Residential property in Mumbai is out of reach for middle income buyers

As per a 2014 survey by Savills, a reputed real estate firm, Mumbai was ranked as world’s 12th most expensive city for living and working. Besides Mumbai, cities like London, Pairs, Tokyo, New York and Sydney were also ranked at the 12th position. According to the industry reports, there is a wide gap in demand and supply of residential property in Mumbai. However, this has not pushed developers to reduce the rates in order to sell more units.

Whether you are looking at apartments in Dadar or searching for a flat in Bandra, prices are skyrocketing despite market changes. For instance, in Navi Mumbai, rates are quite high for residential units due to the proposed new airport. Even though the airport is nowhere in the picture, rates have been increasing for the buyers. So, what is causing the prices to increase despite people not buying properties? Some believe that the realty market in India works according to the politicians and real estate companies. Politicians have an incentive in holding the prices at a high level.

As pointed out by the Residex Index of National Housing Bank, rates in the city increased by 18.7% between 2011 and 2014. This increase happened despite the fact that unsold property inventory has grown significantly.

Expensive Areas for Residential Property Investment

Altamount Road is one of the most expensive residential streets in Mumbai. Mukesh Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Industries and Kumar Mangalam Birla, Chairman of Aditya Birla Group have their house on this road which is located in the southern part of the city. This street is also home to various other business families such as Tatas and Mafatlals. Many Bollywood actors also have their flats and bungalows on Altamount Road which is parallel to the Peddar Road.

Reportedly, buyers will have to shell out approximately 60,000 INR per square feet when buying a house on this street. Gentry make this address extra special. Compared to other parts of Mumbai, this location has a lot of greenery. Antilla, the 27-storey, luxury home of Mukesh Ambani is the star attraction of this road.

Can Buyers Expect Price Correction in Future?

According to a knight Frank report, a global real estate brokerage firm, there is a mismatch in demand and supply of MMR’s (Mumbai’s Metropolitan Region) residential property market. This mismatch resulted in a pile up of around 2.15 lacs unsold residential units last year. According to experts, it will take approximately three or more years to sell off these units because rates are too high for buyers to enter the property market.

The realty market in the city doesn’t work on demand and supply. Compared to 2013, demand for properties within the MMR went down by 25% in the first quarter of 2014. City-based developers are not in the favor of reducing prices because this market has a huge holding capacity. There are slim chances of any price correction in near future. Unsold units are mainly located in extended suburbs such as Navi Mumbai, Dombivli, Vasai, Virar and Kalyan.