This is just one fundamental.

"Fundamentals of Indian economy strong, policies are clear. India got $48 bn FDI in 2019, a 16% growth; 53% more private equity, venture capital investment at $19 bn," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the downturn facing the world. "Modi said for his government development and good governance are not subjects of convenience but of conviction." "RERA (Real Estate [Regulation and Development] Act, 2016) law helped save the real estate sector from black money, he said." So helpful has the Act been that, "Almost eighty percent of the builders in the country will vanish from the scene in the next three years in prevailing conditions, according to Anuj Puri, chairman of Anarock, real estate services company." "Over 13 lakh (1.3 million) houses worth Rs 9.38 lakh crore (Rs 9.38 trillion), or about 5% of India's gross domestic product (GDP), are lying unsold across India as the real estate sector grapples with the worst-ever slowdown in the last many decades." "In terms of units, the maximum unsold houses (3.92 lakhs) are in the priority sector category, price between Rs 1 lakh (100,000) and Rs 30 lakh. Their value, due to average ticket price of only Rs 21 lakh, is Rs 83,217 crore (Rs 832.17 billion). This is followed by priority affordable segment with 3.06 lakh unsold houses with an average price tag of Rs 38 lakh in the Rs 30-45 lakh category." The government levied goods and services tax (GST) on properties under construction, although this was reduced to "1 percent for affordable houses and 5% for other categories" last year. On top of GST, buyers have to pay stamp duty and registration charges between 5% and 8%, which adds to the price. Demonetization in 2016 destroyed most of the black money, which is money not declared in tax returns and on which no tax has been paid. Buyers are now unwilling to pay in cash which is creating problems for sellers. In Mumbai, builders prefer to build expensive properties targeted at the rich because affordable housing is not profitable. That maybe because, even with a fall in prices, land is still very expensive. To make them affordable, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) constructed small apartments for the poor. Trouble is, poor people in India tend to have larger families, which cannot fit in 33 sq m. People, therefore, returned their allotted flats back to DDA. "I felt I was fortune's favorite child when I won the draw but within months I surrendered the apartment because the house was smaller than the storeroom of my rented apartment in Dwarka. It was a matchbox," said one allottee. DDA should have learnt from the failure of Nano, which failed to sell because a cheap car meant a loss of social status. If Modi's "fundamentals" are like real estate, we are in big trouble. That is the fundamental truth.