A Bengaluru buyer negotiated hard and got the flat for seventy lakh, well below what the seller first quoted, and mentally banked the saving. At the sub registrar's office the celebration cooled quickly. The property's guidance value sat higher than the price agreed, and the stamp duty was calculated on that higher figure, not the number the buyer had fought for. The lesson was not that the negotiation was wasted, but that guidance value, a number set by the government rather than by the deal, quietly governs part of what a buyer pays. Understanding it before you budget saves an unpleasant surprise at the counter.

The short answer. Guidance value is the minimum price per square foot the Karnataka government sets for a property, published on the Kaveri portal, and it works as the floor for stamp duty. You pay stamp duty and registration charges on whichever is higher, your actual sale price or the guidance value, and you cannot register below the guidance value even if the seller agrees to less. The trade off for a buyer is planning: check the current guidance value on Kaveri before you fix your budget, because a revision between agreement and registration can push your duty up.

What is guidance value and how does it differ from market value?

Guidance value is a government set floor, not the price you negotiate. As explained in a guide to guidance value in Bangalore by OneCity Property, it is the minimum price per square foot that the Karnataka government assigns to land or property in a specific area, and it is also called the circle rate or guideline value. Market value, by contrast, is simply the price that a buyer and seller actually agree upon, which can sit well above the guidance value.

The gap between the two can be wide. The same guide notes that in an established area, guidance values might be around twelve thousand rupees a square foot while actual market transactions happen at eighteen to twenty two thousand rupees a square foot. For a buyer, the key point is that these are two different numbers doing two different jobs. Market value is what you pay the seller, while guidance value is the official baseline the government uses to work out the duty you owe on the transaction.

Why does guidance value decide your stamp duty?

Guidance value matters because it sets the minimum on which duty is charged. The OneCity Property guide states the rule plainly: stamp duty and registration charges are calculated on whichever is higher, your actual sale price or the guidance value. That single rule has a consequence many buyers miss, which is that you cannot register below the guidance value even if the seller agrees to a lower price.

The guide gives a clean example. If you negotiate a property down to seventy lakh but its guidance value is eighty lakh, you still pay stamp duty on the eighty lakh figure. In practice this means a hard negotiated discount does not always translate into a proportionate saving on duty, because the duty floor does not move with your price. For a buyer, the takeaway is to budget stamp duty against the guidance value, not against the price you hope to negotiate, so the number at the counter matches the number in your plan.

How do I check guidance value on Kaveri?

Checking guidance value is a quick online task, and there is only one source worth trusting. The authoritative portal is Kaveri, at kaveri.karnataka.gov.in, and the OneCity Property guide warns that third party property websites typically display guidance values that are months to years out of date. Relying on an old figure from a listing site is exactly how a buyer ends up mis budgeting the duty.

On the portal you narrow down to your property step by step. You select the district, such as Bengaluru Urban for a city property, choose the taluk, which is BBMP for Bangalore city, enter the hobli and the village or ward name, and select the property type such as residential apartment or plot. Fetching then returns the current guidance value per square foot, which you can multiply by the relevant area to estimate the floor for your duty. The table below sets out how guidance value and market value compare, so you keep the two clearly separate in your planning.

What changed in 2026?

Guidance values are revised periodically, and 2026 brought an increase that buyers should factor in. The OneCity Property guide records that a February 2026 revision increased Bengaluru urban guidance values by a reported six to fifteen percent, the most recent adjustment affecting current transactions. An upward revision in guidance value lifts the floor for stamp duty, which means the duty on a given property can rise even if its market price has not moved.

For a buyer, the practical effect is that a duty estimate made a few months ago may already be low. Because revisions can be announced and take effect on their own timetable, a figure that was accurate at the time of your agreement can be outdated by the time you register. That is why the safe habit is to re check the guidance value on Kaveri close to registration, rather than trusting a number you noted when you first started looking.

Why check at registration time, not agreement time?

Timing is the detail that catches buyers out. Stamp duty is calculated on the guidance value that applies when you register, not the value that applied when you signed the sale agreement. The OneCity Property guide is explicit that revisions can occur between your agreement and registration dates, and that the portal reflects the current rates at the point of registration. A revision in that window can quietly raise the duty you owe above what you had set aside.

This is easy to protect against once you know about it. Treat your first guidance value check as an estimate, and do a fresh check on Kaveri shortly before you register so your stamp duty budget reflects the value that will actually be applied. Building a small cushion into your costs for a possible revision is sensible, especially in a period when the government has signalled increases. A buyer who verifies late as well as early is the one whose budget survives contact with the counter.

How should a buyer use guidance value in budgeting?

Guidance value is most useful when you fold it into your numbers early and revisit it late. The checklist below turns the rule into a sequence you can follow, so the duty never becomes a surprise.

1. Identify the property's district, taluk, hobli and village or ward as they appear in its documents.
2. Open the official Kaveri portal at kaveri.karnataka.gov.in and fetch the current guidance value per square foot.
3. Multiply the guidance value by the relevant area to estimate the property's guidance value figure.
4. Compare that figure with your negotiated price, and use the higher of the two as your duty base.
5. Apply the current stamp duty and registration charges to that higher figure to estimate your outgo.
6. Add a cushion for a possible guidance value revision before you register, given recent increases.
7. Re check the guidance value on Kaveri shortly before registration and finalise your budget on that number.

How does this fit the rest of a Bengaluru buyer's costs?

Guidance value is one half of the stamp duty story, and the rate you apply to it is the other. Our detailed walkthrough of Karnataka stamp duty and registration charges covers the rates that sit on top of the guidance value floor, and because area drives the value calculation, it pairs naturally with understanding carpet, built up and super built up area. Together they let you build a duty estimate that holds up rather than one that unravels at the sub registrar's office.

The habit that ties it all together is verification on the official portal. Guidance value is public, current on Kaveri, and easy to check, yet it is one of the numbers buyers most often carry as an out of date guess. Checking it directly, early for planning and again before registration, turns a common surprise into a line you have already accounted for.

Frequently asked questions

What is guidance value in Karnataka?

Guidance value, also called the circle rate or guideline value, is the minimum price per square foot that the Karnataka government assigns to property in a given area. It is different from market value, which is the price a buyer and seller actually agree on. Guidance value acts as the official floor used to calculate stamp duty and registration charges.

Can I register a property below the guidance value?

No, you cannot register a property below its guidance value even if the seller agrees to a lower price. Stamp duty and registration charges are calculated on whichever is higher, the actual sale price or the guidance value, so if you agree a price below the guidance value you still pay duty on the higher guidance value figure.

How do I check the guidance value of a property?

The authoritative source is the Kaveri portal at kaveri.karnataka.gov.in. Select the district, such as Bengaluru Urban, choose the taluk, enter the hobli and the village or ward, pick the property type and fetch the value per square foot. Third party property websites often show values that are months or years out of date.

Did guidance value change in Bengaluru in 2026?

Yes, a revision in February 2026 increased guidance values within Bengaluru urban limits by a reported six to fifteen percent, affecting transactions registered from then on. Because such revisions can happen between your agreement and your registration, always confirm the current guidance value on Kaveri before finalising your stamp duty budget rather than at the negotiation stage.

Last updated 2026-07-22. PropNewz Team.