Last updated: March 2026
Our editorial principles
1
Accuracy over completeness
We would rather publish a narrow, accurate estimate than a wide, vague one. All construction cost rates are sourced from government schedules and verified market data. We state our sources on every article page. If we cannot verify a number, we do not publish it.
2
Editorial independence from commercial relationships
This site provides free tools and guides. We do not earn revenue from any commercial relationships that could influence our content, estimates, or calculator outputs. No brand pays us to be mentioned in our guides.
3
No contractor or service provider referrals
We do not refer users to specific contractors, interior designers, architects, or construction companies. We do not accept payment from service providers to be featured or recommended. Our tools are designed to help users negotiate confidently with any contractor, not to direct them to a specific one.
4
Transparent methodology
Every cost guide and article includes a Data Sources & Methodology section that explains exactly what sources were used, what assumptions were made, and what the variance range is. We do not hide our methodology behind "proprietary algorithms."
5
Regular updates
Construction costs in India change with material prices, labour rates, and government policy. We review and update all rate data quarterly (January, April, July, October) or immediately when a significant policy change occurs (GST revision, new labour codes, union budget). The last update date is displayed on every article and calculator.
6
Affiliate & revenue disclosure
Ghar Ka Budget currently earns no revenue. If we ever add affiliate links (for example, to a home loan partner or a paint brand), they will appear only inside relevant articles, will be clearly labelled as affiliate links, and will never appear inside calculator output or recommendation flows. We will never accept payment to feature, rank, or recommend a contractor, architect, or interior designer. Calculator outputs will always be based purely on market data, never adjusted by commercial relationships.
How we calculate rates
Our construction cost estimates follow this methodology:
- Base rate: We start with the CPWD Schedule of Rates (SOR) for the relevant work category. This is the Indian government’s official cost benchmark.
- City adjustment: We apply a city-tier multiplier derived from NBO (National Buildings Organisation) city-wise data and JLL India construction cost reports. Metro cities (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore) carry a 15–25% premium over the national baseline.
- Quality grade: We define Economy, Standard, and Premium grade specifications explicitly for each category (materials used, labour quality, finish standard) and price each separately.
- Market validation: Calculated rates are cross-checked against contractor quotes collected from homeowners and published construction cost data from NoBroker, Housing.com, and industry bodies. Estimates represent the 50th percentile (median) of verified market quotes — not the cheapest or the most expensive.
- Variance disclosure: All estimates carry a stated ±15% variance, reflecting real-world variation due to soil conditions, site access, design complexity, and contractor type. We do not present our estimates as precise quotes.
Update schedule
| Content type | Update frequency | Trigger for immediate update |
|---|---|---|
| Construction cost calculators | Quarterly | Material price change >5%, GST revision, new CPWD SOR |
| City cost guides | Quarterly | Significant local market movement, new city-level data |
| Policy articles (GST, Labour Code, Budget) | On policy change | Any government notification affecting construction costs |
| Material guides (modular kitchen, false ceiling, tiles) | Every 6 months | Major price shift in that category |
| Home loan EMI calculator | Monthly | RBI repo rate change affecting home loan rates |
Corrections policy
We take factual accuracy seriously. If you find an error in our data — an outdated rate, incorrect government policy information, or a calculation error — please report it through our contact form, selecting "Data correction / outdated rate" as the subject.
We commit to:
- Acknowledging all factual correction requests within 2 business days
- Investigating and updating verified errors within 7 days
- Adding a correction note to the relevant article if the error was material and may have been relied upon by readers
We do not accept correction requests from contractors, brands, or service providers with a commercial interest in the rates we publish. Rate disputes from commercial parties are disregarded.
AI and content generation
Some of our content and article structures are drafted with AI assistance. All AI-assisted content is reviewed, edited, and fact-checked by our editorial team before publication. All cost data, rates, and figures are verified against primary sources regardless of how the surrounding text was produced. We do not publish AI-generated content without human review.
Affiliate and advertising disclosure
- Display advertisements are clearly distinguishable from editorial content
- No editorial content is written, edited, or suppressed in exchange for advertising revenue
Full commercial relationship details are in our Disclaimer. For questions about our editorial policy, contact us at the contact page.