More Indian women than ever before are financially empowered to buy their own homes. Lower stamp tax for properties registered in a woman’s name and special housing loan programmes have also made it easier for women to invest in real estate.

Santhosh Kumar, Vice Chairman – ANAROCK Group, says “Women today are no longer mere influencers in the homebuying process, but independent decision makers and are buying homes for either self-use or investment. According to the latest ANAROCK Consumer Sentiment Survey, a whopping 78% women homebuyers prefer to buy homes for end-use, and 22% will do so for investment. If we look back in H2 2021, this end-use vs investment ratio stood at 74:26.

The survey also finds that 61% women respondents see housing as the preferred investment asset class. Approx. 16% prefer the stock market, and 14% pick gold. Of the total of 5,510 survey participants, women comprised a 50% share.

Notably, 3BHKs are the most favoured configurations for a significant 57% women respondents, followed by 29% women home seekers voting for 2BHKs. Around 9% are looking for 4BHK homes or larger.

In terms of budget ranges, nearly 36% of respondent women home seekers prefer to buy mid-segment housing (priced INR 45 – 90 lakhs), followed by 28% preferring premium homes priced between INR 90 lakhs and INR 1.5 Cr. A significant 23% prefer to buy luxury homes priced >INR 1.5 Cr, and just 20% will settle for affordable homes priced

“While the survey finds that 24% of all polled home seekers now prefer newly launched properties, a deep dive reveals that just 15% women respondents prefer homes in newly launched projects,” says Kumar. “A massive 71% will zero in on properties that are either ready or to be completed within the next six months. This clearly indicates that the majority are buying for immediate self-use.

Women empowerment has become a core topic in India in recent years, with various measures being taken by the government for their upliftment. The most recent was the passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill, 2023 in the Parliament. While the government has been prioritizing women’s homeownership via its flagship PMAY scheme, large numbers of independent urban women have also come to the market to buy homes.

A greater number of Indian women are buying their own homes because they want to feel safe and independent, and there are more single women living alone and in nuclear families.

Also Read: Hope you are not dealing with these Real Estate Agents

The post 78% Women Homebuyers Are End-users appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

Monday was International Women’s Day and also the day when the state government announced its budget.

The state government came up with another stamp duty concession in its budget.

This concession is only for women.

The Finance Minister in his budget speech said, “On the eve of International Women’s Day, I propose concession in Stamp Duty of 1 Percent over the prevailing rate exclusively to Women, provided the transfer of house property or registration of sale deed is in the name of woman or women only.”

Due to the above tax concession, there will be revenue shortfall of around Rs 1000 Crores.

The developer community considers this as a good move that will boost sales.

Rohit Poddar, Managing Director, Poddar Housing and Development Ltd said, “For the real estate sector concession of 1% for property registered in woman’s name under Rajmata Graha Swamini Yojana is a welcome move.”

“IT will help boost demand from this segment of homebuyers due to more and more females entering the workforce, becoming key decision makers.”

Rohit Poddar, Managing Director, Poddar Housing and Development Ltd

Not only Maharashtra but our neighbour Karnataka also announced a stamp duty cut on Monday.

Anuj Puri, Chairman-Anarock Property Consultants said, “Emulating its immediate neighbour , Maharashtra which saw a major boost in sales due to limited period stamp duty cuts last year, Karnataka decided to reduce the stamp duty charges to 3% for homes valued between Rs 35-45 lakh.”

This move is expected to benefit 24% of the total unsold stock of Bengaluru which stands at 59,350 units.

24% of the unsold stock is priced within the price bracket of Rs 45 lakh while 64% units is within RS 45 to Rs 1.5 crore.

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani, National President NAREDCO, on the stamp duty cut said, “It has been seen that states like Maharashtra which reduced stamp duty not only saw a surge in total sales, but also a corresponding hike in total stamp duty collected as revenue accruing to the state.”

“If 2020 saw COVID 19 influenced slowdown, the decision by the Maharashtra Government to reduce stamp duty effectively helped counter balance the disruption caused by the pandemic.”

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani, National President NAREDCO

The government of Maharashtra in the year 2020 announced a stamp duty cut of 3% between September till December 2020.

The stamp duty has been reduced by 2% for a period between January to March 2021.

Also Read: Stamp Duty Hike Fails To Slow Realty Sales

The post Stamp Duty Concession, Woman To Pay 1% Less appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

In a homebuying process a woman plays an important role. How a man looks at house, is very different from how a woman looks at homebuying process.

A recent report by Anarock Property Consultants has thrown light on what a woman is looking for when she steps out for buying a home.

From being part of the home buying process to driving it, today’s financially strong Indian women emerged as a powerful demographic in ANAROCK’s latest consumer sentiment survey published in February 2021.

Prashant Thakur, Director & Head – Research, ANAROCK Property Consultants says, “The survey reveals that many Indian women now consider housing not just the bedrock of financial security but also essential to diversify their investment portfolios. 62% of women respondents confirmed housing as their preferred asset class – even more than men. 54% of men who participated in the survey preferred real estate above the other options – stock market, fixed deposits and gold.”

The survey also revealed that most polled women homebuyers prefer ready-to-move-in homes, reflecting a strong aversion to the perceived investment risk of under-construction properties. 

Nearly 71% of women respondents want to buy ready homes, followed by 11% each for homes that will be available for possession in the next 6 months, and newly-launched projects. If we consider the overall survey results for both genders, ready homes had 29% votes in their favour.

