The Economic Tightrope at 35: Homeownership and the Shackles of Debt

As Indian professionals navigate through their careers, reaching the age of 35 often signals a time to invest in long-term assets, with home ownership being a quintessential goal. This milestone, however, comes at a steep price. Many find themselves committing their next two decades of income to servicing bank loans, entrapping them in a cycle where their earnings are no longer their own. But is this financial burden a rite of passage or a chain that needs rethinking?

The Financial Burden: A Life on a Precarious Balance

For the IT professional inching past 35, the financial equation becomes increasingly complex. Once the banks secure their significant share through home loan EMIs, what remains of their salary is usually earmarked for family expenses. In India, individuals typically allocate a percentage of their salary, which can vary between 30% to 50%, for home loan EMIs. cosidering the average salary of an IT proffessional in India is around 58k INR per month. on an average 40% or their salary would be approximately 23k INR, the individual is now left with just 35k INR in hand. The result? A life suspended on a delicate thread, with little room for error or personal freedom. How does this impact their long-term financial health and career choices?

The Corporate Squeeze and the Educational Expense

Compounded by the economic demands is the often unspoken plight of enduring underperforming management or unfulfilling roles—simply because the financial risks of change are too great. The bank takes its unwavering share, and educational institutions demand the rest for children's schooling. On a usual basis, in tier 1 and tier 2 cities, the tuition fees of private schools are somewhere around Rs 2,500 to Rs 8,000 every month. let's continue with the previous example. deducting the average educational expense of 5000 from the remaining 35k, The IT professional is left with more than just a tight budget of 30K. now if you add up the expenses of Food, Utility bills, Transportation, Ration, and Health Insurance there is hardly any thing left; they face a constrained existence, shackled by the relentless expectations of the corporate and financial systems.

Disruption in the Wings: The AI/ML/NLP/DL Onslaught

Emerging technologies—AI, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, and Deep Learning—are poised to upend the status quo. The Indian AI market was valued at around USD 672.11 million in 2022, with a projected CAGR of 32.26% from 2023 to 2029, aiming for a value of USD 3,966.51 million by 2029. As American tech behemoths with cutting-edge products enter the Indian market, they bring with them transformative business models that threaten to unsettle the traditional IT landscape. This isn’t just a challenge for the workforce but for the financial institutions that deemed home loans as the bastion of safe lending

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The Ripple Effect on Indian Banking: A Reckoning Ahead?

Banks in India, which have long considered home loans the safest bet, may soon face a reckoning. Housing Loans contributes around 50?per cent?of the personal/retail loans. Approximately 37% of potential home buyers are aged between 35 and 45, while 20% belong to the 25-35 age group. If the breadwinners of families are caught in the crosshairs of industry disruption, loan repayment capacities may wane, creating a domino effect that could shake the very foundations of the housing loan market. How can banks preemptively mitigate this risk? What strategies should they adopt to protect both their interests and those of their clients?

The Freedom to Choose: A Fading Dream?

In the wake of these potential upheavals, one has to question: Is the dream of owning a home worth the sacrifice of personal and financial liberty? The 'curse of 35' could extend beyond job security and into the very homes and lives that professionals have built with