Blood, sweat, and rent: How tenants navigate Mumbai's challenging real estate market to live peacefully

In Mumbai if you enter a room and start discussing rent an echo of sighs emerges from each person who is a tenant in the city Thatrsquos how common the issue of rent inflation in this city isDubaibased content creator zakioffplan on Instagram recently sparked this conversation online after questioning Mumbairsquos soaring rental prices and comparing them to the living standards offered in Dubai UAE ldquoSome apartments in Mumbai are pricier per square foot than parts of Central Londonrdquo he said in the nowviral clip Beneath the cityrsquos glittering realestate headlines lies a brutal rental ecosystem where tenants often pay exorbitant rents while possessing almost no negotiating powerResidential rent in many Mumbai suburbs rose over 20 per cent through 2023 and 2024 fuelled by redevelopment projects supply shortages and the returntooffice boom In Navi Mumbai alone average rentals increased by nearly 20 per cent between 2019 and early 2024 according to property consultancy Anarock Simultaneously according to the data shared by the Maharashtra Inspector General of Registration registered rental agreements in Mumbai rose by 13 per cent in the first half of 2024 signalling growing dependence on rental housing in a city where ownership remains unattainable for manyFor tenants like Imran Zaidi name changed the crisis is not limited to rent alone It is the ecosystem around it ldquoIn Navi Mumbai brokers donrsquot just charge a finderrsquos fee but they keep coming back every time you renew the agreementrdquo he says ldquoThe broker initially charged the whole monthrsquos rent as brokerage and then came back again for half a monthrsquos rent at renewal Even if you continue living in the same house year after year they still demand brokerage despite having done nothingrdquoAnd moving is hardly a solution In a market driven by desperation tenants can be evicted with little warning and even less recourse Zaidi recalls a friend living in a 1BHK in Ulwe whose landlord allegedly demanded double the rent just six months into an 11month agreement ldquoWhen my friend protested he was asked to vacate by the end of the monthrdquo he says ldquoI wish there was a ceiling on rents and some kind of regulation so that living in Mumbai did not become so expensiverdquoBut beyond unaffordable rents and unchecked brokerage many tenants in Mumbai also navigate invisible barriers of identity ldquoI have to introduce myself as lsquoMy name is Imran Zaidi We are looking for a flat for a Muslim familyrsquordquo he says ldquoIf I donrsquot say that upfront I am in for a surprise laterrdquo He recalls brokers bluntly informing him that certain owners ldquodo not want Muslimsrdquo a form of discrimination so normalised that many tenants absorb it as part of the processWhile Article 15 of the Indian Constitution prohibits discrimination on the basis of religion caste creed sex race or place of birth there is no comprehensive antidiscrimination housing law for private rentals In Mumbai where demand already far outweighs supply such prejudice further shrinks the pool of accessible housing ldquoItrsquos a huge letdown to have to deal with thatrdquo Zaidi says ldquoAnd if you go to court how will you prove this discrimination They always claim it as a preference and not discriminationrdquo This city of dreams often dims that aspiration and soul with its exorbitant cost of living Even the search for a rented home then becomes a psychological warfare in negotiating both expense and prejudicelsquoRent has gone up by 25 per cent in three yearsrsquoKishore Alreja a broker in Mumbai talks about how redevelopment is the prime reason for rent incrementBroker Kishore Alreja who manages properties from Cuffe Parade to Prabhadevi says the rental surge is being driven largely by redevelopment and shrinking housing supply in South Mumbai ldquoRental rates have gone up about 20 to 25 percent in the last three yearsrdquo he says adding that older buildings entering redevelopment have pushed more people into the rental marketA rent of Rs 45000 per month for a 1BHK in Vile Parle is seen as a cheap find in Mumbai PICINSTAGRAMvisawadiarrealityIn areas like Prabhadevi a 1BHK now rents for roughly Rs 75000 to Rs 80000 a month Alreja admits there is effectively ldquono ceilingrdquo on how much landlords can quote While he believes most disputes are resolved amicably he acknowledges that some tenants continue to live under difficult landlords simply because relocating in Mumbai has become financially exhaustingNo city for journosMultiple tenants and brokers alleged that certain housing societies informally blacklist specific occupations considered ldquoproblematicrdquo by residents or landlords One such allegation concerns a residential building opposite Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital where