Check If a Karachi Building Is on SBCA's Dangerous List: 601 Buildings Declared

Short answer: SBCA's summary says 601 buildings in Karachi are declared dangerous, and 122 of them are heritage buildings. To check yours, open the dangerous buildings list on the SBCA website and look for the building by area and name. If it is listed, do not rely on it for safety and call SBCA.

Every monsoon, Karachi hears of a roof or wall that falls on people who had no idea the building was marked. The list exists so that tenants, buyers and neighbours can look before they sign or sleep.

We opened the SBCA website on 13 October 2026 and read the summary page of the list posted there. The Sindh Building Control Authority, or SBCA, is the body that approves and regulates buildings in Karachi. The summary names a committee called TCDB as the body that made the declarations.

SBCA's summary counts 601 dangerous buildings in Karachi

The summary table is headed "Summary of buildings declared dangerous by TCDB SBCA, Karachi". It gives a grand total of 601 buildings and a remark of 122 heritage buildings. The date printed on the summary is 18 August 2026. The file on the website is labelled with 30 September 2026.

The counts below follow the order of the district rows in the summary. The PDF layout is jumbled, so we matched the numbers by order and checked that they add up to 601. Check them against the file itself before you quote them.

South Karachi holds nearly three quarters of the total. That is where much of the old city and many heritage buildings stand.

Check a building in four steps

You need only the building name, the street and the area. The list is a PDF on the SBCA site, so a search inside the file is the quickest way. Do this before you pay rent, a deposit or an advance on a flat.

1. Open the SBCA website and find the dangerous buildings list in the announcements section.
2. Open the PDF and use the search tool on your phone or computer.
3. Search for the street, the area and the name painted on the building. Try each one.
4. If you find a match, take a photo of the page and call SBCA before you decide anything.

A building that is not on the list is not proven safe. The list covers only what the committee has declared. It is not an engineer's report.

Know what the list does not tell you

The summary page we read gives counts by district. It does not give a reason for each declaration or a deadline for repair. We could not confirm from the website what happens to residents of a listed building, because that is not stated on the page we read.

Heritage buildings are counted in the total of 601, with 122 marked in the remarks column. A heritage building may be listed because it is old and weak, not because someone is breaking a rule.

If you are buying a flat, a dangerous-list check is only one step. Also read our guide to checking that a Karachi building is SBCA approved.

Use the list before you rent, buy or repair

Tenants should check the list before paying an advance. Buyers should check it before booking a flat in an old block. Owners should check it before spending money on repairs, because a declared building may need SBCA action first.

Ask the landlord or seller for the building's approved plan as well. A seller who cannot show one is a warning on its own. Keep a photo of the list page and the date you checked it, in case a dispute starts later.

Share the result with neighbours. A listed building often has many families inside, and one reader who checks can help dozens of people.

Call SBCA if you see a building at risk

SBCA lists three phone numbers and an email on its website. Its Smart Complaint Redressal Mechanism has a helpline too. Use them if you see cracks, leaning walls or falling plaster in a building that is not on the list.

• SBCA phone: 021-99230329, 021-99231890 and 021-99231834
• Complaint helpline: 111-007-222
• Email: sbca@sbca.gos.pk
• Address: Civic Centre, Annexe, University Road, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Karachi

If you are building or repairing yourself, see how to get a house plan approved by SBCA.

Common questions

How many dangerous buildings does SBCA list in Karachi?

The SBCA summary gives 601 buildings, of which 122 are heritage buildings. South Karachi has the most, with 459 by our reading of the table.

Where is the list published?

On the SBCA website, in its announcements and documents section, as a PDF labelled with 30 September 2026.

Is my building safe if it is not on the list?

Not necessarily. The list covers only declared buildings. Ask a licensed engineer to inspect a building you doubt.

Does SBCA say what happens to residents of a listed building?

Not on the summary page we read. Call SBCA on the numbers above and ask for the written order for that building.

Which date is correct, 18 August or 30 September?

The summary page prints 18 August 2026, and the file name carries 30 September 2026. We could not tell which is the update date, so ask SBCA.

How we verified this

What we checked, where we read it, and what we could not confirm.

Last checked on 13 October 2026, Pakistan time. We read the SBCA website and the summary page of its dangerous buildings list. We read only the one summary page. We did not verify the building by building entries, the reasons or the rules for residents.