Why is it so tough to find rental accommodation in Mumbai?

Amid Mumbairsquos urban landscape one enigma stands tall the soaring cost of rental accommodation The essentials of life ndash lsquoRoti kapda aur makaan are universal but in Mumbai securing a makaan proves to be a bankbreaking taskWith the high costs of renting the aspiration of residing in affluent areas like Worli Malabar Hills and Peddar Road remains a dream for many Let alone South Bombay in suburban areas like Vile Parle some homeowners ask brokers to cap the rent at nonnegotiable rates If this were not enough tenants also face bias on grounds of their profession food preferences and marital statusHigh rentals Ownerrsquos bid vs tenantrsquos willingness to payIn a conversation with Midday Siddhi Bansod 27 a middleclass professional tells us ldquoWhile searching for an apartment in Vile Parle East a broker informed us that most of the owners prefer the flat to stay empty rather than negotiate the rent One homeowner quoted Rs 61000 for 2bhk and my budget was fixed at Rs 60000 Despite the minimal difference he refused to bring it downrdquoMost of the Parle flats belong to businessclass people particularly from the Gujarati and Marwadi communities For most of them property investments are made through multiple revenue sources and they are not entirely dependent on the rental income Later the broker revealed how the flat had been empty for the past four months because of nonnegotiable and steep rentsAdditionally the rental prices can be increased yearly at the ownerrsquos discretion informs Amol Ravetkar who manages the Ravetkar Housing Group ldquoThe ability to establish and increase the rent is reserved for the landlord He may raise the rent by as much as 15 percent yearly for improvements if 70 percent of the tenants consent in writingrdquo he addedRohan Pagar is a land trading advisor who primarily deals in properties at Bandra Khar and Santacruz He tells Midday that landlords in Bandra can increase the yearly rent anywhere between 5 ndash 10 percent and the discretion to do this rests with them Similar increment rates have been observed in Thane by Pramod Salve who runs a property management company in that areaHowever homeowners are not the only ones to aggravate this rental fiasco Mumbai being the financial capital houses corporate leaders who draw substantial compensation packages For instance take the case of Bhasker Jaiswal ndash The COO of Dentsu India who pays Rs 24 lakh per month for an apartment at Dr Annie Besant Road South BombaySome individuals in Mumbai can afford to pay exorbitant rents due to a combination of factors Firstly Mumbai is home to a diverse range of industries including finance entertainment and technology These sectors offer highpaying jobs that attract affluent professionals reveals Steven Mathews ndash a broker based in Parel Additionally wealthy individuals business owners and celebrities often choose to reside in prominent societies for their status and lifestyle contributing to a demand for premium properties with high rentsThough Jaiswalrsquos yearly income of Rs 15 crore enables him to pay exorbitant rents there are Mumbaikars whose major chunk of income is spent on housing loans This brings us to a recent report by Knight Frank India which states that Mumbai has earned the distinction of being the costliest city to reside in IndiaAs per the report Mumbai registers a staggering EMItoincome ratio of 55 percent This implies that a typical Mumbai household allocates more than half of its income toward paying for home loan EMIs Such is the case of Abhinav Pathare who pays a hefty premium against his monthly income of Rs 2 lakh to afford a flat in Hill Crest Andheri EastThe demandsupply equation becomes the driving force behind the steep rentals in Mumbai informs Salve As compared to olden times when there would be only one earning member most families have disintegrated into multiple earning members This enhances their paying capacity and thus the demand goes highAt the same time Mumbai is a peninsula and can only expand northwards Rest all directions are blocked by water bodies and therefore it cannot expand like Delhi or Bengaluru Hence supply of land cannot increase to match this demand This is also why Mumbai has the highest number of skyscrapers in India Hence due to the high demand and low supply ndash prices tend to skyrocket shares PagarRent topped with monumental depositsMumbairsquos notorious rentals are aggravated by the additional costs of deposits These upfront payments are equivalent to two to three months worth of rent which have become a hallmark of Mumbais rental market Priya Mehta a 28yearold marketing executive shares with Midday how she was asked to pay a monumental amount of deposit ndash to rent a 1BHK priced at Rs 50000 in Lower Parel The landlord insisted on a lockin deposit equivalent to six months rent a standard practice in Lower Parelrsquos rental market For Mehta this translated into Rs 3 lakh 6 x 50000 that she had to set aside as a deposit While she understood the importance of the lockin amount in securing the property it was a major drain on her pocket that added to the overall cost of rentingFor many prospective tenants in Mumbai the shock of the high rental deposit is akin to a financial jolt