Mumbai, Feb 03: Aspiring homeowners across India’s major urban centres, including Mumbai, are finding it increasingly difficult to buy homes within a Rs 75 lakh budget, as regulatory costs and rising development expenses continue to push new housing supply into higher price brackets, according to the Magicbricks PropIndex OND 2025 report.
Demand–supply mismatch
The report highlights a growing mismatch between demand and supply in the value and affordable housing segments. Homes priced below Rs 75 lakh accounted for about 43% of total buyer demand during the quarter, yet formed only 17% of active residential listings nationwide. This gap, the report notes, is particularly evident in large cities where compliance costs, land prices and construction expenses remain high.
New launches skewed towards premium segment
On the supply side, most new residential launches during the quarter were concentrated in the Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 3 crore range. Magicbricks attributes this skew towards premium housing to escalating land values, higher construction costs and regulatory expenses in urban markets, which make it difficult for developers to deliver lower-priced homes while maintaining financial viability.
End-user demand remains resilient
Despite these constraints, demand for sub-Rs 75 lakh homes continues to be largely end-user driven, supported by steady household formation, improving infrastructure in peripheral and emerging micro-markets, and a strong preference for homeownership among first-time buyers. Even as overall housing demand saw seasonal moderation, value-focused segments showed greater resilience across major Indian cities.
Buyers struggle on the ground
The affordability challenge is being felt by buyers like Ashwini Karande and her husband Kiran, who have been searching for a one-bedroom apartment in Goregaon, Mumbai, for the past four months within this budget.
“We are currently living in a rented apartment and want to shift to an ownership home, but prices in new projects are far too high,” Ashwini said. “Established developers are even more expensive than local ones. Since both of us are yoga trainers and our son’s school is nearby, relocating is difficult. We are now left with little choice but to consider resale homes.”
A similar situation confronts Sandesh Panchal, an Andheri resident, who said budget constraints are delaying plans to move into a separate home. “I got married two years ago and live in a joint family in a small house. My wife and I want to move nearby, but our budget doesn’t match what new projects in this area are offering,” he said. Even a budget of Rs 1.5 crore is insufficient since stamp duty and other costs increase the overall home-buying expense, he stressed.
Need for policy and execution support
According to Magicbricks, correcting this demand–supply imbalance will be crucial to sustaining housing transactions in 2026. The report suggests that cost-efficient project execution, supportive policy measures around affordable housing thresholds, and faster approvals could help align new supply with buyer expectations, particularly in high-cost urban markets.
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The findings underline a broader shift in India’s housing market towards end-user-led growth, where affordability and value—especially for first-time buyers—are emerging as defining factors shaping future residential development across cities.
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