'India’s middle class buying liabilities': Real estate advisor shows how rich turn property into profit

India’s middle class is pouring millions into real estate—but according to advisor Aishwarya Shri Kapoor, most are only buying liabilities, not wealth.

Kapoor challenges the most cherished middle-class milestone: buying a home. “Most Indian homebuyers aren’t building wealth. They’re buying liabilities,” she writes.

She breaks down the hidden cost structure of a typical ₹2 crore property: stamp duty, GST, registration fees, and pre-EMI add up to over ₹50 lakh—capital that sees no return until the property appreciates, which often takes years. “Possession doesn’t equal progress,” Kapoor warns. “Ownership isn’t outcome.”

The Delhi-based advisor, known for advising high-net-worth individuals (HNIs), argues that the real estate market is structured to reward speed, not sentiment. “The wealthy don’t wait for handover. They rotate capital.”

Kapoor outlines what she calls the Value Migration Model, a four-step approach the top 5% use to grow wealth aggressively:

• Enter Early — Invest during the launch phase at ₹12–14K per square foot.
• Exit Fast — Sell at ₹18–20K, before the resale market crowds in.
• Reinvest Smart — Move gains into leased commercial properties, branded residences, or structured floors.
• Repeat — Rotate every 2–3 years to maintain internal rates of return (IRR) above 25%.

This strategy isn’t hypothetical. Kapoor cites early investors in DLF projects who booked profits of ₹3–4 crore—before even taking possession. Those who bought later, she says, are stuck. “Same project. Different capital IQ.”

The sharpest contrast, Kapoor notes, lies in mindset. “The middle class buys for emotion,” she writes. “The wealthy buy for timing, exit, and rotation.” According to her, without a clear resale or reinvestment plan, even a ₹2 crore flat becomes “dead capital.”

She points to portfolios that started with ₹60 lakh and grew to ₹5 crore within a decade—not through luck, but through repeatable, engineered investment cycles.

Kapoor’s argument is stark: India’s real estate doesn’t reward ownership. It rewards velocity. The gap between the rich and the rest isn’t just what they can afford—it’s how quickly they’re willing to move.