journalists were reportedly denied housinglsquoThe tenant eventually gives up their tenancyrsquoLawyer Ravindra Sankpal shares a case where the tenant gave up the tenancyRavindra Sankpal a corporate lawyer talks about a legal complaint filed by a landlady to evade the Rent Control Act ldquoShe filed an eviction suit on grounds of bonafide need in 1981 against my fatherinlaw who was a tenant It was dismissed by the small cases court But the suit took 20 years to recede Thatrsquos the dark side of our judiciaryrdquo he laughsResidential rents in many Mumbai suburbs rose over 20 per cent through 2023 and 2024 PICGETTY IMAGESldquoIn 2007 the landlady filed separate suit for eviction on similar grounds There was a movement for redevelopment of the building where the rent can be doubled up under the Rent Control Act Finally the tenant settled the dispute with the land lady and got compensation for surrendering the tenancyrdquo Repeated lawsuits filed against the Rent Control Act meant to protect tenants often exhausts the tenant This results in the latter finally giving up tired of repeated rounds of a slowly moving courtlsquoThe rent makes me question the choice to live in MumbairsquoMarshaa Balani speaks out about how scam apps meant to connect renters directly to landlords actually turn out to be brokers looking for easy targetsFOR 21yearold Marshaa Balani a recent graduate from Jai Hind College Mumbairsquos rental market became a crash course in survival almost immediately after moving out on her own ldquoI didnrsquot have any family here so I had to do the househunting myselfrdquo she says What initially felt manageable through the safety net of hostel accommodation quickly spiralled into uncertainty when her student housing shut down forcing her into Mumbairsquos chaotic broker networkMarshaa BalaniBalani describes encountering multiple scams disguised as studentfriendly housing solutions including a nowdefunct student startup called ldquoRent Itrdquo which acted as an informal middleman between landlords and students without directly tying up with brokersldquoThey would circulate pictures and videos sent by brokers and recruit college students and interns to bring in tenantsrdquo she says The arrangement often blurred accountability leaving tenants vulnerable to misinformation and pressure tactics In one case a friend allegedly discovered that the same Walkeshwar apartment had been promised to another family through a separate agreement ldquoBrokers create urgency constantlyrdquo she says ldquoYou reach a place after travelling for hours and suddenly they say the flat is unavailable but theyrsquoll show you another onerdquoEven basic paperwork became suspect Balani recalls one broker introducing a man as the landlord during a house visit with her father ldquoMidconversation we both realised he wasnrsquot actually the landlordrdquo she says Now renting a 1RK in Tardeo for Rs 35000 a month Balani says independent living in Mumbai feels financially unsustainable for young professionalsldquoSometimes when you ask for a single room or 1RK they literally show you converted servant quartersrdquo she says ldquoYou like living in Bombay but the rent makes you question that decision constantlyrdquolsquoLandlords can demand whatever they wantrsquoReal estate advocate and developer Ravijaa Mehta elaborates on the legalities around rent hikes or the like thereofAccording to advocate and real estate developer Ravijaa Mehta Mumbairsquos rental market operates within a legal grey area where tenants often possess far less protection than they assumeRavijaa MehtaWhile Maharashtra technically falls under the Maharashtra Rent Control Act 1999 Mehta explains that most modern rentals in Mumbai function through 11month leaveandlicense agreements governed largely by the Indian Contract Act 1872 and the Transfer of Property Act 1882ldquoThe Rent Control Act mainly protects much older tenancies with standard rentsrdquo she says ldquoFor most modern agreements rent is determined by contract between the partiesrdquo This creates a major loophole for landlords Once the 11month contract expires owners are legally free to offer a completely new agreement at a significantly higher rent regardless of the previous amountldquoIt is not legally treated as a rent hikerdquo Mehta explains ldquoIt is treated as a fresh contract offer The tenant is free to accept it or walk awayrdquoIn practice however that freedom is limited in a city grappling with severe housing shortages ldquoThere is a power imbalancerdquo she admits ldquoThe supply is very tight so landlords can demand whatever they want But thatrsquos the price of living in Mumbairdquo Mehta says she has seen deposits rise to over Rs 1 lakh even for subpar living conditions with no regulatory authority linking rent prices to housing quality ldquoUnfortunatelyrdquo she says ldquotenants donrsquot really have rights in the city so farrdquo