Bengaluru’s Luxury Housing Market Booms with Rising ESOP Incomes

Bengaluru has a thriving luxury real estate market, fueled by the increased income from ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan) buybacks. The city’s IT and startup employees are splurging on luxurious residences, due to the most recent repurchase from large corporations.

Amar Choudhury, a 44-year-old executive from Kolkata is just one example. After relocating to Bengaluru in 2015, Amar purchased a 4,000 sq ft apartment in Bellandur for ₹5.5 crore. Although some of his assets included a hefty amount of ESOPs from past jobs at Flipkart and other tech companies, Amar managed to score the purchase without selling them. “When your net worth includes your ESOPs, you can be more flexible with your investments,” he says.

Bengaluru’s real estate sector has seen an influx of wealth due to ESOP buybacks, as an increasing number of employees from companies such as Nykaa, Zomato, Swiggy, and Flipkart had their net worth swell. According to Vikram Singhvee, a wealth adviser and co-founder of Venn Wealth, many employees liquidate their ESOPs and re-invest the liquid money into premium properties. This ambient frenzy also owes to the capital gains tax exemptions available on real estate purchases.

The new-found affluence, in turn, has driven demand for high-end villas and flats, particularly among millennial and Gen Z buyers. Whenever a lot of ESOP liquidation events happen, premium properties priced between ₹1 crore to ₹3 crore generally see a spike in demand, notes Amit Kumar Agarwal, co-founder and CEO of NoBroker.com.

Prestige Group’s Praveer Shrivastava noted that their luxury villa projects sell out quickly, with prices ranging from ₹6 crore to ₹15 crore. These luxurious homes boast large designs, private pools, home gyms, and state-of-the-art automation systems.

With increased city retirees adopting a luxury lifestyle, the Bengaluru real estate market is set to fasten its upward growth in redefining premium living in India.