Notable women-centric findings:

• While most women preferred properties priced within INR 90 lakh (at least 66% women homebuyers), 5% voted for ultra-luxury real estate priced >INR 2.5 Crore.
• In the overall survey, the 2BHK was the most-preferred configuration – but further analysis reveals that most women preferred higher BHK-configurations. At least 46% of women favoured 3BHKs, and only 30% were scouting for 2BHKs. Interestingly, 10% were also looking for 4BHKs.
• The psychological assurance of physical assets influences 31% of women homebuyers; 28% responded favourably towards the availability of cheaper home loans, and 22% will buy homes because of ongoing offers and deals by developers.

Indian women enjoy multiple benefits when buying homes:

• Various government policies support and promote women homeownership in India. For instance, to avail homes under the government’s flagship scheme Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna (PMAY) introduced in 2015, homes have to be mandatorily registered either in a woman’s name or with women as co-owners. This was done to empower women of the lower-income segments.
• Lower stamp duty is another benefit that women enjoy while buying a property. Stamp duty charges are lower if property registration is executed in the name of a woman, although these charges vary from state to state. The exemption for women varies between 1-2% across different states. In some cases, it might even vary within a particular state, based on the classification of regions as ‘urban’ and ‘rural’. For instance, Delhi, UP, Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana offer relaxation in stamp duty for women buyers. Punjab has a 4% difference between male and female homebuyers.
• Many banks such as SBI, ICICI, HDFC, etc. offer discounted home loan rates to women as compared to men. This again varies from bank to bank, but the difference can be as much as 0.25%. The prevailing low property rates coupled with home loans rates at a 15-year low are certainly an advantage.
• To avail of certain tax benefits, a woman can also become the joint owner of a property with her husband and, if she has a separate source of income, both can claim tax deductions individually.

Dr Niranjan Hiranandani –MD- Hiranandani Group says, “Next Gen Millennial women are steadily taking on a more dynamic role as homebuyers, in addition to their role as homemaker. Until now, they always acted as a vital influencer in home buying decisions, but more financial independence and urban migration have enabled them as new entrants into the home buying segment.”

Also Read: Women (77%) Buying Homes for End-use, Against Men (62%) – Survey

The post What Does A Woman Homebuyer Want? appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

Women are more serious home buyers than men. A recently released survey shows that,

Indian residential real estate is increasingly driven by end-users – and women homebuyers are emerging as major contributors towards this trend. The latest ANAROCK-LIC Housing Finance Consumer Sentiment Surveyindicates that as many as 77% women home seekers are looking to buy property for end-use; merely 23% will buy homes as investments. In contrast, approx. 62% men are looking to buy property for end-use and 38% for investment purpose.

Notably, for 87% women end-user homebuyers, these will be their first homes.

Anuj Puri, Chairman – ANAROCK Property Consultants says, “The growing dominance of women homebuyers has been an ongoing phenomenon over the last few years, especially in urban centres. Now, their preferences are also distinctly shaping newer trends. While ‘proximity to workplace’ was the top priority for both male and female survey participants looking to buy homes, 35% of the polled women consider suitable amenities within a housing project the second-most important factor. For men, the second-most important factor was the largest size they can afford.”

Trends also reveal that more and more young women buyers are now coming forward to buy a property. 47% women property seekers polled in the survey were in the age bracket of 25-35 years, followed by 41% in the 35-45 years age. Interestingly, 5% women property seekers were also aged within 25 years. In contrast, 47% male home seekers were in the 35-45 years age bracket, while 34% were aged between 25-35 years.

Women homebuyers’ preferences – the latest trends

• MMR the most-preferred city: On being asked about the city they would like to invest in other than where they are currently residing, at least 26% of the polled women voted for MMRas the top choice among all cities, followed by 22% preferring NCR and 20% stating Bangalore as their primary choice. Pune was next with 12% votes in its favour, followed by Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad with 8%, 5% and 3% votes respectively. 5% women prefer to invest in tier 2 & 3 cities. 
• Investment diversification and women-specific incentives are major motivators: Women across urban India are buying property either to diversify their investment portfolios and/or to avail multiple benefits. These range from tax benefits to reduced home loan interest rates by some banks, and also reduced stamp duty and registration charges across different states.
• Mid-segment housing is in highest demand: At least 40% women home seekers prefer a property in the mid-segment price bracket with ticket sizes between INR 45-90 lakh, followed by 35% preferring the affordable segment priced within INR 45 lakh. Only 3% will consider buying luxury properties priced over INR 1.5 Crore – as against 12% men who prefer to buy within this category.
• Spacious 2 BHKs the top choice: A whopping 50% women prefer to buy large 2 BHKs sized between 800-1,200 sq. ft. area, against just 13% voting for small 2BHKs within 600 sq. ft. With MMR the top city, the preference for larger sizes is remarkable and stands testimony to increased purchasing power.
• More brand conscious than men: 60% women prefer buying homes from branded developers; male participants’ preference is equally divided between branded and non-branded developers – i.e. 50% each.
• Ready properties or those nearing completion within 6 months top choice: At least 56% will only consider buying such homes, followed by 26% open to buying properties that will be completed within a year. Merely 18% preferred newly-launched projects.

Also Read: Yes, ‘She’ is a Proud Real Estate Broker.

The post Women (77%) Buying Homes for End-use, Against Men (62%) – Survey appeared first on Square Feat India.