The NRI Property Analyser
⚠ In USD, this beats 4% abroad only if the rupee loses less than 3.0% a year against the USD — it has averaged about 3.5%.
You can buy this — 1 thing to fix first
NRIs can buy flats and villas without RBI permission, paying through Indian banking channels.
Paid from abroad / NRE, so the sale proceeds can go back up to what you paid in foreign exchange — this would be residential property 1 of the 2 allowed.
- 1Set up a power of attorney MustSign a specific POA for this property at the Indian embassy or consulate (or apostille it, where your country allows), then get it adjudicated and stamped in Karnataka within 3 months of it reaching India.
- 2Keep every receiptSave the FIRC / bank advice for each remittance. They prove the money came from abroad when you want to take the sale proceeds back.
What it's worth to you in USD, not just in rupees
1,500 simulated futures. Property growth averages 7.5% a year (60% of the area's recent 12.5% — history rarely repeats in full), with good and bad stretches; the rupee drifts 3.5% a year against the USD with yearly swings of about 5%.
Selling in year 10: tax, TDS and what you can take home
At the median sale price of ₹2.44 Cr. Long-term gain.
- Sale price₹2.44 Cr
- Brokerage (≈1%)−₹2.4 L
- Capital-gains tax (14.9% of ₹ gain)−₹17 L
- Net in your hands₹2.25 Cr
≈₹20 L would sit with the tax department until your refund — get the certificate before the sale.
- • Held over 24 months: long-term gain taxed at 12.5% (no indexation for non-residents) plus surcharge and 4% cess.
- • Apply for a lower-deduction certificate (Form 13) before the sale so the buyer withholds tax on your gain, not on the whole price.
- • Reinvesting in another Indian home (section 54) or 54EC bonds can cut this tax — try the options above.
- • The amount above your foreign-exchange payments goes back from your NRO account — up to US$ 1 million per financial year, with a CA's Form 15CB.
Video call in your time zone — we check the unit's cost sheet, the papers and the payment route before you send a rupee.
How this works: FEMA (Non-debt Instruments) Rules 2019 for eligibility and payments; RBI's repatriation rules (up to two residential properties on the foreign-exchange route, US$ 1 million a year from NRO). Tax: 12.5% long-term capital gains for property held over 24 months (transfers from 23 July 2024, no indexation for non-residents), top-slab short-term gains, surcharge up to 15% and 4% cess; rent taxed after the 30% standard deduction. Karnataka stamp duty, cess and registration from our cost engine. Section numbers follow the Income-tax Act, 1961; the Income-tax Act, 2025 renumbers them from April 2026. Loans are modelled as full EMIs from day one (conservative for under-construction homes). Currency drift is a 20-year average, not a forecast. These are estimates — confirm with a chartered accountant and your bank before acting.