The math does not add up. The real estate refugees from the builder excesses of the past are now stuck between a rock and a hard place. These are the people lucky enough to actually have a finished flat with possession and not a legal case with absconding builders. These are the people who bought the Delhi suburban dream thinking they were getting in on the ground floor to the next Gurgaon. These are the people who live in Delhi, on rent or in own homes, and bought for investment in the greater NCR region, particularly in Greater Noida. These are the people who don’t know if they should sell and take a loss on their investment or keep funding it and hope prices recover.
A typical story goes like this: you bought a 3-BHK flat with a fancy foreign sounding name with a pool, community center, Italian tiles and more bells and whistles for Rs 60 lakh. Took a loan of Rs 40 lakh that costs about Rs 35,000 a month in EMI. Rent where you live in Delhi is Rs 30,000 a month. Rent from your Noida flat is Rs 8,000 a month. Amount of loan left is Rs 30 lakh. Current market price of flat if you can find a buyer—Rs 50 lakh.