Budget 2022 expectations

While the government has rolled out certain measures to boost the realty sector, there still is a
lot more that needs to be done to help the ailing sector.

By Ramani Sastri

The Indian real estate market has seen a rebound and displayed a lot of resilience post-pandemic. Now, to sustain the momentum, the real estate sector is looking forward to the much-needed reforms and incentives in the upcoming budget, especially as the sector is the primary contributor to economic growth. Even though the government had rolled out certain measures to boost the realty sector, still a lot more needs to be done to catalyse the ailing sector and address both the demand and supply side.

This year, the demands go beyond the usual expectation of single-window clearance and industry status. The appetite from end-users has to be rekindled through targeted demand-side measures. Personal tax relief, either by tax rate reductions or amended tax slabs, is the need of the hour, which has been long overdue. To boost the consumption in this sector, the government should focus on providing more liquidity to the taxpayer by raising the ceiling of the rebate on the home loan interest.

There is a need to redefine ‘affordable housing’ to Rs. 50 - 60 Lakhs as this would expand the benefits for homebuyers and therefore boost the end-user demand. The revival of the real estate sector is imperative for the growth of GDP as well as additional employment generation. Overall, the government should, through its policies, do its best to get the economy to bounce back and sustain long-term growth of the real estate sector too with substantial measures for both the homebuyers and the developers.

(The author is the chairman and MD of Sterling Developers Pvt. Ltd.)