Rents increase highest in Ahmedabad in last 3 years:Kolkata records faster rental growth than Delhi NCR Bengaluru

India’s properties have seen a strong rise in rent over the last decade, especially after 2022. New data from company that offers loans for rent ‘rentenpe’ shows that rents in the top eight cities have increased sharply between 2015 and 2025. The biggest jump has happened in the last three years, showing a strong comeback after the pandemic. The data compares rental growth across eight major cities: Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Hyderabad, Pune, Mumbai and Chennai. The demand for rental homes is also soaring fast. Ahmedabad tops the list Ahmedabad has seen the highest rental growth among all cities. Rents in the city have increased by 120% between 2022 and 2025. This means rental prices have more than doubled in just three years in Gujarat’s largest city. Kolkata is in second place with 117% growth. More people are choosing to rent instead of buying homes, which is pushing rental demand higher. Tech cities continue to rise Bengaluru, India’s technology hub, has recorded 111% growth in rents. The city continues to attract young professionals, IT workers and startups. This steady flow of workers keeps demand for rental homes high. Delhi NCR comes next with 105% growth. The national capital region has seen strong demand for rental housing due to job opportunities, corporate offices and improved connectivity like metro expansion and highways. Hyderabad and Pune have both seen 100% growth in rents over the 3-year period. These cities are major IT and education hubs. Mumbai and Chennai show slower growth Mumbai, India’s financial capital, has seen 86% rent growth. Even though this growth is strong, it is lower compared to other cities. One reason could be that Mumbai already had very high rental prices earlier, so the rise looks smaller in percentage terms. Chennai has seen the lowest increase among the cities listed, with 83% growth. However, rents in Chennai have still risen significantly over the said period. Big rebound after the pandemic The data highlights that the period from 2022 to 2025 has seen a sharp rebound in rents. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many people moved back to their hometowns and rental demand dropped. But once offices reopened and jobs returned to cities, people moved back quickly. This caused a sudden rise in rental demand and prices. Many companies have called employees back to offices, either fully or in hybrid mode. This has increased demand for homes close to workplaces. At the same time, rising property prices have made buying a house difficult for many people. As a result, renting has become the preferred option. Why is renting in India so high? Sarika Shetty, CEO, RentenPe, says that rents are so high in India due to following points: 1. Lifestyle changes Today’s population does not believe in owning a house. They do not want to invest in apartments immediately after getting a job. Owning a house is a long-term commitment. People don’t want to do a 15 to 20-year commitment. Younger generation is not willing to do long term commitment. They instead opt for other investment avenues like share markets. They don’t prefer long term office commute. They want to live close by. And for this, they are willing to pay extra rent. 2. Facilities People want facilities like gym, clubhouse, etc within the society. They don’t want to waste time commuting. They prefer availability of all kind of services in their housing society itself. If developers provide these services, they will definitely charge more. 3. Technology:
People want to live in a society with enhanced security features like the installation of CCTV cameras, security guards, etc. Such enhanced features are difficult to deploy in individual houses. So, the preference is more towards living in a society laced with such features as this kind of services ensure security, especially in today’s world where online delivery agents are frequently seen going in and out of societies. Again, all these come at a cost that is collected from the homeowners.