How is rent for residential property in India calculated? What are the basic components of Rent?

Author: Sachin Gupta | Find me on Twitter Follow @sach_gupta

Are you a tenant looking to occupy a residential property? Or are you a landlord looking to earn income from your residential property? For both the parties, rent is the primary area of discussion before they enter into a lease agreement. How much rent shall be paid for a given residential property? What are the main components of rent? How much is the security deposit? What are the other monthly charges? How is security refunded back when tenant vacates the property? These are some of the questions we will discuss below in this article:

How much rent shall be paid for a given property?

Rent is the monthly payment paid by the tenant to the property owner for the use of property. A residential property is used by tenant for living purposes or for the purposes defined in the lease agreement. Any deviation in the use of property by tenant can lead to eviction. And what is the agreeable rent that tenant and owner can arrive at? Principally there are 2 methods:

• Rent comparison method

It is the most common yardstick that is used by both tenant and owner for determining the rent of the residential property. This method is based on the ability of similar properties to generate monthly rent. For example, in a given locality, one needs to look at the rent that others are paying on a monthly basis. If properties in question are highly similar, then, one would expect the same rent for a specified property. However, if the properties are dissimilar, then monthly rent is adjusted. If the subject property is superior to other properties in the locality, then, chargeable monthly rent will be on higher side. And if the subject property is inferior to other properties in the locality, then, chargeable monthly rent will be on lower side.

• Cost method

This is a method based on the cost of the property. Cost of the property is the sum of current market value of land + cost of construction. In India, rental yields for residential properties are not very high. Typically, a property fetches anywhere between 2-3% of annual return on the cost of property. For example, if the cost of property is say Rupees 1 Crores, then, expected yearly rent could be in the range of Rupees 2-3 Lacs Or in other words, Rupees 16000-25000 per month. One must take note of the fact that, this 2-3% annual rent is calculated when the property in question is fully developed or its FSI (Floor Space Index) is fully utilized.

What are the main components of Rent?

Monthly Rent for the residential property comprises of following elements:

1. Base rent which is calculated by ‘rent comparison method’ or ‘cost method’.
2. Utility charges to be paid by tenant as per actual. Utility charges include electricity bill, water bill, Gas charges.
3. Maintenance charges. Maintenance charges are paid extra by the tenant.
4. Security deposit – it is the lump sum payment demanded by landlord at the beginning of the lease. It is an interest free payment and is refunded by the landlord to the tenant when the property is vacated. However, if the property has been damaged during the tenure of tenant, then, landlord may hold some part of security deposit to cover the expenses. This is clearly highlighted in the lease agreement as well. Security deposit differs from city to city. In Delhi, security deposit is about 2-3 months of rent. However, in Bangalore, the security deposit demanded by landlord is around 10 months of rent.

It is imperative for both tenant and landlord to discuss these things well in advance and all the charges shall be clearly mentioned in the lease agreement to avoid any difficulties during the course of stay.

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