India is one of the leading countries in the real estate industry globally. As per IBEF, India’s real estate industry is worth somewhere around $300 billion, which is poised to reach a whopping $1 trillion by 2030. This figure is a little less than 10% of the global real estate industry, worth around $3.69 trillion and expected to reach $6.19 trillion by 2030. Even after being a behemoth in the real estate industry, real estate broking is one of the hardest jobs in India. There are a lot of people who are making strides in this industry and making a good living. However, the majority of real estate agents work under immense pressure and barely make ends meet.
Among the things that make real estate a hard industry is the structure that it follows. More often than not, the real estate agents work on commission. Meaning they can only eat what they can kill. To earn a good living in the industry, one has to close deals on a regular basis. This makes real estate a high-pressure industry. Moreover, even after the agents have closed a deal, they barely get 1-2% of the deal’s worth if they’re lucky, which creates job insecurities, adding to the challenges in the industry. Another major challenge real estate brokers face is the constantly changing and updating rules and regulations. Agents must stay updated with the latest changes in the RERA (Real Estate Regulation and Development Act) to ensure that they understand the complex regulations and documentation.
According to data from the National Real Estate Development Council, there are around 1.5 million real estate agents in India, which creates a cutthroat environment within the industry. This makes closing sales much more difficult, especially when new players are entering the industry with every passing day. Another thing that makes real estate a tough nut to crack is that the industry is very demanding regarding working hours. Although the working hours are flexible, there is no designated time limit for how much you have to work in a day. Most real estate agents can always cater to their clients’ needs and schedule property visits. Moreover, real estate transactions in India require extensive paperwork. A real estate agent must prepare agreements, sales deeds, legal documents, and property verifications. Understanding these agreements and sales deeds is important for a smooth transaction.
But what can we do to streamline the whole process and make the lives of real estate brokers a little easier? Well, for starters, adopting new and emerging technologies like virtual tours can significantly impact the industry. A US National Association of Realtors report stated that 83% of buyers found virtual tours more helpful in their residential property search. Also, the industry has to start incorporating online document verification into its process. This was evident in Frank Knight India’s “Technology and the Future of Real Estate in India” report, which stated that online document verification can reduce the time it takes to complete a transaction by almost 30%.
Moreover, training employees on how to close deals is probably one of the most important things. According to various industry reports, brokers who undergo constant training can close a deal 21% faster than their non-trained peers. However, broker training is not the only way to increase sales. In 2022, the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (CREDAI) carried out a survey. According to the survey, only 38% of all the participants were aware of the RERA regulations, highlighting the need to educate clients and potential buyers.
These changes require the collective effort of the whole real estate industry. Moreover, the government also has a huge role to play in this. The government can modify RERA to make it more transparent and accessible to brokers and clients. A 2023 report by CREDAI stated that 62% of the respondents were not satisfied with the RERA’s ability to curb malpractices or fraud. The Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, also shared his views on the condition of real estate brokers in the country and said, “The real estate sector is a vital part of our economy and the biggest generator of jobs. We are committed to transforming this sector through policies that promote transparency, accountability, and sustainable development.” This allows the brokers to maintain an optimistic mindset about the future of the real estate industry in India.
