Gurugram’s real estate market is on shaky ground, and a now-viral video highlights the key reasons behind this. At the heart of the issue is the “sell on launch” model – a goal for all housing projects in Gurugram – which is now faltering due to a liquidity crunch.
Vishal Bhargava, who tracks real estate, shared a four-minute-long video on Gurugram’s real estate, adding that the “house of cards is on the edge”. It has key takeaways for those who are planning to buy a house in Gurugram.
Gurugram vs Bengaluru real estate
“Gurgaon’s real estate market is now a house of cards. All it needs is a small push for many projects to crumble,” Bhargava said in the video, adding that due to “dangerous speculation”, the prices have gone up by three times since 2021. He also highlighted a stark contrast with Bengaluru, pointing out that while rents in both cities are similar, property prices in Gurugram are over 30% higher than in Bengaluru.
But why? This is because short and medium term goal in Gurgaon real estate: “The short term goal is a project launch must be sold out on day one. The medium term goal is home prices must keep rising.”
He explained that, unlike Mumbai and Bengaluru, where most buyers are end users or investors, Gurugram’s property market is largely driven by traders. “Investors are next in the priority list. End users are as important as a script in a Salman Khan movie. Builders love traders, and they offer three incentives to them,” he shared.
Gurugram real estate: First transfer free scheme
This is because traders are required to make only a small down payment to book a home, with the next instalment due after one or two years. Builders also allow them to sell the unit before the next payment is due.
“This is under a common scheme called the first transfer free. But why do builders prefer traders over investors? Simple, if an investor has five crores, he will probably buy one apartment for five crores. But a trader who has five crores will book five apartments of five crores by making an upfront payment of one crore per apartment. He doesn’t have the money. He’s just doing an F&O trade,” he explained.
He further added, “Have five crores, but take a position of 25 crores. The investor can buy only one apartment, while the trader can book five apartments. And so he makes a project, a blockbuster sellout on day one, which is a goal in Gurgaon.”
Bhargava said that “everyone wins” here because the five crore apartment can become six crores in three months, and the trader can exit after booking a one crore profit.
Traders are trapped in Gurugram
But, what if he is not able to make a profit? “It’s something that’s currently underway, as prices have stopped rising in Gurgaon. Many traders are trapped,” he revealed.
He reasoned that people don’t have enough money to buy properties at such exorbitant rates. This, in turn, makes it difficult for the traders to pay the next instalment. Now, they either sell the unit at a loss or negotiate with the builder to delay the payment, often combining two instalments into one. However, when too many traders defer payments, builders struggle with cash flow as they are dependent on traders.
“The project slows down and then stalls,” he said, before adding, “The trader who created the bubble also bursts the bubble, in the process, killing wealth and sentiment for many stakeholders.”
He declared, “Gurgaon Real Estate is a gripping movie with a bad ending,” but the timing is not certain.
Gurgaon Real Estate: The House of Cards is on the Edge pic.twitter.com/UUQ2biczg2
— Vishal Bhargava (@VishalBhargava5) June 24, 2025
‘Traders are losing out on money badly’: social media
Many social media users reacted to his video, which has over 1.2 million views, and agreed with him that Gurugram’s real estate problem is real. One social media user said, “Sad story!”
“Will it be as big as China’s real estate bubble burst crisis?” asked another.
When yet another social media user asked him about the condition of real estate in Pune, he said that it is “opposite” and has “more substance and less style”.
“You have borne it all about the Gurgaon’s real estate market. Traders in several projects are already under stress and losing out on money badly,” read a comment from a real estate-related account.
