India’s growth engine for real estate has reached a decisive crossroads. The Reserve Bank of India carved 100 basis points off policy rates this year, pulling mortgage costs to decade‑lows. Affordability widened. Hesitant middle‑income families stepped off the sidelines and into showrooms. Yet the gush of easy money stopped short at the border of investor confidence. Global private‑equity flows into Indian property collapsed 41 percent in H1 2025. Picky funds funnelled capital almost exclusively into Grade‑A offices, shunning housing and warehousing with clinical precision.
At the top of the pyramid, hairline fractures now glint through polished façades. A recent international survey signals that the luxury buying frenzy has crested. Unsold premium stock piles up, even in marquee metros, exposing the first hints of demand fatigue. Developers, feeling the pinch, shift their launch calendars toward premium projects that protect margins. Simultaneously, policymakers tighten the screws on transparency through RERA and extend affordability under PMAY‑U.
Looking forward, sturdy fundamentals remain. Expanding urban‑infrastructure corridors, digitised land‑record systems, and a youthful demographic dividend still undergird the market. Nevertheless, true, durable growth now depends on disciplined pricing, iron‑clad governance, and seamless credit transmission. Momentum lives on, but prudence—rather than unbridled exuberance—will define Indian real‑estate economics from this point on.
Against this nuanced backdrop, The Interview World sat down with Jyoti Prakash Gadia, Managing Director of Resurgent India Ltd., during the NAREDCO Mahi Convention 2025. Gadia mapped the sector’s economic terrain with surgical clarity, dissected non‑performing asset trends, and revealed why retail shareholders can inject fresh dynamism through listed‑equity routes. He further argued that a deeper, more liquid capital market can fortify developers’ balance sheets, slash their debt costs, and accelerate project pipelines.
Below, we distill his most compelling insights—concise, actionable, and indispensable for anyone tracking the next act of India’s property story.
Q: How do you assess the current economic landscape of the real estate and infrastructure sectors in India?
A: India’s real‑estate sector already commands an impressive US $300 billion footprint. Residential projects account for roughly 80 percent of that value, while offices, malls, and other commercial assets fill the remaining 20 percent. Even under a deliberately conservative lens, the trajectory looks steep. Assume a compound annual growth rate of only 15 percent—below many analyst forecasts—and the industry still expands to about US $700 billion within five years. Layer on the current 4‑to‑5 percent annual price appreciation, and the market crosses the US $1 trillion threshold by 2030.
That headline number barely hints at real estate’s true economic punch. No Indian industry delivers a stronger ripple effect. Every rupee channelled into a housing project unleashes an eight‑times multiplier across cement, steel, bricks, tiles, labour, architecture, and a web of professional services. As projects break ground, demand for core‑sector outputs surges, fortifying GDP and widening the employment funnel.
Financing, therefore, becomes both the catalyst and the bottleneck. On the retail side, India’s housing‑finance universe already totals ₹24.5 lakh crore (about US $295 billion). Over the next decade, developers must supply an additional 3.1 million units. At prevailing ticket sizes, that inventory represents roughly ₹65 lakh crore in sales. Home‑buyers typically leverage about 70 percent of the purchase price, implying a fresh wave of housing loans worth an eye‑popping ₹45 lakh crore (around US $540 billion).
Developers carry a parallel burden. Their current outstanding borrowings hover near ₹4.5 lakh crore. If the sector does scale to US $1 trillion, project finance requirements will balloon to roughly ₹34 lakh crore. Capital, therefore, is not a side story; it is the story. Banks, non‑bank lenders, capital‑market instruments, and emerging real‑estate investment trusts must step up in tandem.
In short, India’s property market is not merely growing; it is constructing an economic flywheel. Prudent credit flows will decide how fast—and how safely—that flywheel spins.
Q: Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) remain a critical concern across sectors. How is the real estate industry currently faring in terms of NPA levels, and what factors are influencing this performance?
A: The real‑estate sector stands as a vivid example of financial rejuvenation. In 2021, non‑performing assets (NPAs) consumed 22 percent of its loan book; today, they barely skim 5 percent. This 17‑percentage‑point collapse reflects tighter credit appraisal, disciplined project execution, and a decisive surge in market confidence.
Meanwhile, the appetite for capital keeps expanding. Residential expansion, commercial redevelopment, and infrastructure‑linked projects all compete for fresh liquidity. Sensing these openings, households—especially first‑time and small‑ticket investors—are steadily channelling savings into property, sometimes deliberately, other times almost subconsciously through fractional or pooled instruments. Their participation injects new funds, diversifies the investor base, and spreads risk beyond traditional institutional lenders.
