The concept of ‘By invitation only’ (BIO) housing projects is one of those ‘grey’ areas of real estate which carry with them very strong emotional markers. It tends to make Indians’ antennae perk up, and not necessarily from a demand perspective. We’re not considering gated communities here — the acquisition of a property in a gated community rarely depends on anything more than a buyer’s net worth. BIO projects clearly exclude a certain segment of buyers, often for reasons other than their lack of purchasing power.
Market size
This is a very ill-defined segment of housing, which means it cannot be ‘tracked’ in the classical sense of the word. The overall ultra-luxury sector represents about 5-6% of India’s real estate pie. Any luxury project could be marketed as ‘by invitation only’ — either as a sales gimmick or on the basis of actual selection criteria other than purchasing power. However, BIO projects may not necessarily refer to luxury at all, which makes it even harder to track. Mumbai, Chennai, Pune and Kolkata are fairly fertile grounds for BIO plays. In fact, when it comes to luxury in the general sense, most larger cities have their designated luxury ‘pockets’ — central areas which are usually defined by high demand and low supply.
