Expect demand momentum in senior living facilities over the next 5 years: Tara Singh Vachani

Antara’s Dehradun facility, a bespoke community that caters to rich, affluent, and 55-year-olds and above, generated 37 net sales in the financial year 2022, increasing the total number to 185 and the net collection to ₹595 crore (ITD). Antara launched a senior living space in Dehradun in 2013, comprising nearly 200 apartments across 14 acres.

Antara Noida, which is half the price of the Dehradun’s facility, recorded 315 net sales under its belt in FY22. So far, the Noida project has raked in ₹171 crores (ITD).

Tara Singh Vachani, Executive chairperson of Antara Senior Care says the company aims to have 10 residential communities in the next 5-8 years. “We want to be the most loved and admired brand for senior care in the market,” she added.

To make the senior living community model more “inclusive”, the youngest daughter of Max Group’s founder Analjit Singh said, they have begun playing with the price points. “The more we learn, the more we scale, the more we understand the better we will get at a price point and, therefore, we will be able to serve many more people,” she said.

Vachani asserted that the future of the senior living community is bright. “There is a huge demand in this sector, and if more players enter into this segment the better it is going to be,” she added.

Antara is also betting on its assisted care services, including Care Homes for Seniors, Care at Home for Seniors, and MedCare Products, which cater to seniors over the age of 55-60 years who need assisted care due to medical or age-related issues.

In FY22, the net revenue of Antara Assisted Care Services stood at ₹16.4 crores, nearly four times its revenue in FY21, the company said.

Vachani says the ‘Care Homes’ vertical is for older people who need full-time care. Whereas ‘Care at Home’ is for seniors who do not want to move out of their homes; it offers services like nursing, home diagnostics, phlebotomy, and physiotherapy. Under MedCare, the company sells medical equipment and products like wheelchairs, blood pressure machines, physiotherapy accessories, etc.

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Vachani says the journey of conceptualizing and establishing Antara Senior Care has taught her to be “prudent with capital and to always listen to the customers”. Tara also believes in teamwork and says ‘Build a team in which people are more intelligent than you”.

Price of senior homes in India:

For outright sale, property prices vary depending on the city, facilities on offer, BHK configuration, size etc. According to Real estate services company Anarock, maximum supply across cities is seen in the range of ₹20 lakh to ₹80 lakh budget. There are also exclusive high-end senior living projects (although limited) between ₹2 crore to ₹8 crores.

Demand for senior living projects in India:

According to Anarock Group, senior living projects have sprung up over the years, mainly in the outskirts of the major cities and in tier II and III cities across the country. “Bhiwadi in NCR, Neral in Mumbai, Talegaon in Pune, and Devanahalli in Bengaluru are some of the prominent locations around Tier 1 cities, while tier 2 & 3 cities have more supply – a 60% share,” the property consultant said.

“Among current projects, some are entirely for seniors (>55 years of age), while in others, only certain blocks/towers have dedicated senior-specific facilities. The latter option allows seniors to live in the same integrated township as their families, but among their age peers,” it added.

Future of the senior living care sector in India:

As of the fiscal year 2020-21, there were as many as 57 senior living projects (developed or ongoing) across the country by the top 12 players in senior living communities in the country, a study by Anarock Property Consultants claimed. Of this, 61% are in tier 2 and 3 cities, and the remaining 39% are in Tier 1 cities. Also, there are at least four new projects in the pipeline in the top cities, including two in Bengaluru and one in Chennai and Kolkata, respectively, the report added.

According to Santhosh Kumar, Vice Chairman, Anarock Group, “Senior Living segment is still in its very infancy in India, and as such, there are only a limited number of players operating within this segment. However, in India, it is still growing, albeit with its share of challenges. The population projected for the coming decades shows the immense potential for this specialised alternate asset class”, he added, “The market for senior living may grow anywhere around 8-15% in the near future”.