The developer's fit-out window
New towers here hand over a flat with a registration process, a refundable deposit, an agreed fit-out period and a charge that begins when it ends. The period is usually generous enough and it is rarely used well, because owners spend the first six weeks choosing tiles.
| Milestone | When it should happen | What goes wrong |
|---|---|---|
| Fit-out registration and deposit | Week 0, the week of possession | Left until the contractor is appointed, losing two to three weeks |
| Possession snag list to the developer | Week 0, before anything is covered | Done after joinery goes in, at which point the defects are yours |
| Design and material freeze | By end of week 2 | Runs to week six, and the window is then too short |
| Nominated vendor booking for sprinkler works | At design freeze | Booked when the ceiling frame is up, adding two weeks |
| Standing lift slot booked | Before the first delivery | Booked ad hoc, turning a four-day move into nine |
| Completion and deposit release inspection | Two weeks before the window closes | At the deadline, leaving no room for a re-inspection |
The window itself is rarely the constraint. How the first three weeks are used almost always is.
Package prices by flat size
| Flat | Typical carpet | Essential ₹2,680 | Considered ₹3,470 | Fine ₹4,380 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1BHK | 420 – 540 sq ft | ₹11.3 – 14.5 L | ₹14.6 – 18.7 L | ₹18.4 – 23.7 L |
| 2BHK | 680 – 850 sq ft | ₹18.2 – 22.8 L | ₹23.6 – 29.5 L | ₹29.8 – 37.2 L |
| 3BHK | 1,150 – 1,500 sq ft | ₹30.8 – 40.2 L | ₹39.9 – 52.1 L | ₹50.4 – 65.7 L |
| Rehab-building flat | 320 – 420 sq ft | ₹8.6 – 11.3 L | ₹11.1 – 14.6 L | — |
Ex-GST. Each rate here is set by a Lower Parel fit-out we have finished and billed, at October 2026 prices. Add 5–7% above the 35th floor for hoisting and lift bookings. The rehab-flat row stops at the considered set because a fine specification in a 2.4 m, 360 sq ft flat is money that would be better spent on storage.
Worked example: 720 sq ft 2BHK, 22nd floor
| Item | ₹ lakh | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Hoisting, lift bookings and common-area protection | 0.9 | Standing morning slot across the installation weeks |
| Electrical rework and points | 1.7 | 46 points and three circuits; developer base build retained |
| Joinery — two wardrobes, TV unit, entry, lofts | 9.2 | Modules capped at 1,550 mm to suit the service lift car |
| Modular kitchen, 10 running feet at ₹41,000 | 4.1 | Developer platform stripped; extract to the tower shaft |
| Ceiling, lighting and sprinkler coordination | 2.2 | Heads relocated by the building's nominated vendor |
| Flooring — both bedrooms | 0.9 | Developer stone retained in living and dining |
| Painting throughout | 1.0 | Two coats over primer |
| One bathroom refitted | 1.2 | Fittings and glass; developer waterproofing sound |
| Total, ex-GST | 21.2 | ₹2,944 per sq ft on 720 sq ft carpet |
Add 18% GST. Nine weeks, comfortably inside the developer's fit-out window. Hoisting at ₹0.9 lakh is 4% of the project and is what kept the installation to five days.
First fit-outs inside the developer's window
What comes out of a new possession, and what stays
- The kitchen platform comes out. The granite slab and token dado are provided to meet a specification, not to be used, and they almost never suit the layout you want. Budget ₹18,000–₹35,000 for strip-out, bagging and lift trips.
- The living and dining flooring stays. Developer stone or large-format vitrified in a two-year-old tower is good and replacing it is ₹2 to ₹4 lakh for a change nobody notices. We replace bedroom floors where timber is a better surface and leave the rest.
- Bathroom waterproofing and tiling stay. These are sound on a new possession, so a bathroom refresh here is fittings, glass and accessories at ₹1.1 to ₹1.7 lakh rather than a ₹3.0 lakh rebuild.
- The electrical base build stays. Copper, correctly earthed and recently tested. We add points and circuits rather than rewiring, which is why a Lower Parel package starts lower than a Bandra West one at the same finish level.
- Sprinkler heads and detectors move only by the nominated vendor. Not by your electrician, not by us. We coordinate and programme them and they are booked at design freeze.
The one item worth spending above the package on in these towers is glazing treatment. A west-facing living room above the twentieth floor takes direct sun with nothing in the way of it, and a layered window treatment with a technical sheer costs ₹60,000 to ₹1.4 lakh and decides whether the room is used in the afternoon.
Wind is the second item. Above the thirtieth floor a balcony door that seals adequately lower down will whistle, and curtains hung free will not stay still with a door open. Multi-point locking on balcony openings and weighted or track-guided window treatments are small line items that prevent a recurring complaint.
For the district see interior designers in Lower Parel. For a design-led rather than package project see residential interior designers in Lower Parel. Package structure citywide is on flat interior designers in Mumbai.
Tower flat packages by Greenbox Design Studio.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if I miss the developer's fit-out window?+
Charges begin, usually daily, and in some towers access for construction material is withdrawn entirely until a fresh permission is granted. It is avoidable: register in week zero, snag the possession before anything is covered, freeze the design by the end of week two, and book the nominated vendor and the lift slots at freeze. Done that way a 2BHK finishes with weeks in hand.
Should I keep the developer's flooring?+
In the living and dining areas, yes. Developer stone or large-format vitrified in a new tower is good material, and replacing it costs ₹2–₹4 lakh for a difference most people would not notice. We replace bedroom floors where engineered timber is a genuinely better surface and leave everything else, which is part of why the package rate here is what it is.
Who can move the sprinkler heads in my flat?+
Only the building's nominated fire vendor. Not your electrician and not us. We produce the ceiling coordination drawing, book the vendor at design freeze and programme around their date, and we leave an access panel at every head and valve because the building will check. Relocating a head yourself is a fire compliance breach and, in these towers, a very fast way to lose site access.
Does the floor number change the package price?+
Above the 35th floor, yes — 5 to 7% for hoisting and lift bookings, because a 2BHK is 30 to 40 service-lift trips on a car shared with sixty floors. Below the 15th it is negligible. We show it as its own line rather than averaging it across the rate, so a low-floor owner is not subsidising a high-floor one.
Can you fit out a rehab-building flat?+
Yes — ₹8.6 to ₹14.6 lakh for a 320–420 sq ft flat, and it is careful, dense work. A 2.4 m ceiling means no false ceiling, so volume comes from 450 mm sliding wardrobes, a loft over every opening and a kitchen platform detailed to serve as the dining surface. We would not spend a fine-specification budget in one of these; we would put the same money into storage and fittings.