Purchasing real estate in Mumbai today represents a significant financial burden for ordinary buyers. However, the situation was completely different about five decades ago. According to a real estate advertisement published in 1976 and circulated on social media, an apartment of 453 square feet in Borivali cost 26,000 rupees.
Today, some elite projects in the same area reach prices from 54,000 to 56,000 rupees per square foot. In the 1970s, Borivali was one of Mumbai's rapidly developing suburbs, and the real estate market was not as expensive as it is now. A recent viral post of the old advertisement presented a picture of property prices from that period.
The 1976 advertisement offered to sell a residential apartment in Borivali for 26,000 rupees. This apartment, measuring about 453 square feet, included two rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a toilet, which by modern terminology could be considered approximately a 1-bedroom apartment. Nevertheless, in the 1970s, real estate listings in newspapers did not use the same housing classification as today.
The advertisement also stated that payment could be made by cheque, and the buyer would receive ownership of the house within 10 months. Potential buyers were invited to visit the property from 10:00 to 14:00 on January 4, 1976.
According to real estate experts, the average price of an apartment in Borivali currently stands at around 32,000 – 35,000 rupees per square foot. In premium projects, this price reaches 40,000 – 54,000 rupees per square foot, with some properties valued up to 56,000 rupees per square foot.
Prices in Mumbai's premium real estate market are even higher; some luxury apartments in the city are valued at approximately 300,000 rupees per square foot.
After the 1976 advertisement was posted on X, users reacted to the prices of that time with various opinions. Some users shared their experiences of buying property from parents and grandparents. Many noted that houses in Mumbai in the 1970s and 1980s could be purchased for significantly lower prices than today.
However, some people pointed out that the purchasing power of 26,000 rupees in 1976 and 26,000 rupees today is not the same. This also sparked discussions on social media regarding the comparison of salaries, inflation, and property prices of that period with current conditions.
The history of Borivali demonstrates how much land and housing prices in Mumbai's suburbs have changed over approximately five decades.