"Kyunki isme drama hai, emotion hai, tragedy hai.”

In India, buying a home is not a financial decision. It’s an emotional spectacle — a rite of passage, a badge of honour, a parent's dream fulfilled, and society's nod of approval all rolled into one. From Bollywood scripts to chai-time conversations, home ownership is romanticised as the ultimate marker of success. But beneath this melodramatic narrative lies a grim economic reality.

Let’s be honest: the real estate investment story in India is hopelessly skewed against the retail buyer. And if we’re brutally honest — it is structured to benefit everyone except the buyer.

The Players in the Great Indian Housing Drama

Let’s examine who actually profits when you buy a home.

1. The Bank – The Real Landlord:
   Most homebuyers take loans. In fact, for many Indians, their “dream home” is a 20- to 30-year financial liability dressed in pastel walls and EMIs.
   The bank earns interest over decades — often paying back two to three times the value of the property. You pay a crore to the developer, but another crore to the bank over time. The bank is never at risk. You default, they repossess and resell. In essence, they own the house far longer than you do.

2. The Government – The Silent Partner:
   Stamp duty, registration fees, GST on under-construction homes, property tax — the government earns at every stage.
   And what does the buyer get in return? Poor infrastructure, inconsistent regulatory protection, and sluggish grievance redressal. The government walks away with revenue, but rarely with responsibility.

3. The Developer – The Master of Leverage:
   In India, developers often collect payment upfront for under-construction properties. This pre-funding model (thinly veiled as 'buy now, get later') allows them to use the buyer’s money to finish the project — or worse, fund the next one. The buyer assumes the construction risk, time delays, and quality issues, while the developer enjoys generous margins.
   And even when delays stretch into years, the legal system offers little recourse. In this drama, the developer is the hero that rarely dies.

4. The Buyer – The Tragic Protagonist: Enter the emotional buyer. Driven by societal pressure, family expectations, and the eternal "rent is waste" myth, they plunge headfirst into a 25-year mortgage trap.
   They stretch finances to the limit, compromise lifestyle, and live in fear of layoffs, inflation, or rising interest rates. And by the time the house is fully theirs, they’ve already invested most of their productive years servicing a debt.
   They say home is where the heart is. In India, it’s also where your savings, peace of mind, and future liquidity go to die.

Why This Emotional Manipulation Works: Home ownership is sold not as a choice — but as a moral obligation. Renting is taboo. Joint families equate it to failure. No one says, “I’m renting by choice because I value flexibility and better ROI elsewhere.” No, you're either a homeowner — or you're “not settled.”
The emotional pressure is so high that buyers ignore the economics. ROI on residential real estate in most Indian cities is dismal — rental yields are often below 3%, and capital appreciation has stagnated in many markets. Meanwhile, debt, opportunity cost, and inflation quietly erode the value of the so-called “investment.”

So What’s the Alternative?

• Invest smarter: Evaluate whether buying is right for you. Instead of buying whatever you get, do your due diligence

• Invest elsewhere: Diversify into mutual funds, REITs, and other financial instruments that offer better liquidity and returns.

• Buy for use, not investment: If you must buy, buy for self-use after evaluating all financial angles — not for speculative returns.

In Conclusion

Home ownership in India is not a bad idea. But it is a badly sold idea. It’s time we stripped it of its emotional makeup and exposed the economics underneath.
Because once you look at the numbers, you realise — this isn't a love story. It’s a tragedy with a brilliant supporting cast: the bank, the government, and the developer.
And the buyer? Just another emotionally manipulated lead in the great Indian housing drama.