Renting out your home in Kolkata

Our advice for Kolkata

Kolkata is often overlooked by short-term rental investors, which is exactly why it deserves a careful look. The city receives business travellers for its trading houses and the offices of Salt Lake and New Town, patients from eastern India and neighbouring countries who come to its hospitals, students, and a large diaspora returning for Durga Puja and weddings.

Four sub-markets worth separating

• Salt Lake Sector V and New Town: IT and service offices, the convention centre and proximity to the airport. Guests expect modern apartments, parking and efficient check-in.
• Park Street and the centre: restaurants, heritage and nightlife; short leisure stays and visiting professionals.
• Ballygunge, Alipore and the south: residential, green and prestigious; families visiting for occasions and long stays.
• Near the eastern hospital cluster: companions of patients, often staying several weeks.

Durga Puja changes everything for a few days

During the festival, demand from returning families and visitors peaks sharply. Define minimum stays and cancellation terms well in advance and plan cleaning staff availability, since your own team will also want to celebrate.

Equipment suited to the climate

Kolkata is hot and very humid for much of the year, and the monsoon brings intense downpours with waterlogging in some streets. Air-conditioning in every bedroom, dehumidifying, a generator or inverter and a first-floor-or-higher location reduce complaints considerably. A kitchen suitable for home cooking is valued by families and patients' relatives.

Buildings and neighbours

Many older buildings have informal arrangements between owners. Newer complexes have associations with strict visitor registration. In both cases, inform neighbours, share house rules and appoint a local contact who can resolve problems quickly.

Administrative points

West Bengal's tourism department has a homestay registration scheme, and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation may require a trade licence depending on your activity. We recommend verifying both before listing. Foreign guests, including those coming for medical treatment, must be declared through Form C (now called Form III).

Our advice: in Kolkata, the combination of long stays for patients and professionals with festival peaks can give a flat a steady and sensible rhythm.