Building Value Calculator on PWD Plinth Area Rates

What the PWD building value is

The Public Works Department publishes a rate per square metre of plinth area for each class of construction in Tamil Nadu, revised for each rate period. The Registration Department applies those rates to arrive at an indicative value for a building. The rate depends on three things about the construction: the mortar the walls are built in, the wood work, and the roof. It is then adjusted for which floor the area is on, for the age of the building, and for the region.

This calculator carries the department's own tables for all 12 rate periods, from 02-Jan-13 to 16-Aug-25 To 15-Aug-26, and reproduces the official working step for step.

How the value is built up

1. Floor rate. The ground floor has its own rate. The first floor is lower, the second floor slightly higher, and every floor above the second adds a fixed amount to the second floor rate. Basements 1 to 4 carry their own published rates.
2. Floor value. Rate multiplied by the plinth area of that floor in square metres. A square foot is converted at 0.0929 square metres, the factor the department itself uses, so a British entry gives the same figure as the official form.
3. Depreciation. Read off the published age table for the class of construction, capped at 60 years.
4. Net building value. Net floor value plus the portico, the garage and the compound wall.
5. Regional addition. A percentage of the net building value, set by where the property is.
6. Amenities and flooring. Added on top of the total building value, either at a flat 7.5 percent per category or itemised.

Regional addition on the building value

The rate schedule spells the 10 percent band out more fully than the dropdown does: it covers the corporation limits of Trichy, Madurai, Salem, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Vellore, Thanjavur, Dindigul, Nagercoil, Hosur and Avadi, as well as the Nilgiris, Kodaikanal and Yercaud hills. Municipal limits anywhere in the state take 5 percent.

Depreciation by age of building

Depreciation is not a straight line. It follows a published table, and which table applies depends on the class of construction. Cement work depreciates on the 1 percent table, mud mortar work on the 2 percent table, and some classes on a 1.5 percent table.

Construction classes you can pick

Every rate row is a combination of a construction material, a wood type and a roof type. The calculator only offers the combinations the department publishes a rate for, so an impossible combination cannot be selected.

• Cement Mortar
• Cement/Lime Mortar
• Partly Cement/Lime & Partly Mud Mortar
• Mud Mortar
• Mud Mortar and Partially RR Masonry

Wood types run from country wood through partly wood and partly steel, steel frame, teak and UPVC. Roof types are Madras Terrace, RCC Slab, Mangalore Tiles over Flat Tiles, Plain Mangalore Tiles, Pan Tiles Over Flat Tiles, Pan Tiles without Flat Tiles, AC Sheet, Roof with GI sheet, RCC Framed.

What is included and what is not

Included: every floor you enter including basements, the projecting balcony or portico, the flooring, electrical installations, internal water supply, sanitary installation, the other extra amenities from air conditioning to lifts and car parking, the compound wall and the garage.

Not included: the land. Land is valued separately on the guideline value register, so a full property value is the guideline value of the land plus this building value. The figure is also not a certified valuation: special structures and factories are assessed after an inspection by the authority concerned.

When you would use an older rate period

Choose an earlier period when you need the building value as on a past date rather than today. The usual reasons are a capital gains working, where the cost of a building has to be established as at the date of purchase or as at 1 April 2001, and an insurance or partition valuation tied to a particular year.

Related calculators

• Guideline Value Search for the land value of the same property
• Stamp Duty and Registration Fees Calculator for what registration will cost
• Capital Gains Calculator for tax on a sale
• Apartment Composite Value for flats valued on a composite rate
• FSI Calculator for how much you may build on the plot

Frequently asked questions

What is a PWD building value?

It is the value of a building worked out on the Public Works Department plinth area rates, which the Tamil Nadu Registration Department uses as an indicative construction value. A rate per square metre is fixed for each class of construction, applied to the plinth area of every floor, reduced for the age of the building and increased by a regional percentage. It covers the structure only, not the land.

How do I calculate the value of my building in Tamil Nadu?

Take the PWD plinth area rate for your construction material, wood work and roof type, multiply it by the plinth area of each floor in square metres, deduct depreciation for the age of the building from the published table, add the regional percentage for where the property is, then add flooring, amenities, portico, compound wall and garage. This calculator does all of that on the department's own rate tables for 12 rate periods.

Why is the first floor rate lower than the ground floor rate?

The ground floor carries the foundation and the plinth, so it is rated highest. The first floor is the cheapest per square metre, the second floor is slightly higher, and every floor above the second adds a fixed amount to the second floor rate. Basements are rated separately, usually between a quarter and the full ground floor rate.

How much is added for the region?

Chennai corporation and the belt of 32 km around it add 20 percent. The Coimbatore, Erode and Tiruppur corporations add 15 percent. The Trichy, Madurai, Salem, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi and Vellore corporations add 10 percent, and so do the Nilgiris, Kodaikanal, Yercaud and other hill areas. Municipal limits add 5 percent. Everywhere else adds nothing.

How is depreciation calculated on a building?

From a published age table capped at 60 years, not a straight line. Cement mortar and cement or lime mortar buildings use the 1 percent table, which reaches 9.562 percent at 10 years, 26.03 percent at 30 years and 45.284 percent at 60 years. Mud mortar and partly mud mortar buildings use the 2 percent table, which reaches 70.245 percent at 60 years. A third table at 1.5 percent applies to some classes.

Does the building value include the land?

No. The PWD rate values the structure. Land is valued separately on the guideline value register, so the full property value is the guideline value of the land plus this building value.

Can I use an older rate period for a past valuation?

Yes. The calculator carries all 12 rate periods the department publishes, from 02-Jan-13 to the current 16-Aug-25 To 15-Aug-26 table. Choose the period covering the date you need, which is what a capital gains working or a fair market value as on an earlier date requires.

How many square metres is a square foot for this calculation?

The department treats one square foot as 0.0929 square metres, one foot as 0.3048 metres and one cubic foot as 0.0283 cubic metres. This calculator uses exactly those factors, so a British-unit entry gives the same figure as the official calculator.

Is this value accepted by the Sub Registrar?

It is indicative. The valuation of a property cannot be settled from a form alone: the registering authority may call for more information, and special structures and factories are assessed after an inspection. Use this to plan, and confirm with the authority or a qualified valuer before you rely on it.

What is a portico worth in the calculation?

A balcony or portico projecting outside the face of the building with a hand rail in brick work, wood or grill is valued on its own rate per square metre and is not depreciated. The rate is published per rate period, and for the current 16-Aug-25 To 15-Aug-26 table it is applied to the projecting area you enter.

Rate schedule

The source document is the Common Schedule of Plinth Area Rates for the Valuation of Buildings issued by the Engineer-in-Chief and Chief Engineer (General), Public Works Department, Chepauk, Chennai 5, for the year 2025-2026 with effect from 16 August 2025, and circulated by the Inspector General of Registration in letter 35819/E3/2025 dated 13 August 2025. It is reproduced below, and the tables this calculator uses are those rates.

Download the 2025-2026 plinth area rate schedule (PDF, 1.6 MB). The 2023-2024 schedule is also on file.

Disclaimer

This tool estimates a building value from the inputs you provide, on the rates published for the period you select. It is indicative and cannot be cited as an authority for the final determination of a building value. A valuing officer may call for more information, and special structures and factories are assessed after an inspection. Verify the result with the relevant authority or a qualified valuer before relying on it for a transaction, a loan or a filing. Land value is not included.

Rate tables last checked against the Registration Department's published figures on 15 August 2026.