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Real Estate’s
Expectations from
2021-22 Union Budget
Have the government and RBI done enough to bail
out the economy - and, by implication real estate?
After all, the realty industry remains one of the
most precise bellwethers of the state of India's economy.
While the country waits for the first vaccines to roll out,
Union Budget 2021-22 presents several opportunities to
give the sector a shot in the arm, too. Given that real estate
contributes more than 8% to the Indian economy, it has
justifiable expectations.
Multiple measures were announced in 2020 to beat the
unprecedented impact of COVID-19 on the overall
economy and the real estate industry:
• RBI’s massive repo rate cut of 140 bps (leading to the
lowest home loan interest rates in over 15 years)
• A six-month moratorium on EMIs
• Restructuring of loans of real estate companies at the
project level
• At a state level, stamp duty reductions in Maharashtra
• A liquidity boost to NHB, and
• The first real-time deployments of rescue capital from the
SWAMIH fund
These measures were proactive and commendable - but not
surprisingly, given the depth of pain in the real estate sector,
they were not enough. The housing industry needs to be
focused on measures to further bolster demand in 2021.
This year, the demands go beyond the usual suspects of
single-window clearance and industry status.
Affordable housing is very likely to get another booster
shot. However, the budget also needs to focus on the larger
market as more than ever before, homebuyers and investors
need focused tax incentives to get mobilized. Also, as the
government is aware, developers’ liquidity woes need to
alleviate to forestall further market mayhem.
rates under Section 24 of the Income Tax Act to at least
INR 5 lakh to generate healthier housing demand, most
notably in affordable and mid-segment housing.
• Personal tax relief, either by tax rate reductions or
amended tax slabs - The last increase in the deduction
limit under Section 80C (to INR 1.5 lakh a year) was in
2014 and an upward revision is long overdue.
• GST waiver for under-construction homes - The present
GST rate on under-construction properties is 5% minus
the ITC benefit for premium homes (>INR 45 lakh) and
1% for affordable homes (<INR 45 lakh). Even a limited
period waiver of GST will reduce overall property cost
and thus push demand for under-construction homes,
which have been slacking presently. Funds from buyers
can aid developers towards project construction and thus
lessen their dependence on financial institutions. The
most-recent limited-period Stamp Duty cut in
Maharashtra significantly boosted demand in both MMR
and Pune.
• More incentives for private sector investments in
affordable housing - Despite the benefit of infrastructure
status for this critically important segment, developers are
unable to get funding from major banks and NBFCs at an
affordable cost. The profit margins for affordable housing
projects continue to be extremely low.
• Ease liquidity - The liquidity crunch had a cascading
impact across sectors, including real estate. Project delays
- the biggest fallout of the cash crunch – had severely
dampened buyer sentiments in the last two years.
Developers need a rational capital flow to keep up the
supply pipeline, especially for ready-to-move-in homes
that are in the highest demand - healthy. Increased supply
also helps to keep property prices range bound.
Demands:
• Hike the INR 2 lakh tax rebate on housing loan interest
20 | January 2021
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