Because NPAs are shrinking while funding needs are rising, a powerful virtuous cycle has emerged. Lower defaults reassure lenders, who in turn release additional credit at competitive rates. Developers convert that financing into faster completions, boosting cash flows and further compressing NPAs. The multiplier effect appears almost immediately: construction stimulates demand for steel, cement, logistics, and professional services; each rupee invested in bricks and mortar ripples through ancillary industries, amplifying GDP growth and creating jobs.
Therefore, smart policy that fortifies this momentum could become one of the most potent economic accelerators at our disposal. By sharpening regulatory oversight, streamlining approvals, and incentivising sustainable building practices, India can reinforce the sector’s dynamism while preserving its newfound prudence.
Ultimately, a robust property market does far more than buoy quarterly metrics. It underwrites the broader vision of a “Developed India” or Viksit Bharat championed by the Prime Minister. Affordable homes anchor social stability, world‑class commercial spaces lure global capital, and efficient urban infrastructure raises productivity. In short, strengthening real estate is not merely an option; it is an indispensable strategy for propelling the nation toward its next tier of prosperity. With sustained focus and diligent governance, the sector can evolve from a historical drag into a flagship engine of inclusive, sustainable growth—cementing India’s status as a developed economy within our lifetimes.
Q: What role can retail investors play in strengthening the financing ecosystem of the real estate sector, and what mechanisms or instruments can effectively facilitate their participation?
A: Indian households still tuck away the lion’s share of their savings in gold ornaments, fixed‑deposit receipts, and endowment‑style insurance. These instruments feel familiar, secure, and—crucially—uncomplicated. As a result, barely a sliver of every hard‑earned ₹100 reaches equities or brick‑and‑mortar projects, even though both asset classes routinely outpace inflation. Limited capital‑market literacy and a deep‑seated preference for safety explain the gap.
Yet a quiet revolution is gathering momentum. When families redirect even part of those idle rupees into Alternate Investment Funds, high‑grade bonds, or Real Estate Investment Trusts, they ignite a powerful chain reaction. The vehicle may sit on a demat statement, but the cash ultimately finances land acquisition, tower cranes, and freshly poured concrete. Likewise, a mutual fund that tilts toward listed developers disperses small household contributions across diversified property portfolios. In effect, modest monthly SIPs morph into scaffolding, steel, and sales deeds.
This structure delivers a double dividend. First, it keeps investors inside the comfort zone of regulated securities—units, shares, and bond certificates—while quietly exposing them to the wealth‑creating engine of real estate. Second, it supplies the sector with patient, low‑cost capital that accelerates project completion and unlocks multiplier effects across the broader economy.
Crucially, these instruments respect the Indian saver’s hierarchy of needs: safety, liquidity, and then return. REITs, for example, must distribute most of their rental income as dividends and hold income‑producing assets that undergo third‑party valuation. The transparency soothes nerves. Add steady appreciation and the allure becomes irresistible. Before long, families that once stashed jewellery in lockers begin buying fractional stakes in marquee office parks—still solid, still secure, but now professionally managed and inflation‑hedged.
The lesson is clear. By migrating household savings from passive hoards to productive, market‑linked vehicles, we can simultaneously deepen India’s capital markets and turbocharge its real‑estate engine. With the right investor education and policy nudges, that shift will gain speed—turning every cautious rupee into a builder of skylines and a catalyst for sustainable national growth.
Q: In what ways is the capital market influencing the growth and dynamics of the real estate sector?
A: Real estate now stands at the cusp of a profound capital‑market convergence. Over the next five years, this union will redirect the country’s savings—and with it, the sector’s fortunes. Traditionally, households parked their spare rupees in fixed deposits for one simple reason: safety. Yet the quest for higher returns keeps stirring restless capital.
Enter market‑listed real‑estate instruments, from REITs to property‑focused funds. Savers can buy or sell these securities at will, enjoy transparent pricing, and still sleep well at night. In effect, they secure the same peace of mind as a term deposit while tapping the upside of bricks and mortar.
This hybrid product suite will reshape the entire financial landscape. As investors grow comfortable with dividend‑yielding office parks and professionally managed rental portfolios, a steady river of household liquidity will flow straight into construction sites, land banks, and redevelopment projects. The change is not incremental; it is tectonic.
Consider the numbers. Equity participation in real estate hovers near 5 percent. Doubling that share would already jolt project pipelines and spur ancillary industries. Tripling it would trigger a full‑scale boom. Push it to 30 percent, and the multiplier effect would echo across steel, cement, and consumer spending—recasting skylines and GDP forecasts alike.
Simply put, the marriage of property and public markets will define the next growth chapter. Savers win safer, tradable assets; developers win patient capital; the nation wins a sturdier, faster‑moving economy. The transformation has begun; the time to harness it is now.
