From family offices to Fortune 500

How Radheecka Garg sees women influencing real estate 2.0

Last Updated: Mar 09, 2026, 13:41 IST3 min

Real estate has always followed capital. What is changing now is who influences where that capital flows.

Across global markets, women are becoming increasingly significant participants in wealth ownership and investment decisions. As assets shift across generations and portfolios become more structured, this influence is beginning to reshape how long-term asset classes, including real estate, are evaluated.

For Radheecka Rakesh Garg, Director of Rajdarbar Realty, the implications are already visible inside the property market.

“Real estate is no longer evaluated purely as a development business,” she says. “It is increasingly treated as a long-term financial asset within structured portfolios. That shift changes how projects are planned, funded and sustained.”

A Structural Shift in Global Wealth

Women already control roughly one-third of global investable wealth. According to research by McKinsey & Company, in major economies that share could approach 40 to 47 percent by 2030. At the same time, economists anticipate one of the largest intergenerational wealth transfers in modern history, with estimates suggesting women could control nearly 30 trillion dollars in financial assets by the end of the decade.

For the global real estate market, this is not a marginal development. Property has long served as a stabilising asset within diversified portfolios. As the profile of capital evolves, so too does the lens through which property investments are assessed.

Rather than focusing solely on acquisition or short-term appreciation, investors are increasingly evaluating asset performance, income generation and long-term resilience.

The Rise of Institutional and Family Office Capital

Another structural force shaping the real estate industry is the rapid expansion of family offices and institutional capital.

According to Ernst & Young, the number of family offices in India has grown from approximately 45 in 2018 to more than 300 by early 2026. These entities, often managing generational wealth, tend to prioritise long-term asset preservation and stable returns.

Alongside them, Fortune 500 corporations continue to allocate substantial capital to property portfolios, whether through direct acquisition or participation in Real Estate Investment Trusts.

This institutionalisation of capital has fundamentally altered the development landscape.

“Capital today is more disciplined,” Garg notes. “Projects are increasingly evaluated on whether they can hold value across economic cycles. Developers have to think like asset managers, not just builders.”

Women Investors and the Indian Real Estate Market

India’s property market reflects this broader evolution.

Residential property transactions by sole female buyers grew 14 percent in 2024, reaching approximately 1.29 lakh registered properties. Research by ANAROCK indicates that nearly 70 percent of women now consider real estate their preferred investment avenue.

The motivations behind those purchases are shifting as well. In 2025, about 31 percent of women buyers acquired property primarily for investment purposes, compared with 21 percent just two years earlier.

These figures suggest a transition from ownership as aspiration to ownership as strategy.

In Garg’s view, this disciplined approach to real estate investment is influencing the broader industry. Portfolio thinking, risk assessment and long-term planning are becoming more central to decision-making across segments.

Rajdarbar Realty and a Diversified Approach

At Rajdarbar Realty, this perspective informs a diversified development strategy spanning residential housing, commercial office spaces, shopping malls and coworking environments that respond to evolving workplace trends. The company is also exploring opportunities within the expanding REIT ecosystem, reflecting the growing institutional nature of the property market.

For Garg, modern real estate development requires understanding how different asset classes interact within a city.

“Housing, workplaces and retail spaces do not operate independently,” she says. “They shape how cities function. Sustainable development requires aligning projects with infrastructure growth and economic activity.”

The Next Phase of Real Estate

The real estate industry is entering a more structured and globally connected phase. Capital flows are increasingly influenced by portfolio strategy, demographic shifts and long-term urban planning considerations.

As women gain greater influence within wealth structures, their participation in capital allocation is expected to continue shaping property markets. From family offices preserving generational wealth to large corporations managing diversified real estate portfolios, the direction of the industry will depend not only on demand, but on how investors define long-term value.

For Garg, the future of real estate lies in disciplined growth.

“Developers who align projects with long-term urban fundamentals will continue to attract capital,” she says. “Real estate ultimately reflects confidence in the future of a city.”

In that sense, the next wave of the global real estate market may be defined not just by expansion, but by a more strategic approach to how capital is deployed — and by the investors increasingly guiding those decisions.

The pages slugged ‘Brand Connect’ are equivalent to advertisements and are not written and produced by Forbes India journalists.

First Published: Mar 09, 2026, 13:44

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