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In Mumbai, even high-income earners now require an astonishing 109 years of savings to afford an average home, underscoring the city’s deepening housing affordability crisis. This alarming trend signals the urgent need to reevaluate urban housing policies as property prices continue to surge across major Indian cities.
Even Maharashtra’s highest-earning households are struggling to afford homeownership in Mumbai.
A recent analysis reported by the Localtak reveals that even the top 5% of earners—those with an average monthly household income of ₹10.7 lakh—would need to save for 109 years to buy an average-sized home in the city.
The study integrates data from the National Housing Board (NHB) with urban income estimates to assess housing affordability across 21 state capitals. In Mumbai, where the average cost per square foot stood at ₹29,911 as of March 2025, a typical 1,184 sq. ft. home is priced at approximately ₹3.54 crore. In contrast, the top 5% of households in Maharashtra save only about ₹3.2 lakh annually—based on a national average savings rate of 30.2%—highlighting a significant affordability gap.
Gurgaon ranks as the second least affordable city, with high-income households needing to save for 64 years to purchase a comparable home.
Bengaluru and Delhi are slightly more affordable, requiring 36 and 35 years of savings, respectively.In contrast, Chandigarh stands out as the most affordable state capital, where similar households can afford a home after just 15 years of saving.
The data has sparked renewed debate online, with some users expressing shock over the prolonged timelines, while others viewed it as a crucial reminder to reevaluate urban housing policies and the allocation of infrastructure. Localtak
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Property Prices Continue to Soar in Major Markets
A recent surge in property prices across India’s leading cities has grabbed attention once again. This follows a November report by ANAROCK, which highlighted a 23% year-on-year increase in average residential property prices across the top seven cities, including Mumbai and Delhi. During the April to September 2024 period, the average home price reached ₹1.23 crore, reflecting strong demand and sustained momentum in the real estate sector.
The National Capital Region (NCR) led the price surge with a 56% increase, pushing average rates above ₹1.45 crore. Bengaluru followed with a 44% rise, and Hyderabad saw a 37% jump. In terms of sales volume, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) topped the list, with Pune and NCR not far behind.
Fueling the trend is a rising interest from affluent Indians residing overseas. A Bloomberg report projects that by 2025, non-resident Indians (NRIs) will contribute to nearly 20% of all luxury home purchases in India—a surge further accelerated by digital real estate platforms such as NoBroker.com.
As affordability declines even for high-income earners, the growing disparity highlights deep-rooted structural issues in India’s urban real estate markets—particularly in megacities like Mumbai, where limited land availability, complex regulations, and speculative investment continue to make homeownership unattainable for the majority.
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