As the Union Budget 2026 approaches, India’s real estate sector—spanning luxury housing, mid-premium residential, commercial offices, and co-working spaces—is looking for policy continuity and targeted structural reforms to sustain its growth momentum. Industry leaders say that while demand for premium and luxury real estate strengthened in 2025, the next phase of growth will depend less on short-term tax sops and more on measures that improve liquidity, ease access to finance, and enhance regulatory efficiency.

Key expectations include rationalisation of capital gains norms, especially the Rs 10-crore reinvestment cap under Sections 54 and 54F, simplification of approvals through single-window clearances, GST and TDS rationalisation, and stronger infrastructure-led development across metros, NCR peripheries, and fast-growing Tier II and III cities. Together, these reforms are seen as critical to reinforcing investor confidence, improving housing affordability, and positioning Indian real estate for sustainable, long-term expansion in 2026 and beyond.

Here we take a look at the key expectations of realty experts and stakeholders from the upcoming budget:

Manish Agarwal, Managing Director, Satya Group, and President, CREDAI Haryana: “Luxury homebuyers are entering 2026 with significantly evolved expectations, seeking not just premium residences but curated, investment-grade living experiences. As the Budget approaches, we urge the government to consider measures that will enhance capital availability, streamline the regulatory environment for high-value transactions, and actively encourage the structure of fractional investments in marquee assets. These strategic steps are vital to democratize access to luxury homeownership, fuel demand for ultra-premium developments, and solidify India’s position as one of the world’s fastest-growing luxury real estate ecosystems.”

Navdeep Sardana, Founder, Whiteland Corporation: “The upcoming 2026 union budget is the most anticipated day for Indian real estate. While 2025 saw absorptions in office and premium real estate sectors, there has been a policy push for these segments. The premium segment is looking for a fiscal maturity. With premium real estate now the current trend, industry’s focus has moved beyond tax sops. The most critical expectation for the ultra HNIs is the re-evaluation of Rs 10 crore cap on capital gains reinvestment under sections 54 and 54F. Increasing this limit is important to facilitate the movement of uber-luxury properties. Moreover, we expect the union budget to propel ESG compliant luxury developments and smart housing technology integration via specialised green financing tax credits. Industry expects the budget to introduce policies simplifying availability of finance for developers, providing better liquidity and lower barriers. For NRI investors, a further rationalisation of TDS on property sales would significantly improve foreign capital inflows into India’s growing residential market, which is expected to dominate the 2026 landscape.”

Sidharth Chowdhry, Managing Director, Dalcore: “As the union budget approaches, the real estate sector – especially premium and luxury housing markets like Golf Course Road, Gurugram – looks forward to policy continuity and targeted fiscal support. End-user demand and investor confidence would be significantly boosted by rationlisation of stamp duty, enhanced tax benefits on home loan interest. Additionally, extending infrastructure status benefits and easy access to long terms, low cost financing for developers will help push high-quality project execution. With Gurugram emerging as a global residential and commercial hub, a forward-looking budget can further strengthen NCR’s position as a preferred destination for both domestic and global real estate investments.”

Sandeep Agarwal, Executive Director – Finance and Group CFO, Elan Group: “As India’s real estate sector enters a phase of sustained maturity, the Union Budget 2026 offers an opportunity to reinforce the structural strength of the market. Continued focus on improving access to organised credit, enabling smoother project execution and strengthening long-term confidence among discerning homebuyers and institutional capital will be critical to maintaining momentum. A clear, stable fiscal and regulatory framework that supports responsible growth can go a long way in building a resilient real estate ecosystem aligned with the evolving aspirations of urban India.”
Rahul Singla, Director, Mapsko Group: “With Sonipat rapidly emerging as a key residential and industrial extension of Delhi-NCR, the real estate sector expects the upcoming Union Budget to strengthen policy support for high-growth peripheral markets. Sonipat’s appeal to investors and end-users will be further enhanced by increased allocation of infrastructure development, particularly road, rail and last-mile connectivity. Additionally, the industry also look forward to rationalisation of stamp duty, enhanced tax benefits on home loan interest, and easier access to institutional financing for developers. Such measure will push planned developments, improve housing affordability, and postion Sonipat as a sustainable, well-integrated urban hub within the NCR.”

