What is club membership charges?

The clubhouse is sold in the brochure as a feature and then billed as an extra. The cost sheet carries a line such as 'Club membership: ₹2,50,000', due at possession or spread across the payment plan. Some developers call it 'club development charges', which is closer to the truth: the money pays for building and fitting out the club.

Two things trouble buyers later. The first is timing. Clubhouses are often finished a year or two after the towers, so residents pay the fee and then wait. Put a clause in the agreement tying the club payment to the clubhouse being complete and operational, ideally with its own completion certificate. The second is ownership. If the clubhouse is part of the sanctioned project, it is a community facility and counts among the common areas defined in Section 2(n) of the RERA Act, which have to be handed to the association of allottees. A builder that keeps the club as a separate business and sells memberships to outsiders is on weak ground when the plan shows it as a residents' amenity.

The one-time fee isn't the end of it. Many clubs charge monthly or annual subscriptions, separate fees for courts and the pool, and extra for guests. Ask for the proposed fee schedule before booking, especially in a large township where the club may be a 40,000 sq ft building whose staff and power costs eventually land in the maintenance bill.

On tax, builders usually add GST at the flat's rate when the club charge is part of the agreement for an under-construction flat, though some bill it separately at 18%. If a builder offers to waive the charge as a discount, get the waiver on the cost sheet and in the agreement. Spoken waivers tend to be forgotten by possession day.