The ever-changing landscape of Dhaka clearly represents the evolving tastes and needs of its inhabitants. Mere decades ago, people from all over Bangladesh began migrating to the capital city in hopes of improving their livelihoods.

From carpenters to aspiring entrepreneurs, their arrival transformed Dhaka into a hub for developing businesses.

But as Bangladesh's economy grew over the years, so too did its population across all three classes, namely low-income, middle-income and affluent.

Photo Courtesy: BProperty

This posed a significant challenge in arranging appropriate housing, as evinced by how the once single-storey homes in Dhaka eventually gave way to taller structures.

More recently, the country's burgeoning middle-class and affluent people have elevated the demand for luxury apartments near where they work.

This led to the rapid implementation of housing projects in key areas such as Gulshan, Banani and Dhanmondi, with less accessible areas like Mirpur and Uttara going under the radar.

However, a number of mega development projects seeking to improve connectivity in Dhaka have changed public perspective in recent times.

For example, the recently christened Dhaka Metro Rail offers high speed and low-cost transport to and from areas like Mirpur and Uttara and key areas of the capital.

Additionally, the Kalshi flyover inaugurated in early 2023 facilitates traffic to and from Mirpur and Uttara, Banani, Mohakhali and the Dhaka airport.

Shopno Nagar Residential area

These developments have played no small part in influencing apartment prices over the years as most areas connected to or nearby these developments have seen a rapid rise in apartment prices.

Still though, industry people say that these are not the only reasons for the growing apartment prices.

Liakat Ali Bhuiyan, senior vice-president of the Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB), said flat prices in Dhaka were increasing at the start of 2024 due to rising construction costs.

But on the other hand, real estate companies have decreased their number of new projects considering the constraints of the Detailed Area Plan (DAP) for developing the city.

"Also, apartment sales have fallen following the political changeover in July-August. As a result, the price of flats has only slightly decreased," he added.

Asked about his thoughts on how apartment prices in Mirpur have changed, Bhuiyan said the price for flats in the area was very low in the past.

"The lower middle-class used to be the main buyer of flats in Mirpur as they found a balance between their needs and affordability in the area. But over time, the price of flats there has also increased due to the growing demand for housing," he added.

Mehedi Hasan, chief design coordinator of Credence Housing, said some real estate companies have reduced their prices in face of low demand since August 5, when the Awami League government was ousted by a mass uprising.

"The selling pressure has been higher than the demand for buying," he added.

Citing how the country's financial sector has been struggling as of late, Hasan said many buyers who booked apartments are pulling out of their purchases for difficulties in accessing the required funds.

Asked for his opinion on how government development projects have impacted housing prices, he said areas where no one previously thought to buy land are now in high demand for their proximity to these initiatives.

Regarding the trend of apartment sales, Hasan informed that the industry enjoyed about a decade of good sales starting from 2009 until the Covid-19 pandemic derailed their progress.

"After that, apartment prices went up but demand went down," he said.

Mirpur DOHS Central Mosque

Hasan further said that apartments in Dhaka can be classed into three categories -- A, B and C -- depending on their price. For example, apartments priced at a maximum of Tk 70 lakh fall in C-category. Those priced at Tk 80-120 lakh fall in the B-category while any priced above that are in the A-category.

"Most of the demand for houses in Mirpur are in the B-category," he added.

Arifur Rahaman, chief executive officer of Assurance Developments, said apartment prices have risen due to higher raw material, land and labour costs.

Regarding the rampant rise in land pricing, he said one of the main reasons is that affluent people end up buying multiple plots with the intention of selling them for a massive profit later on.

"So how can developers build cheaply?" he questioned.

Against this backdrop, he urged the relevant authorities to implement policies that restrict land buyers from selling off their plots without having developed it at all.

Asked for his thoughts on the apartment prices in Mirpur, he said prices in that area have risen the same as other areas and that there is no chance for the prices to fall any time soon.