Bengaluru residents are no more interested to invest in property. Although the property sales in the city are on the rise after a prolonged dull, it is most unlikely that the city will witness a dramatic growth rate anytime sooner owing to the shift in the buying preference in the minds of the young buyers.
Bengaluru once saw a real estate boom in the middle of the previous decade. Back then, Bengaluru property was more affordable, loans were easy to obtain, income was good and steady, traffic wasn’t so bad, and the income-tax rebate on housing loan interest was a huge attraction.
However, the global recession soon followed making jobs uncertain and unstable. Cut to the present, salary increments have slowed down, traffic has increased at the maddening level and banks have tightened loan conditions. All this plus the fact that apartments are no more affordable and affordable properties are located on the fringe of the city is forcing the young professionals to opt for rental property rather than buying one.
Developers are trying their best to gauge the young buyers. They are trying to woo youngsters with smaller, more affordable units. Several independent property consultancies say there is good demand for properties ranging between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 60 lakh.
However, these affordable houses tend to be on the fringes of Whitefield, Kanakapura Road, KR Puram and Jalahalli making it difficult for the buyer to actually stay at the property and commute for work daily.
“Young people are waiting for more than before as the properties within their budget are in the fringes of the city from where commuting is a problem,” ET Realty quoted Ram Walase, MD of housing firm VBHC Value Homes, as saying. “They prefer to stay on rent closer to their workplace.”
Since the job prospects are also dwindling after the burst of IT bubble, there is no job stability. Even after staying in the city for five years, the young population is not sure whether they will live in the city forever or not. Hence, the lesser number of people now want to lock their investment in a property.
Most of the offices in Bengaluru located around Sarjapur Road, HSR Layout and Electronic City, people prefer to stay nearby in the apartments in these areas. The localities have many well-constructed apartments at rents between Rs 16,000 and Rs 20,000 a month along with modern-day amenities and good restaurants and malls.