A leading low-income housing finance company is expecting over a 20% increase in its order book and home loan disbursements, as the upcoming budget is expected to support housing-for-all initiatives.

The company has requested the government to redefine income criteria for the economically weaker section (EWS) to ?5 lakh and for the low-income group (LIG) to ?10 lakh.

It disbursed ?6,000 crore in FY23 and ?7,100 crore in FY24. Uttar Pradesh is the largest market, contributing nearly 15% of revenue, while metro areas such as Delhi and Mumbai also contribute significantly. The company is exploring expansion into the Northeast and Jammu & Kashmir.

Focusing on the low-income housing segment, the company has an assets under management (AUM) of ?16,566 crore as of December 31, 2022, with operations across 20 states and union territories and a network of 424 branches and offices.

Due to rising construction costs, the government may consider redefining priority sector lending limits from ?35 lakh to ?50 lakh in metro locations and from ?25 lakh to ?35 lakh in non-metro areas, as well as merging urban and rural housing schemes for CLSS subsidies while maintaining the same subsidy amount

A leading cement manufacturer reported a marginal growth of 0.69% in net profit for the quarter ended June 2024. Profit after tax stood at ?145 crore in Q1 FY25, compared with ?144 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year.

The company’s net consolidated total income was ?3,671 crore in Q1 FY25, a slight decline of 0.27% from ?3,681 crore recorded in the corresponding period last year.

Installed cement capacity as of June 30 stood at 45.6 million tonnes (MnT), with a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of 0.17x. Cement volumes increased 6.2% year-on-year to 7.4 MnT, while renewable energy consumption rose to 35%.

Although overall demand remained weak during the quarter, margins improved due to better input costs and the reversal of certain inefficiencies from the previous quarter. The company added 2 MnT of cement capacity in the southern region and plans to add another 2.9 MnT in the North East and East regions during FY25.

Additionally, 1 MnT capacity was commissioned at existing units in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, taking the total installed capacity to 17 MnT in the South and 46.6 MnT nationwide. This expansion aligns with the long-term strategy to increase total cement capacity to 110–130 MnT by 2031.

A realtors’ association has suggested that the tax exemption on interest for self-occupied property loans be increased to ?5 lakh in the upcoming budget from the current ?2 lakh to boost housing demand amid rising property prices and mortgage rates.

Builders have also requested tax incentives to support both the demand and supply of affordable homes.

Under current provisions, the deduction allowed on interest for loans on self-occupied property is limited to ?2 lakh. The association noted that the annual value of properties held as stock-in-trade and not rented out is considered nil for up to two years from the end of the financial year in which the construction completion certificate is obtained. After this period, the notional income is taxed.

Additionally, longstanding sector demands — such as granting industry or infrastructure status and increasing tax exemption limits on home loan repayments — should be considered to support sustained long-term growth in the housing sector.

A state-owned construction company has expressed interest in taking over all pending projects of a real estate developer facing multiple cases from homebuyers over delayed deliveries, as well as an investigation into alleged financial irregularities.

During the insolvency proceedings of one of the developer’s group companies, the interim resolution professional (IRP) approached the construction company. The company informed the IRP and the lender that it is willing to take over all projects, provided it is granted complete access to project details and related data.

The developer is responsible for delivering over 15,000 homes. In a recent appellate tribunal order, it was submitted to the court that the construction company is interested in undertaking the projects subject to due diligence, and that the lenders are not opposed to this proposal.

The bankruptcy court had initiated the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) against the developer’s company based on a petition filed by a bank for non-payment of around ?432 crore in dues.

The developer has also submitted a proposal to the state government for revival, stating that dues to the land authority amount to ?2,670 crore, with nearly half being interest on land costs. The company additionally owes ?830 crore to various banks and has requested around ?5,000 crore from lenders to complete the stalled projects.

Over the last decade (2014–H1 2024), the average waiting period for homebuyers to take possession of large under-construction projects in the top seven cities has reduced to 4.9 years, down from 6.1 years in the 2010–2019 period.

For large projects launched and completed between 2014 and H1 2024, the average completion time was lowest in Chennai at 3.6 years, while Hyderabad and Bangalore recorded 4.2 years and 4.8 years, respectively.

In the National Capital Region (NCR), factors such as extreme weather and statutory restrictions on construction during high pollution levels have affected project timelines. Gradual reduction in developer leverage and stronger financial conditions have allowed builders to focus more on execution.

In Kolkata, large projects completed during this period took the longest time, averaging 5.7 years. In the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), small projects took around 4.7 years, while large projects required 5.2 years on average.

In Pune, small projects averaged 4.3 years, and large projects 5.4 years. In Chennai and Hyderabad, small projects were completed in 3 years and 3.1 years, while large projects took 3.6 years and 4.2 years, respectively, small projects averaged 3.5 years and large projects 4.8 years.

