Even for the top 5% of urban families from income in Maharashtra, buying a house in Mumbai will save more than 100 years for funds. In Haryana and Odisha, it will take more than 50 years of saving the richest 5% to buy a house in its largest cities. Chandigarh, on the contrary, is the cheapest capital. These numbers have come in its capital city by comparing the income of the top 5% families in a state/UT with the average price of the 110sQ M (1,184SQ ft) house – in the middle of three home sized categories, for which the National Housing Board (NHB) compiles data. In 2022-23, India’s gross savings in the GDP ratio were 30.2%, and the same ratio has been applied to calculate the richest 5% homes.
The top 5% income from urban families is derived from the average monthly per capita consumption expenditure (MPCE) of the top 5% of urban people in a state. Rural MPCE is quite low.For example, in Maharashtra, the urban MPCE for the top 5% is Rs 22,352 per month. For a family of four, income will be Rs 89,408 per month or Rs 10.7 lakh per year. Their annual savings will be around Rs 3.2 lakh, implementing 30.2% savings rate in the top 5% families of Maharashtra. NHB data on house prices suggests that between 645 sq ft and 1,184 sq ft in March 2025, a carpet area with a carpet area was Rs 29,911 with a carpet area for Rs 29,911. This means a 1,184 square -foot house at an average cost of more than Rs 3.5 crore in Mumbai. With a savings of Rs 3.2 lakh per year, the top 5% of the urban families of Maharashtra will have to save for 109 years to bear the house.The average carpet area of NHB is based on registration data collected from sub-registrar offices (SRO) as well as assessment data collected from primary lending institutions.A similar calculation shows that for the top 5% urban families in Haryana, it will take 63 years to bear the same size house in Gurgaon. In Bhubaneswar, Odisha’s richest 5% will save more than 50 years for urban people to bear a household expenses.Among the state capitals for which carpet area data from NHB was available, 10 will save more than 30 years to buy a house. Chandigarh is the cheapest, as 15 years savings will be sufficient to buy a house of 1,184 square feet. Jaipur is the only other city where savings of less than 20 years will be sufficient.
