In India, no single factor conveys a feeling of security and social integration quite as much as a self-owned home does. The regular income of a rented-out second home also conveys a much stronger sense of financial stability in India than investments in the stock market. However, does the millennial generation agree to this?

"Millennials," also known as Generation Y are people born during the early 1990s to early 2000s, thereby reaching young adulthood in the early 21st century. The 2016-17 Economic Survey published by India's Ministry of Finance indicates that India will become the youngest country in the region by 2021, with 64% of its population consisting of millennials. This generation is often touted as a tech savvy, social media frenzy, fast paced and a demanding generation. As this group moves towards being a major part of the populace in the coming years, it is important to have a look at how they will affect the real estate industry.

Two most important things to consider about millennials, is the standard of living and employment factor. These factors play an important role in how this generation perceives home buying.

India's millennials demand a complete living experience with various luxuries. People are marrying later and are not in a hurry to have children either, making the typical family of today essentially nuclear. On the job front, the youth is said to have a 'job hopping' mind-set, and want to experience different companies with varied work cultures before they 'settle down'. These reasons support why many Indian millennials prefer to rent rather than buy homes.

However, there is a contrary approach as well. The same reasons, which show renting as a preferable option, also answer for the growth in India's Affordable Housing segment where smaller houses with ample amenities is the hot cake. The idea of paying EMIs on purchasing of new home being better than giving rental payments to the property owners makes sense to millennials.

A report by the CREDAI Youth Wing states that 82% Indian millennials live with their parents largely due to the cultural upbringing of Asian countries where parents house their children until they get married. The high rate of property prices is also a key factor for millennials not moving out.

About 68% millennials, who do not live with their parents, choose to rent a place and about 35% of the respondents identify 'investment' as the key driver for buying a property.

There have also been reports of several first time millennial homebuyers seeking property in foreign locations such as, London, Dubai, Hong Kong and Singapore. Rental yields in overseas locations are higher than what one would be able to get from investing in a property in India.

While some developers attribute low sales to market stagnancy, a possibility could be that the project no longer appeals to the youth.

Work life balance is an important feature of the millennial generation, thereby recent trends in the younger home-buying generation include, that they are more likely to buy homes in organized townships with facilities like schools, healthcare and shopping / entertainment at the closest. Townships with their own office complexes offering potential walk-to-work or cycle-to-work possibilities and those close to major employment hubs such as IT parks and manufacturing belts are the most preferred.