Yashank Wason, Managing Director, Royal Green Realty: “The upcoming fiscal budget is a crucial opportunity to strengthen real estate, especially in fast-growing Tier II and III cities, which are now effectively challenging metros across segments. These markets are offering infra-led projects, superior amenities and more spacious homes at comparatively reasonable prices, drawing both end-users and investors. Major developers are entering these cities, supported by government policy easing and recent GST relief, helping people enjoy better lifestyles in their hometowns while easing migration pressures. The industry now expects further tax incentives, clarity on GST and continued policy support to sustain safe, long-term real estate investments.”

Ramani Sastri, Chairman & MD, Sterling Developers Pvt Ltd: “As the country prepares for the Union Budget 2026, the real estate sector is hopeful for progressive reforms that could benefit homebuyers and the industry. The sector is keen on policies that will address both the challenges faced by developers and the evolving needs of homebuyers.  As India’s economy continues to grow, there is an increasing interest among the homebuyers to continue to invest in residential real estate for long-term returns. However, affordability remains the biggest challenge for a large section of the population. Hence there should be expansion in the definition of affordable housing in urban areas as this would expand the benefits for homebuyers, thereby boosting the end-user demand. There is a strong case for interest subsidy for first-time homebuyers who currently fall outside the affordable housing benefits as this will boost sales to a great extent. The real estate sector is also seeking rationalisation of GST on under-construction homes and quicker approvals to reduce project delays. The government should raise the deduction limit for interest payment on home loans from the existing Rs 2 lakh a year to Rs 5 lakh, which will add momentum to the housing sector. These initiatives would not only drive growth in the real estate sector but also stimulate demand around 250 ancillary industries, thereby boosting job creation across these sectors.”

Manas Mehrotra, Founder, 315Work Avenue: “Co-working spaces have emerged as the defining feature of India’s rapidly evolving commercial real estate market, reflecting the broader shift toward work culture, flexibility, collaboration, innovation, and sustainability. Many large enterprises and corporates have also shifted their gears to the coworking space. Taking into consideration the popularity of flex spaces, we have a few expectations around GST and taxation from the upcoming Union Budget that can further accelerate growth of this sector. We request the government to introduce a concessional, slab-based GST rate for coworking services, especially for startups and small businesses as it would meaningfully improve startup cash flows and accelerate entrepreneurship. For the coworking sector, the real advantage lies in improved cash flow management and working capital efficiency. As coworking operators, we invest heavily in infrastructure and fit-outs. Hence, we request that the blocked input tax credit on interior fit-outs be removed. Additionally, the 10% TDS under Section 194AB on coworking payments needs rationalisation as this will support sustainable growth of India’s flexible workspace ecosystem.

India’s workforce is steadily moving towards hybrid models, increasingly relying on shared spaces. Making construction more viable will encourage the creation of modern, well-designed work environments which will ensure that talent across the country has access to world-class infrastructure to innovate, collaborate, and grow. Moreover, ensuring the availability of institutional finance at competitive rates is vital for the growth of the coworking sector as it would enable coworking firms to scale efficiently and making them more attractive to businesses of all sizes. We also believe that a significant push to infrastructure and single-window clearance system will help in faster establishment of coworking spaces in non-metro cities as well.”

Harsh Jagwani, Managing Director, Notandas Realty: “Budget 2026 will be an opportune time for the Indian government to continue the growth momentum for the real estate sector, brought about by the previous year’s reforms. The year 2025 witnessed the growing demand and sales of premium urban housing units across the pan India regions. With growing aspiration and changing lifestyle of Indian families, we would like the government to focus on policies and reforms that encourages homebuyers and developers in the luxury real estate segment. For the same, it would be prudent for the government to initiate a Single Window Clearance System in order to streamline the process for approvals of new construction projects. The government will also need to bring reforms in the digitization process of land as well as property acquisition. This will not only help in accelerating the pace of development of new projects but also ease the process of buying new homes for homebuyers in general. Cleaner land-title system, stricter escrow enforcement under RERA will also help reduce transaction risk and financing delays. The government should also look at encouraging Global Capability Centers (GCCs) investment in India. As the country plans to position itself as a global hub of business and manufacturing, incentive-led policies and encouragement for GCCs will help in driving the momentum for the commercial real estate market. With more global companies entering the Indian market, it will drive demand for premium office spaces which in turn will boost the growth of the Indian real estate sector for the years to come.”