If you are shopping for a plot in Pakistan, you will hear file and plot used as if they mean the same thing. They do not. A file is a promise of a plot in the future. A possession plot is land you can stand on and build on today. The price gap between them is the market pricing in time, risk, and certainty. Buy the wrong one for your timeline and you will spend years frustrated.
What is a plot file?
A plot file is a booking document that entitles you to a plot once the housing authority allots and develops the phase. You are buying a place in the queue, not visitable land. You do not know your plot number or street, or whether your block develops first or last, until balloting happens.
DHA Lahore Phase 10 and Phase 13 are the classic examples in 2026: buyers accept the wait for a lower entry price. When a file is balloted and receives a plot number, its price can jump sharply, which is why traders love files. But the jump is not guaranteed, and Phase 13 files are the cheapest DHA Lahore entry precisely because that phase is years from resembling a neighbourhood.
Affidavit files versus allocation files
An affidavit file is unregistered: it has not been allotted to anyone's name yet, and it transfers on a simple affidavit-based process. Buyer and seller do not both need to appear at the DHA office, and the buyer need not be an active tax filer. That simplicity is why affidavit files usually trade at a small premium, and why overseas Pakistanis often prefer them.
An allocation file is already registered in someone's name. Transferring it requires both parties present at the DHA office, and the buyer must be an active tax filer, with government taxes applying in full. Allocation files are usually a little cheaper, and suit buyers who can complete the formal process without difficulty.
What is a possession plot?
A possession plot is allocated land with a specific number and boundaries, in a developed phase, where the authority has granted possession. You can visit it, verify its location, and start construction after your building plan is approved.
Possession plots cost more because the uncertainty is gone: someone else already carried the waiting and balloting risk. In DHA Lahore Phase 7, a 5 marla possession plot trades far above a non-possession plot in the same phase.
Possession plots suit a different buyer: if you plan to build within one to two years, a possession plot matches that plan. Files cannot give you a house next year, no matter how good the discount looks.
File versus possession plot, side by side
Files need a low to moderate outlay, often on instalments, while possession plots need a high outlay, usually paid in full. Files offer the highest upside if balloting goes well, with reported jumps of 20 to 40 percent, while possession plots offer steadier appreciation. Files carry moderate to high risk, since balloting dates and location are uncertain, while possession plots carry low risk, since the asset is tangible. In short, files suit patient investors, and possession plots suit end users and builders.
What October 2026 prices tell us
Prices below are indicative dealer market rates from early October 2026, not an official DHA price list, and boards can differ by a lakh or two on the same file on the same day. Confirm your specific file's rate before money moves.
In DHA Lahore Phase 10, affidavit files were quoted around Rs 30 lac for 5 marla, Rs 50 lac for 10 marla, and Rs 99 lac for 1 kanal, with allocation files a few lac cheaper. Phase 9 Prism 5 marla allocation sat near Rs 44 lac, Phase 9 Town 5 marla affidavit near Rs 60 lac, and Phase 13 5 marla allocation near Rs 18 lac.
The pattern matters more than any single number. In Phase 10, small files held their ground from September into October, with 5 marla flat, while 10 marla slipped about 5 percent and 1 kanal about 2 percent. The affordable end looks to have found a floor; the expensive end is still searching for one. Possession plots in developed phases trade at multiples of file prices, because they carry no waiting risk.
Who should buy which?
Buy a file if you have a horizon of five years or more, you can forget about the money, and you have priced in dues and transfer fees on top of the quoted rate. Size it so that a decade long wait would be an annoyance, not a disaster. Buy a possession plot if you want to build within two years. A useful middle path: a smaller possession plot in a developed phase beats a larger file in an undeveloped one, if your goal is a home rather than a trade.
Checks before you pay for either
Confirm the document type in writing: file or plot, affidavit or allocation, possession granted or not. Get a written statement of outstanding dues and surcharges, because a quoted rate is not the total cost. Verify the seller's identity and the file or plot status independently, not through the seller's own contacts. Check the society's approval status and possession timeline, compare like with like, and buy from a verified direct owner where you can.
Frequently asked questions
Is a plot file the same as a plot?
No. A file is an entitlement to a future plot, with no plot number or possession until balloting. A possession plot is allocated, numbered land you can build on now.
What is the difference between an affidavit file and an allocation file?
An affidavit file is unregistered and transfers simply, without both parties at the DHA office and without the buyer needing filer status. An allocation file is registered in a name, requires both parties present and the buyer to be an active filer, with full taxes applying.
Is it better to buy a file or a possession plot in 2026?
It depends on your timeline. Files reward patience of five years or more. Possession plots reward buyers who want to build soon and want certainty. Match the product to your patience and your plan.
The bottom line
A file is cheaper than a possession plot for exactly one reason: uncertainty. You are paid a discount to carry the developer's timeline risk. Sometimes that discount is generous and the wait is short. Sometimes it is thin and the wait is a decade, and you would have been better off buying a smaller plot you can stand on.
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