Due to the Covid pandemic, there was a significant decline in rentals. However, there has been a revival in residential rentals in major cities as employees are returning to office and schools are reopening nationwide. An analysis conducted by property consultants revealed that Bengaluru, Mumbai Metropolitan Region, and Pune experienced the highest increase in residential rentals, ranging from 6% to 20%, during the first half of this year compared to three years ago.

Since the onset of the pandemic, many tenants have shown a preference for renting homes near their workplaces, particularly larger homes with additional rooms suitable for hybrid work and children’s schooling. Delhi NCR witnessed a rental increase of 7% to 15%, while Hyderabad and Kolkata experienced a spike of 5% to 10% in rentals from January to May this year. Chennai saw a rise of 5% to 15% in residential rentals.

This surge in rentals is substantial for the seven major cities, as it represents a doubling of rental rates compared to the pre-Covid period of 2019 from January to May. During the corresponding period in 2020 and 2021, rentals in these cities had dropped significantly by 2% to 9% due to Covid.

Additionally, there is a resurgence in the trend of shared accommodation options, particularly among those seeking rentals near their workplaces. Sumanth Reddy Arani, the vice-chairman of the National Association of Realtors India, stated that tenants of small and medium-sized apartments shifted to larger units when they became available during the peak of the Covid pandemic.