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Too slow for the urban march: Litigations and the real estate market in Mumbai, India

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  • Gandhi, Sahil
  • Tandel, Vaidehi
  • Tabarrok, Alexander
  • Ravi, Shamika

Abstract

We use data from the universe of approximately 3000 ongoing formal real estate projects in Mumbai to show that 27.3% of the projects and 42.9% of the built-up space is under litigation. Average construction time is 8.5 years. Using OLS and matching techniques, and controlling for other factors determining time to completion including location, developer experience and project size, we estimate that litigated projects take approximately 20% longer to complete than non-litigated projects. A variety of robustness tests are consistent with this finding. We address potential endogeneity concerns using an instrument - the neighborhood’s propensity to sue. The increase in time to completion increases the total cost of building by at least 30%. We identify a small number of litigated projects in the Bombay High Court dockets and find that so-called Public Interest Litigation, litigation begun by people outside the contractual process (i.e. not apartment purchasers, residents, or contractors), appears to be responsible for a significant share of project litigation.

Suggested Citation

  • Gandhi, Sahil & Tandel, Vaidehi & Tabarrok, Alexander & Ravi, Shamika, 2021. "Too slow for the urban march: Litigations and the real estate market in Mumbai, India," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 123(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:juecon:v:123:y:2021:i:c:s0094119021000127
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jue.2021.103330
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    Cited by:

    1. Michael Ball & Paul Cheshire & Christian A. L. Hilber & Xiaolun Yu, 2024. "Why delay? Understanding the construction lag, aka the build out rate," CEP Discussion Papers dp1990, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    2. Nima Haghpanah & Aditya Kuvalekar & Elliot Lipnowski, 2024. "Buying from a Group," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 114(8), pages 2596-2632, August.
    3. Gandhi, Sahil & Green, Richard K. & Patranabis, Shaonlee, 2022. "Insecure property rights and the housing market: Explaining India’s housing vacancy paradox," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 131(C).
    4. Tandel, Vaidehi & Gandhi, Sahil & Tabarrok, Alex, 2023. "Building networks: Investigating the quid pro quo between local politicians & developers," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • R31 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - Housing Supply and Markets
    • R30 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Real Estate Markets, Spatial Production Analysis, and Firm Location - - - General

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