Property prices in Mumbai

Housing prices and housing quality in Mumbai vary dramatically. 

What are the most desired places to live?

Mumbai is a series of islands that are joined together.  So it's important to consider where in the city you will need to get to on a regular basis before choosing where you live.  For example, Colaba in the south has old colonial buildings, some corporate offices and the major tourist attractions but is 1 sometimes 2 in bad traffic hours away from the airport and Bandra and Powai.  Powai is purpose built and has a range of high rise accomodation around a lake.  Its one of the few parts of Mumbai where pavements exist (this is a big deal for European expats) Bandra is another popular expat area and is the social hub of the city attracting lots of Bollywood stars and many up and coming restaurants and bars, but it can be difficult to get in and out as it has a bottleneck of traffic near the bandra linking road mosque or lilivati hospital. 

What are the most affordable ones?

Expats tend to pick their location and then negotiate as hard as they can on accommodation that they are willing to accept.  Nothing is perfect.  Everything is surrounded by building sites, busy roads with honking rickshaws or is away from the things you need.  So its a case of picking your lot in a place you can tolerate at a price you can afford.  Your accommodation and its trials and tribulations will become the most talked about topic in your new social circle and everyone has a tale to tell.  After a while, they become funny and memorable and you warm to incredible India for what it is.

What is the average cost of a rented flat?
Expect to pay several Lacks if you want all the amenities of Europe or the States. 

And what is the average sale price for an apartment or a house?

It really does vary from property to property and area to area.  Try speaking to Preet.  Preet is an active member of Mumbai connections and manages the magazine.  She also runs a real estate business with her husband.
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Could you tell us more about local real estate policies/procedures? What about property tax or residency tax in Mumbai?

For this, I'd definitely recommend speaking to Preet and Michael

What about you? Where do you live now? Is it a place you would recommend?

We chose Bandra as we wanted to be at the heart of the city.  Close to amenities and the airport.  It worked well for us.