Chartered Accountant Nitin Kaushik has sparked a dialog on the hovering price of residing in India’s metros, warning {that a} sub-₹50,000 month-to-month revenue in cities like Bengaluru, Mumbai, or Pune in 2025 means “barely breaking even” fairly than saving.
In a publish on X (previously Twitter), Kaushik stated rental prices alone eat up 40-60% of earnings for a lot of city residents, whereas transport, meals, and utility bills go away virtually no room for financial savings. “Dwelling in a metro at this time with out a sturdy wage equals monetary stress 24×7,” he wrote.
Citing Bengaluru for example, Kaushik famous that prime-area rents have risen 70-100% since early 2022, with one-bedroom flats climbing from ₹18,000 to over ₹30,000 a month. He attributed the surge to post-COVID job relocations, the return to workplace, and actual property demand from NRIs and traders.
Kaushik additionally pointed to cussed core inflation in necessities like meals, vitality, and transport, which, coupled with life-style inflation, has made metro life almost twice as costly in three years.
For a cushty life in 2025, Kaushik estimated singles in Bengaluru want a CTC of ₹20-30 lakh yearly, whereas a household with a toddler would require ₹40-50 lakh for high quality housing, education, leisure, and financial savings.
Even households incomes ₹1 lakh a month, he warned, usually dwell paycheck-to-paycheck because of life-style prices. His recommendation: upskill to develop revenue, optimize lease and commute, make investments early, and assess in-hand pay alongside cost-of-living changes.
“Your ₹50K/month in 2019 was gold. In 2025, it barely pays lease,” Kaushik concluded.
