Bengal real estate sector suggest reforms before Union Budget 2025
Kolkata: Ahead of the Union Budget 2025, real estate stakeholders in Bengal have called for reforms such as affordable housing and enhanced tax benefits for home buyers, among other demands.
Sushil Mohta, president, CREDAI West Bengal & chairman, Merlin Group said: “The real estate sector, as India’s second-largest employment generator, plays a pivotal role in the nation’s economic development. To support India’s growth story, sustainable infrastructure development is essential. The upcoming Union Budget must prioritise infrastructure expansion which will in turn spur growth across multiple sectors.”
According to real estate builders in the state, the Centre must revise the definition of affordable housing to provide enhanced benefits to homebuyers which includes increasing the price cap for affordable housing units from Rs 45 lakh to Rs 90 lakh with an annual 5 per cent increment. Additionally, introducing a credit guarantee scheme for housing loans of up to Rs 70 lakh (covering 80 per cent to 90 per cent of the property value) and home improvement loans of up to Rs 30 lakh. They also demanded for an increase in the interest deduction limit for the first self-occupied property from Rs 200000 to Rs 500000, besides an exemption up to Rs 20 lakh of annual rental income from income tax for individuals. Demands were also raised for a simplified GST structure by merging the rates to a single 1 per cent GST for all housing units. The real estate sector also stressed the need for reintroduction of the Credit-Linked Subsidy Scheme under PMAY for the youth (below 40 years) with subsidies of 3 per cent to 4 per cent on housing loans.
One of the common demands is reducing and standardizing stamp duty rates across states and offering rebates to first-time homebuyers to make housing more accessible. Further, reduction of the long-term capital gains to 10 per cent and lowering the holding period for eligibility to 12 months.
“For India to thrive as a global economy, growth in infrastructure is essential. A balanced and reformative Union Budget is the need of the hour to catalyse this transformation,” said Mohta.
