Most buyers ask about carpet area and amenities. Very few ask the questions that actually predict whether they'll get possession on time, or at all. Here are the five that matter.
1. What is the project's RERA-registered completion date — not the sales brochure date?
Builders' marketing timelines and their RERA-filed timelines can differ by a year or more. The RERA date is the legally binding one. Ask for the RERA registration number and check it yourself on the Telangana RERA portal before booking.
2. How many total units does this project have, and how many phases?
A 3,000+ unit project (and Hyderabad has several — The Prestige City at 4,163 units, INCOR Live By Lake at 3,823, Aparna Zenon at 3,664) takes years longer to fully deliver than a 500-unit project, even from the same builder. Your specific tower's timeline can lag the project's headline completion date by a long way. Ask which phase and tower you're actually buying into.
3. What has this builder actually delivered on time in the last 3–5 years?
Builder reputation is not the same as builder punctuality. A well-known name can still run 2–3 years behind on a specific project. Ask for a list of the builder's last five completed projects with their originally promised vs. actual handover dates — a builder who won't share this is telling you something.
4. Is this locality absorbing supply, or stacking it?
Some corridors (Kokapet, Tellapur, Miyapur) have many large projects competing for the same buyer pool at once. That's not automatically bad, but it means your resale or rental timeline may be slower than in a locality with less concurrent supply. Ask how many other active projects are within 2 km, and how big they are.
5. What exactly happens if possession is delayed — in writing?
RERA entitles you to compensation for delayed possession, but the mechanism and rate vary by state and by what's in your agreement. Read the delay-compensation clause before signing, not after you're already waiting.
Why this list exists
Every one of these questions has a factual answer — they're not judgment calls. Most buyers don't ask them because the information isn't easy to find on a listing page, and no one showing you the flat has an incentive to volunteer it.