A home is the biggest purchase most people ever make — and once you've signed, the layout is fixed. A few minutes of Vastu checks on your site visit can save years of "I wish we'd noticed." Here are the six that matter most, in priority order.
1. Which way does the main door face?
The entrance sets the tone for the whole home. East and North-facing entrances are traditionally the most favourable — they catch morning light and are considered welcoming and prosperous. North-East is excellent too. Stand at the door with your phone compass and note the facing. A less-ideal facing isn't a deal-breaker, but it's the single most important thing to know before you commit.
2. Where is the kitchen?
Check whether the kitchen sits in the South-East (ideal) or at least the North-West (acceptable). The one to be wary of is a kitchen in the North-East, which is hard to remedy fully. Kitchens rarely move, so this is worth verifying before purchase, not after.
3. Where is the master bedroom?
The South-West is the anchor of the home and the classic spot for the master bedroom — it's associated with stability and rest. A master bedroom in the North-East or South-East is considered less restful. Again, bedrooms don't move, so note it now.
4. Is the North-East open and light?
Look at what occupies the North-East zone. Ideally it's open, light, or a balcony — not a toilet, a heavy storage room, or a staircase. A toilet in the North-East is one of the harder issues to fix, so flag it early.
5. The toilet and staircase positions
Toilets are best in the North-West or South-East and are best avoided in the North-East and centre (Brahmasthan) of the home. Staircases suit the south and west. These are structural, so they belong on the pre-purchase list rather than the fix-later list.
6. The shape and the centre
Regular, square or rectangular floor plates are considered better than irregular, L-shaped, or heavily cut layouts. The centre of the home — the Brahmasthan — should ideally be open and free of heavy structures or a toilet. A quick look at the floor plan tells you most of this.
Fix-later vs. deal-breaker: paint, placement, lighting, and clutter are all fixable after you move in. Entrance facing, kitchen/bathroom positions, and overall shape are effectively permanent — so weight your decision toward those.
Run the numbers before you decide
Rajesh, one of the buyers we built Vastu Sense for, does exactly this: before committing to a flat, he uploads the builder's floor plan and gets a Vastu score for the specific unit in under 10 minutes — turning a vague gut-feel into a clear, comparable number across the flats he's considering.