surface parking.
- A high percentage is usually achieved by building taller, not by lowering density.
- Ask for landscaped open area separately. That is the number that means something.
- Cross-check it against homes per acre. The two together tell you the real story.
The worked example: Sattva City — 50 acres, 84% open space, reportedly 3,460 homes across thirteen towers. Full breakdown on the listing page.
What the percentage is actually measuring
Open space percentage, in most Indian brochures, means the proportion of site area not occupied by building footprint at ground level. That is it.
It does not mean usable space. It does not mean green space. It does not mean space you are allowed to walk on.
A 50-acre site with 84% open space has roughly 8 acres of building footprint and 42 acres of everything else. What that 42 acres contains is the question the percentage does not answer.
The honest version of the number is one very few developers publish: landscaped and recreational open area as a share of site. That figure is always lower, sometimes dramatically.
There is no standard definition behind the headline percentage either. Different developers count different things, which means two projects advertising the same figure can offer very different amounts of usable ground.
That alone should stop you comparing projects on the percentage. It is not a like-for-like measure and it was never designed to be one.
What gets counted that you would not count
Once you know what is permitted inside the figure, the number reads differently.
| Usually counted as open | Can you use it? |
|---|---|
| Internal driveways and roads | No — it is a road |
| Fire tender access paths | No — must stay clear |
| Statutory setbacks along boundaries | Rarely — often narrow strips |
| Surface parking at grade | No |
| Utility yards, STP and substation areas | No |
| Landscaped parks and lawns | Yes — this is the part you want |
| Sports courts and play areas | Yes |
None of this is deceptive. Roads genuinely are open space in the technical sense. But a buyer hearing 84% pictures the last two rows, not the first five, and that gap is where disappointment lives.
A rough working rule from walking enough sites: on a large project, the genuinely usable landscaped share tends to be well under half of the advertised open-space figure once roads, parking, setbacks and services are taken out.
That is not a formula and you should not treat it as one. It is a reason to ask for the real number rather than accept the headline.
Why a high percentage usually means a taller building
There is an arithmetic relationship here that is worth understanding, because it explains almost every high open-space claim you will see.
To put a fixed number of homes on a site with a small footprint, you have to go up. Thirteen towers of seventeen floors take far less ground than forty blocks of four floors holding the same families.
So a very high open-space percentage on a dense project is not a contradiction. It is the mechanism. The open ground is bought with height.
Whether that is good depends entirely on what you want. High-rise with generous grounds is a real and often excellent product. Low-rise with modest grounds is a different one. The percentage alone cannot tell you which is on offer.
The two-number check that settles it
Ask for both of these and the picture resolves in about a minute.
- Open space percentage — which is usually on the brochure already.
- Total homes and total acres — divide one by the other for homes per acre.
High percentage with low homes per acre means a genuinely spacious low-rise project. High percentage with high homes per acre means a tall project with good grounds.
Low percentage with high homes per acre is the one to be careful about, because you get neither the ground nor the quiet.
Our guide to Lodha Beaumont Estate price breakdown covers the second number in detail, including the mistake that makes it meaningless.
One caution on the arithmetic. Use matched figures, meaning phase units against phase land or total units against total land. Dividing a phase unit count by a whole township acreage produces a flattering number that describes nothing.
On a project built in stages, ask for both pairs. The phase number tells you what you will live in; the total tells you what the address eventually becomes.
What to ask for in writing
Three questions, all answerable, and all of them clarify a brochure figure into something you can compare.
First: what is the landscaped and recreational open area, as distinct from total open space? If the developer has this figure, it is the honest one.
Second: what is the podium arrangement? Many projects put parking under a podium and landscape the top of it. That is usable open space and it counts properly — but podium gardens behave differently from ground-level ones, particularly for large trees.
Third: which parts of the open space are in your phase’s sanctioned plan, and which arrive later? On a phased township this matters more than the percentage does.
A developer who answers all three without hesitation has given you a better picture than any number on a hoarding.
And if you want one shortcut instead of three questions, walk the site. Ten minutes on the ground at a comparable completed project by the same developer will tell you how much of the open space is genuinely usable, because you will see whether anyone is using it.
Percentages are what a project claims. Whether there are children on the grass at six in the evening is what it delivers.
Common questions
What does open space percentage mean in apartment projects?
It usually means the share of site area not covered by building footprint at ground level. It routinely includes internal roads, fire tender paths, setbacks, surface parking and utility areas, not only landscaped gardens and play areas.
Does 84 percent open space mean low density?
No. A high open space percentage is most often achieved by building taller, which reduces footprint while keeping the same number of homes. Check homes per acre alongside it. At Sattva City the reported figures work out near 69 homes an acre.
What is the difference between open space and landscaped area?
Open space is everything not built on, including roads and parking. Landscaped and recreational area is the part you can actually use for gardens, parks, courts and play areas. The second figure is always lower and far more useful.
Does podium landscaping count as open space?
Generally yes, and legitimately so, since parking sits below and gardens above. Podium gardens work differently from ground-level ones though, particularly for large trees and deep-rooted planting, so ask what the arrangement is.
What should I ask a developer about open space?
Ask for the landscaped and recreational area separately from total open space, ask about the podium arrangement, and ask which parts of the open space fall inside your phase sanctioned plan rather than a later one.
Want the real open-space number?
Send us the projects you are comparing and we will work out footprint, landscaped area and homes per acre for each from the sanctioned plan, not the brochure. No charge, and booking through us costs exactly what going direct costs.
Related reading
Figures above are drawn from published project information and are indicative. Where sources conflicted we have stated both positions rather than picking one. Verify any registration yourself on the Karnataka RERA portal before paying a booking amount.
