When Mukesh Yadav, a techie in Bengaluru, was looking for an upscale apartment to buy, he came across several villas close to Whitefield for less than Rs 2 crore.
About a decade back, villas were a luxury proposition catering to a niche section of homebuyers. But of late, villas are going for Rs 1.5 crore or less. Indeed, some are selling for a mere Rs 70-90 lakh.
According to experts, the pandemic opened up villas to the masses. Today, they are more compact, and more affordable.
Uptick in demand
Ritesh Mehta, Senior Director and Head of West and North, Residential Services and Developer Initiatives, JLL, believes though the pandemic has triggered the preference for larger, open spaces, other factors play a major role as well.
"Villas not only give homebuyers a sense of spacious living, there is also the additional attraction of owning the land and being the whole and sole proprietor of the property. Owners value this given the conflicts we see between homebuyers and resident welfare associations," he added.
Brokers say demand for villas has gone up by 30-40 percent in the last two years. North, east, and south-east Bengaluru have become sought-after locations for villas, they say. These villas are typically duplex properties ranging between 1,500-3,000 sq ft carpet area, surrounded by a patch of green.
Since land is more affordable on the outskirts, more developers are constructing villas in such areas. Improved infrastructure, including the development of satellite towns, metro lines, and expanded road networks across Bengaluru has enabled developers to offer villas in areas away from the central business district, said Vishwa Prathap Desu from Brigade Enterprises Ltd.
"Villas are more attractive as investments as their appreciation is at least 10 percent more than apartments," Mehta added.
Local brokers in the Mahadevpura area say that even the luxury villas that were waterlogged during last September's flooding on Billionaire Street (home to Bengaluru’s 1 percent) have started appreciating, albeit at a snail's pace.
Affordable villas
Avinash Suresh, COO of Arvind SmartSpaces, said that the company saw the trend as an opportunity last year. "With more people looking for apartment upgradation, we innovated and brought down the price of a villa by making them more compact," he added.
Experts point out that today, 3 BHK villas of about 1,500-2,000 sq ft have become available to the middle and upper-middle-classes of Bengaluru for about Rs 1-2.5 crore.
"For developers, the villas require less initial funding and offer a quicker exit than apartment complexes. In Bengaluru, while an apartment project takes 24-36 months to complete, villas can be completed in 15-18 months," Mehta said.
But Nesara BS, Executive Director of Bengaluru-based Concorde developers, explained that in 30 acres of land, the company can build 2,000 apartments, but construct only 500 villas, thus affecting its profitability.
However, a short turnover time increases the velocity of new launches, compensating for the losses.
Murali M, Chief Managing Director, Shriram Properties, said most of their customers for villas priced between Rs 1.5-1.7 crore are millennials.
With demand outstripping supply, the prices of villas have soared in the prime areas. A 3,000-sq-ft villa in a location like Whitefield or Hebbal starts at Rs 4-5 crore.