Tech-savvy landlords pull data about prospective tenants from cloud servers in Bengaluru

In most cases, the landlords are asking for payslips and career profiles of prospective tenants before they make a decision.

Shashank Srivastava, a techie living close to Sarjapura, Bengaluru, was taken aback after his landlord decided to hike his rent by a whopping 60 percent. Staying at a 2BHK close to the eastern IT corridor of Whitefield, Srivastava said: "From the Rs 21,000 I was paying, my landlord said I have to pay Rs 34,000. Now, I have no option but to move out."

With a severe mismatch in demand and supply of inventories, rentals in Bengaluru have shot through the roof. Rentals have increased by 20-30 percent in some areas, and by a whopping 50 percent in certain areas in the last one year.

Rentals across prime locations, like Indiranagar, Whitefield, and IT corridors such as Marathahalli and Bellandur in the southeast, Sarjapur in the east, and Hebbal in the north, have jumped by at least 40 percent.

So much so that Srivastava wishes his salary hike was as dynamic as the rental surges in Bengaluru today.

Gruelling landlord interviews

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While some tenants think it is simpler to pass a Google interview than a landlord interview, some other landlords need up-to-date resumes and LinkedIn profiles.

Neeraj Menta, an entrepreneur, was recently looking for a 2 BHK in the city's startup hub of HSR Layout.

However, he took to Twitter to narrate his tale of house hunting that was "longer and more gruelling than his previous seed round pitch."

After getting his profile and LinkedIn shortlisted before the interview, Menta said, "The landlord asked me questions about the business model, burn rate, last-round investors, etc."

However, as tech-savvy as his landlord was, he had already checked Crunchbase and pulled all the data about Menta's venture.

Realtors say after years of stagnancy during the pandemic, apartment owners are looking for stable incomes.

Balaji Badrinath, managing partner at the local office of American real-estate consultants Coldwell Banker, added, "Several owners are compromising on the financial aspects but are looking for tenants who will stay for a longer period."

Thus in most cases, the landlords are asking for payslips and career profiles of prospective tenants before they make a decision.

Menta said his wife thought he was in a fundraising pitch and asked how it went - "I said, it went well, fingers crossed."

Rental hike continues

With the city’s economy and private sector stirring back to life, landlords are looking to recoup revenue lost during the pandemic when tenants returned to their hometowns.

Local brokers say though high demand continues across Whitefield and close to the northern IT corridor of Hebbal, inventories are not available.

In Bellandur, a two-bedroom apartment that was available for rent for Rs 30,000-Rs 35,000 now commands about Rs 45,000. In prime areas like Indiranagar, a semi-furnished 2 BHK touches almost Rs 60,000-70,000.

Even in eastern suburbs like Varthur, data from NoBroker shows that rentals have increased 57 percent over the past few years. An apartment that commanded Rs 23,000 per month in 2022, is listed at Rs 30,000 in 2023.

Sunil Singh, founder of Realty Corps, added, "We do not see the rentals coming down soon. Until new rental inventories hit the market, the surge will continue."