Short answer: Vastu for a new house works best when it follows the order of construction. Check the plot, review the plan before sanction, fix the bhoomi puja date, start digging in the north-east, raise the south-west first, put the sump in the north-east and the overhead tank in the south-west, and keep the centre open.
Why the order of construction matters
Most Vastu advice is written for a house that already stands. When you build, you get to make each decision at the right stage, and each stage closes options for the next one. A sump dug in the wrong corner is concrete by the following week. This page follows the order in which a house in Bangalore actually goes up, and what I check at each step.
1. Before the drawing: the plot
Start with the land: its shape, slope, roads and corners. My plot buying Vastu checklist goes through all of it. If you already own the plot, the question at this stage is only how the house will sit on it.
A new house is also built for particular people. The same plan can suit one family’s charts better than another’s, which is why I like to know whose bedroom, study and pooja room each corner is meant to hold.
2. The plan and BBMP setbacks
In Bangalore, the open space you must leave on each side depends on the plot size and the road width under the city’s building bylaws (the BBMP bylaws most architects still refer to), and your architect draws the sanctioned plan to those numbers. Outside BBMP limits, BDA or the local authority sets them. I never ask anyone to build into a setback. Where the rules leave some choice, I prefer more open space on the north and east than on the south and west.
I want to see the plan before it goes for sanction, so that a change costs an eraser and not a breaker. At this stage I check:
- The main door’s position along its wall, not only the facing. My main door guide explains the entrance padas.
- Kitchen in the south-east, master bedroom in the south-west, pooja in the north-east.
- Toilets in the north-west or west, and none in the centre or the north-east.
- The staircase in the south, west or south-west, turning clockwise as it rises. More on this in staircase Vastu.
- The centre of the house left open, with no column, toilet or staircase there.
3. Bhoomi puja and the start date
The first dig is traditionally done on a chosen muhurat. The right day depends on your chart and the panchang, so I fix it from your birth details rather than a general list. The good windows for the coming year are on shubh muhurat 2027. Many families avoid starting construction during the Dhanu kharmas, which runs from about 16 December 2026 to 14 January 2027.
4. Digging and the foundation
- Excavation traditionally begins in the north-east corner.
- Building up begins from the south-west, so that corner rises first.
- The sump and borewell go in the north-east, north or east, never in the south-west or the centre. See water tank, sump and borewell Vastu.
- The septic tank goes in the north-west or west, clear of the north-east, south-west and centre.
Your structural engineer decides how deep and wide the foundation is. Vastu only asks where you begin and which side goes up first.
5. Walls, columns and upper floors
- The compound wall is traditionally built before the house, a little higher and thicker on the south and west.
- In many G+2 designs a column lands in the middle of the plan by default. Ask your engineer early whether the grid can shift.
- Upper floors can carry more built area on the south and west. The north-east of the top floor is a good place for an open terrace.
- Balconies and big windows suit the north and east.
6. Roof, tanks and slope
- The overhead tank sits in the south-west, on the highest point of the roof.
- The roof slope and rainwater outlets drain towards the north, east or north-east.
- Solar panels and the water heater go in the south-east of the terrace.
- The staircase headroom on the terrace sits in the south, west or south-west.
A stage checklist to keep on site
| Stage | Vastu point | Who acts on it |
|---|---|---|
| Plot | Shape, slope, roads, corners | You, before buying |
| Plan | Room zones; more open setback on north and east | Architect, with my review |
| Bhoomi puja | Date from your chart and the panchang | Me |
| Digging | Start in the north-east | Contractor |
| Foundation and walls | Rise first from the south-west | Contractor and engineer |
| Sump and borewell | North-east, north or east | Architect and plumber |
| Septic tank | North-west or west | Architect |
| Staircase | South, west or south-west, clockwise | Architect |
| Overhead tank | South-west, highest point | Plumber |
| Roof slope | Towards the north-east | Engineer |
| Move-in | Date and checklist | Me |
7. Before you move in
Small things change on site. When the house is ready, check the main door, the kitchen platform and the pooja unit once more against the approved plan. Then fix the move-in date; my griha pravesh checklist covers that day.
Building to suit the family’s charts as well as the plot
Construction is the one time every room can still go where it should. Plot Vastu sets the rules; the family’s charts tell me who should get which room. Say the owner is entering Saturn mahadasha the year the house is finished. Saturn is linked with the west, so I would keep the west side clear of a sump or toilet and give that owner a study or office there. The drawings can carry that change before sanction, when it costs nothing extra to make.
A ₹1,499 plan review per floor is the easy first step. If you would like the plan checked against each family member’s chart, with the first dig and the move-in dates taken from the same charts, an Astro-Vastu plan review does that work.
Getting your house plan reviewed
I review a new house plan online for ₹1,499 per floor, and a plot for ₹1,499. A site visit during construction is priced on request. We go through it on a video call or at my studio in Begur, and my written notes reach you within 48 hours. For more on how I work locally, see Vastu consultation in Bangalore and plot Vastu. The best time to book a consultation is while the plan is still on paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which direction is best for a new house as per Vastu?
No facing is bad by itself. Houses facing north or east are simpler to plan, because the open side and the entrance fall naturally on the better zones. South and west facing houses work well when the door is placed on the right part of the wall and the heavy rooms sit at the back.
Which months are avoided for starting house construction?
Many families avoid the Dhanu kharmas and Pitru Paksha for a new start, and some also avoid the Chaturmas months. Beyond that, the day itself matters more than the month. I check the panchang against your birth chart and give you a few dates that suit both.
Can Vastu still help if the house is half built?
Yes. Before the slab, room uses, doors and windows can often still move. After the slab, the work shifts to placement: which room becomes the bedroom, where the kitchen platform and stove go, colours and storage. It is never too late, though earlier is cheaper.
Is a plan enough, or should you visit the site?
For most houses the plan is enough, with a compass reading and a few photos. I suggest a site visit when the plot has a strong slope, an odd shape or something unusual next door, or when you want me to check the marking before the foundation is dug.
Can my architect and I work on the plan together?
That works best. I send the architect clear notes on which rooms should move and why, and they fit them into the bylaws and the structure. I never ask for anything that breaks the sanctioned plan or the engineer’s design.