Ten years ago, overseas property was a small side bet in an Indian investor’s portfolio. About 5% of wealth, give or take. Today it is 13%.
That is the headline from Keys Beyond Borders, a report by Knight Frank India and IREX, released on 22 October 2026. It also shows why people buy. Some 61% of respondents plan to purchase abroad for rental income and capital appreciation. Returns come first. Lifestyle comes after.
A bigger slice of the wealth pie
Property of all kinds makes up 45% of respondents’ wealth. Domestic real estate holds 32% and overseas real estate 13%. Fixed income takes 20%, alternative assets 18% and equities 17%. So home is still the bigger share. But the overseas share has more than doubled in ten years.
Mostly existing owners, and mostly business people
The respondent pool leans towards people who have done this before. About 84% already own property overseas. The other 16% are looking at their first purchase.
Business owners, traders and industrialists make up 53% of those considering a purchase. Corporate executives and working professionals are 30%, up from 7% a decade ago. First-generation entrepreneurs are 11%. And 76% of respondents are aged between 35 and 50.
Where they are looking
The UAE, Greece, Thailand, Portugal, Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Bali, Canada and Malaysia are among the preferred destinations. Georgia, Cyprus, Malta and Latvia are also drawing interest.
Residency is a big pull. The report ranks residency options, including Golden Visa programmes, among the leading factors behind a purchase. Others include portfolio diversification, currency hedging, business expansion, tax benefits, children’s education and lifestyle.
The typical purchase: a mid-size apartment
Most buyers are not chasing trophy assets. About 85% plan to invest between $250,000 and $1 million. Apartments and condominiums are the pick for 69%. Villas and townhouses follow at 26%.
Size is just as clear. Around 76% want homes of 1,500 to 2,500 sq ft. Within that, 49% prefer 2,000 to 2,500 sq ft and 27% prefer 1,500 to 2,000 sq ft.
The money is moving too
Official numbers back up the survey. Property-related remittances by Indian residents rose 64% year on year to $528.70 million in FY2025-26. The figure was $322.82 million the year before.
The share is still small. These remittances were about 1.8% of total outflows under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS). Overall LRS outflows fell by around 2% in the same year. So property is growing while the wider pool shrinks.
What to take from it
Two things stand out. First, this is a returns story. Buyers want rent and appreciation, and they are sizing purchases to match. Second, home is not being left behind. Domestic property is still the largest single slice of wealth at 32%.
For Indian developers and advisers, the profile is useful. The buyer is a business owner or a senior professional, aged 35 to 50, who already owns abroad and wants a mid-size apartment. That is a clear target.
A note on the data: the findings come from a survey of respondents, and 84% of them already own property overseas. They describe this group of investors, not every Indian buyer.
Source: Knight Frank India–IREX, Keys Beyond Borders (22 October 2026).