In Mathews experience its not uncommon to find landlords asking for deposits ranging from six to twelve months rent or even more depending on the locality and the propertys value This practice significantly restricts the options available to renters as many find themselves unable to muster the required lump sumOne of the primary reasons behind these skyhigh deposits is the limited tenant protection and rent control regulations in the city Unlike some Western countries where rental security deposits are strictly regulated Mumbais real estate market operates with relative freedom in this regard informs Mathews Consequently landlords often demand huge deposits as a safeguard against potential losses due to damage or unpaid rentBrokerage ndash One monthrsquos rent sometimes even moreJust when you thought the steep rental fees and hefty deposits were obscenely huge theres the added expense of brokerage equivalent to a full months rent Brokerage fee is a common practice in Mumbais rental market ndash where the commission is charged from both the landlord and the tenant Whatrsquos the rationale behind this we askSalve calls it a legitimate fee Its the consultancy and service charge to the broker who had shown flats negotiated carried legal agreement registration and aided in police verification However when we compared brokerage amounts to the ones in Delhi brokers revealed that they charge half the price of one monthrsquos rentThe brokerage amount varies depending on the demandsupply equation as well as the locality For example in most housing societies of Navi Mumbai owners dont pay any brokerage whereas in areas like Powai owners are liable to pay one informs Neel Shaikh ndash a property dealer based in GoregaonDue to a lack of regulation paying brokerage for a rental house in Mumbai presents a formidable challenge for tenants Brokers typically demand a commission equivalent to one months rent sometimes even more placing an immediate strain on the tenants finances This coupled with the already high rental rates in Mumbai exponentially increases the cost of securing a place to liveMoreover the absence of standardised fees and a clear regulatory framework means that tenants often find themselves navigating a murky and unpredictable process where multiple brokers may claim a share of the brokerage amount further inflating the overall expenditureLandlordrsquos biasesExacerbating the concerns of tenants there are instances where landlords hold biases against specific communities or categories of people trying to secure rental properties For instance take the case of Hera Sajid who encountered discrimination based on her Muslim background profession in the media field and single statusWhile expressing interest in an apartment in Santacruz the landlord requested her LinkedIn profile to validate her profession Hera received a rejection shortly after providing this information suggesting that her identity and occupation played a pivotal role in the decision This case underscores the staggering presence of housing discrimination faced by tenantsRavetkar agrees that bias exists especially on the basis of gender and marital status ldquoThe bias does take place especially if you are a woman It has become very difficult for a single lady or even a single man to get an apartment In todayrsquos generation livein relationships are becoming quite common and for an unmarried couple it becomes very difficult to get a rental apartmentrdquoHe also adds that the mindset is changing with time ldquoWe are noticing a shift in the past 23 years amongst properties owned by the young generation 3550 These landlords are relatively progressive and have eased the conditions post the pandemicrdquo However cases continue to surface where tenants get tossed to the margins due to unfound notionsDespite the progressive mindset tenants continue to face other forms of bias Discrimination based on religion particularly against Muslim or minority tenants exists because of their eating habits ldquoMost of the Muslims consume nonvegetarian food and the smell can be intolerable to some people who are pure vegetarian especially Jainsrdquo shares RavetkarProfessionals in certain fields like the media industry modelling and film production are not preferred as tenants They might face scepticism because of their infamous lifestyle and odd working hours informs Pagar Additionally freelancers are also rejected due to an inconsistent source of income which may lead to delayed rent paymentsThe rental market in Mumbai can be highly competitive and these biases not only limit housing options for affected individuals but also perpetuate social inequalities and divisions within the city Efforts to address and eliminate such biases are crucial for promoting fairness and equal housing opportunities in Mumbais real estate landscapeTo address the issue Ravetkar opines that both parties can benefit from effective communication ldquoProblems wont be resolved if there is lack of communication between the tenants and landlords Often cleaning and maintaining the property is a major source of disagreements Sometimes disagreements may occur over the expense of the repair or mending rather than the cleaning and repairs themselves Hence transparent conversations gain primary importancerdquo