Opportunities in India’s Commercial Real Estate Debt Market: A Comprehensive Analysis
India’s commercial real estate debt market is set to provide lenders with a massive financing opportunity of INR14,00,000 crore ($170 billion) between 2024-2026, according to a recent report by JLL-Propstack titled “Decoding Debt Financing: Opportunities in Indian Real Estate.” This presents a significant growth potential for lenders to meet the needs of landlords and developers in the coming years.
The report highlights two primary market segments driving this growth – construction finance or long-term debt, and lease rental discounting. The long-term debt requirement in the residential market alone is estimated to reach nearly $52 billion by 2026. Additionally, the real estate construction market, including Grade A commercial offices, malls, warehousing parks, and data centers, is expected to experience a 35-40% growth trajectory, equating to an estimated potential of $65-75 billion.
Construction finance in India is currently dominated by the residential sector, accounting for approximately 70% of the market. However, there is still a significant gap between the total residential construction debt requirement and the debt that has been sanctioned, indicating untapped potential in the market.
Furthermore, the Lease Rental Discounting (LRD) market in the commercial segment is projected to exceed $100 billion by 2026, with the commercial office segment alone expected to grow by 30% in the next three years. Other rent-yielding assets like warehousing, data centers, and hotels also present substantial opportunities for lenders in the LRD segment.
Lata Pillai, Senior Managing Director, Capital Markets, India, JLL, emphasized the growing confidence and interest of lenders in the real estate sector, with public and private sector banks accounting for 68% of total debt sanctioned last year. She also highlighted the need for innovative funding structures to support developers at different stages and make financing more inclusive.
The report underscores the real estate sector’s importance as a key contributor to India’s GDP growth, with significant potential for lenders in this thriving market. Despite challenges like the IL&FS and NBFC crisis in 2018 and the impact of the pandemic in 2020, the resurgence of the real estate market from 2021 onwards has created new opportunities for lenders and borrowers alike.
With the banking sector accounting for 70% of total debt sanctioned in 2023, reforms in the real estate sector like the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) have instilled confidence among lenders. The study also highlighted the opportunities for expansion and new players in the market, particularly through private credit providers like Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs).
Overall, the Indian real estate market offers tremendous opportunities for lenders, investors, and borrowers, with diverse financing options available to drive economic development through strategic debt financing.
