Thane district has witnessed a significant drop in the pricing of government-backed affordable housing, with the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) slashing rates on over 6,200 homes built under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) scheme. The price revision, applicable to properties in Shirgaon and Khoni, is aimed at making urban housing more accessible to the economically weaker sections (EWS) of society.
The decision, announced by the Konkan Housing and Area Development Board (KHADB) — a regional wing of MHADA — reflects a strategic shift to improve uptake of inventory that had previously been slow to move. The properties will now be available on a first-come, first-served basis, offering buyers a timely chance to secure ownership at a reduced financial burden. In Shirgaon, prices for 5,236 units have been brought down by approximately ₹1.4 lakh each, reducing the cost from ₹20.7 lakh to ₹19.3 lakh per unit. Similarly, in Khoni, another 1,012 units have seen a cut of around ₹1 lakh, with new pricing set at ₹19.1 lakh per home. The move effectively recalibrates the affordability bracket for buyers earning below the median income in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), where property rates have historically been out of reach for low-income families.
The revisions were formally approved by MHADA vice-president and CEO and come at a time when the state is facing renewed pressure to demonstrate visible progress on housing for marginalised populations. MHADA officials confirmed that the discounts have been calibrated to reflect real market conditions and are part of a larger affordability push within the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana framework. “The revised prices are designed to ease the burden on genuine EWS buyers and to ensure timely occupancy of these units,” said an Officer of KHADB. She urged eligible applicants to act quickly, as bookings will now follow a direct walk-in allocation model rather than lottery.
This change in strategy—from randomised draw to first-come, first-served—is being viewed as a tactical step to clear unsold inventory faster. It also creates a more transparent and time-sensitive booking system, reducing bureaucratic lag and giving motivated buyers an advantage. Beyond affordability, this move signals MHADA’s intent to retool its inventory management to match real-time demand and unlock stagnant housing stock. Housing experts suggest that while the scale of the cut may appear modest on paper, it could be the psychological trigger needed to drive demand among first-time buyers, especially those squeezed by post-pandemic inflation.
The homes in question are modest, two-room configurations located in fast-urbanising pockets of Thane, and benefit from proximity to key infrastructure corridors and upcoming transport links. While these areas are still developing in terms of civic services, the pricing now aligns more realistically with the income profiles of their target audience. As land prices in the Mumbai metropolitan belt continue to climb, schemes such as this represent one of the few remaining avenues for legally secured, low-cost homeownership. MHADA’s new push could also reintroduce buyer confidence in state-backed housing efforts, which have often been criticised for long delays, hidden costs, and opaque allocation methods.
This renewed transparency is being welcomed by housing rights advocates, who have long demanded better alignment between policy intent and on-ground implementation. “This move corrects the pricing mismatch that kept many units vacant and out of reach for the very segment they were meant for,” an official said. While some caution that price cuts alone won’t solve deeper structural problems — such as last-mile connectivity or inconsistent delivery timelines — others view it as a constructive signal of MHADA’s willingness to adapt. The first-come model also introduces a sense of urgency that may help the government meet its PMAY (Urban) targets for beneficiary count and occupancy.
With this revision, MHADA has placed itself back in the centre of the affordable housing conversation — not just as a builder, but as a policy-responsive stakeholder in Mumbai’s crowded real estate ecosystem. The question now is whether this recalibration will inspire other state housing bodies to undertake similar audits of unsold stock, and whether buyers will respond to the call.
For those eligible, the window is now open — and, in the words of MHADA’s own officials, “only until the last unit is taken.”
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MHADA Cuts Prices for Over 6000 EWS Homes in Thane
