Union Budget 2021-22 Expectations: Real Estate sector seeks income tax relaxation & more reforms in GST

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is readying herself to present the Union Budget 2021-22 on February 1, 2021, and revive the COVID-19 hit in the best possible manner. Undoubtedly, there is a need to do something for almost every sector and several suggestions and demand have been placed in front of the Finance Minister by various industries during the pre-budget consultations.

Same goes with the real estate sector as they too have placed their demands, like reforms in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and relax income tax norms, and have great expectations from the budget. They believe that the central government and few state governments have announced various measures to boost the real estate sector, which was down since last two-three years, and it has helped in boosting the demand in the sector in the third quarter of the current financial year.

Speaking about his budget expectations, Mr. Lincoln Bennet Rodrigues, Founder and Chairman, Bennet & Bernard Group, known for luxury holiday homes in Goa, said, "The real estate sector, which is one of the major contributors to India's GDP, has undergone significant changes in the last few years making it more transparent and credible. We expect the upcoming budget to further relax income tax norms, push more reforms in GST and announce industry status to the real estate sector.

The sector also expects the government to unleash a series of reforms and consumption boosters to increasing credit off-take from banks to ease liquidity. There is a specific need for income tax relief on a second home which will benefit home buyers in a big way and also stimulate the real estate sector. Single window clearance would go a long way in improving the approval process and quicken the project execution. We would also like to see lower home loan interest rates, reduction in stamp duty & registration charges which make a sizeable difference to the cost of a project and will definitely be a motivation for home buyers to go in for property purchase."

He added, post-pandemic, people have realized the importance of larger spaces & self-sustained communities. Hence, the desire to have bigger spaces for the same investments would definitely shift focus from buying realty in cities to second homes in holiday destinations and hence places like Goa will definitely attract investors because of its culture, lifestyle and the value for money it offers. Overall, we hope the government takes measures which strengthen the real estate sector and affirms robust infrastructure growth.