New supply of affordable apartments priced below ?50 lakh declined 21% in the April–June period across seven major cities, as developers focused on launching more premium flats.

Data for the housing market in these cities shows a 5% increase in overall fresh apartment supply to 1,59,455 units during April–June 2024, up from 1,51,207 units in the same period last year. The analysis includes only apartments; row houses, villas, and plotted developments are excluded.

Of the total new supply in the quarter, launches of affordable flats stood at 13,277 units, a 21% drop from 16,728 units in the same period last year.

Launches of mid-priced flats costing ?50 lakh to ?1 crore declined 14% to 47,930 units from 55,701 units, while apartments priced between ?3–5 crore more than doubled to 19,202 units from 7,149 units.

Similarly, in the above ?5 crore category, new supply rose more than two-fold to 9,734 units from 4,510 units.

On the demand side, sales of apartments across the seven major cities increased 22%, reaching 1,54,921 units during April–June 2024.

A senior industry expert stated that no real estate project is likely to fail if developers maintain strong financial discipline from the start.

Speaking at a national conference on the changing dynamics of the real estate sector, the expert also urged for a reduction in home loan interest rates to support demand. He highlighted the sector’s significant contribution to the Indian economy, particularly in terms of employment generation.

He emphasised the need for rationalising lending rates, noting that lower borrowing costs encourage both homebuyers and investors, while enabling developers to deliver projects at optimal cost levels.

Discussing real estate regulations, the expert mentioned that around 1,25,000 projects and 75,000 brokers have been registered across India under the current regulatory framework since its implementation.

He added that the real estate sector is valued at ?24 lakh crore and contributes nearly 13.8% to the country’s GDP.

Another industry representative cautioned that the sector could face a downcycle in the coming years if adequate government support on affordability is not provided.

A domestic housing finance provider has raised its first $100 million (?835 crore) dollar-denominated syndicated social loan. The entire amount has been initially funded by a foreign bank, which plans to syndicate the loan over the coming months.

The loan carries a three-year maturity and is benchmarked to the three-month secured overnight financing rate (SOFR) plus 200 basis points, with the current SOFR at 5.3%.

According to an official involved in the transaction, the financing aligns well with the social-impact nature of the lender’s portfolio, making this the first of several planned fundraises through the overseas market. The official added that highly rated non-bank lenders in India are increasingly expected to explore international market funding, driven by strong global investor appetite for ESG-focused instruments.

The foreign bank involved in the transaction is acting as the social loan coordinator, as well as the sole arranger, underwriter, and book-runner.

Social loans are typically deployed toward socially beneficial initiatives such as welfare programs, affordable housing, or environmentally sustainable developments.

Recently, another major non-bank lender in India raised over $450 million through a syndicated term loan.

Mortgage-backed lending—comprising home loans and small business loans—currently forms 68% of the lender’s overall retail assets under management (AUM). These segments grew by 38% in FY24, and the lender expects its AUM to rise 15% in FY25 to approximately ?80,000 crore.

A leading real estate developer has secured a loan of ?825 crore from an international financial institution to refinance a large IT park located in Taramani, Chennai.

The IT park has achieved full emission reduction through renewable energy or carbon offsets, along with saving more than 20% on water usage and embodied energy in materials, and achieving over 42% on-site energy savings.

According to the developer, the financing will help further enhance the sustainability and climate resilience of the project.

The IT park, spread across 25.27 acres, includes both a special economic zone (SEZ) processing area and a non-processing zone, with a total leasable area of approximately 4.67 million square feet of commercial office space.

A major investment platform focused on housing is making a significant push into the affordable and mid-income housing segment, with plans to invest more than $2 billion across India’s top property markets by the end of 2025 to help address supply-side constraints, according to a senior executive.

The platform — considered one of the world’s largest in the affordable housing space — is progressing toward its medium-term target of financing 1 million affordable homes in India through existing arrangements with leading developers.

The government recently announced support for 3 crore affordable houses, including 1 crore homes in urban areas. This represents a $500 billion business opportunity, requiring investments of at least $100 billion.

The housing fund aims to deploy at least $1 billion annually over the next two years in affordable and mid-income housing across the top 15 Indian cities, including major markets such as the Mumbai region, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, and Ahmedabad.

India is now entering a long period of demographic advantage expected to last around 30 years. Rising purchasing power is projected to trigger a consumption boom, with more than 200 million households expected to move into the upper middle-class and above income groups by 2030.

In the fund’s existing portfolio, unit prices start at ?12.5 lakh, and around 40% of the portfolio consists of homes priced below ?42 lakh. Investments have been made across over 175 projects, contributing to the development of more than 250,000 homes.

The long-term goal is to support the creation of one million affordable homes in India through a mix of innovative financing, partnerships, technology, and a strong emphasis on sustainability.