Budget 2025: Government announces SWAMIH Fund-2 to complete 1 lakh homes in stalled projects

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday announced a fresh Rs 15,000 crore 'SWAMIH Fund-2' to facilitate the completion of 1 lakh stalled housing units, offering relief to homebuyers with stuck investments.

The 'Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing' (SWAMIH) fund was first introduced in November 2019 to revive stalled housing projects across India. Managed by SBICAP Ventures Ltd., a subsidiary of the State Bank Group, the initiative aims to ensure timely project completion.

Highlighting the success of the initial fund, Sitharaman announced the launch of SWAMIH Fund-2 in her budget speech. She noted that under SWAMIH Fund-1, 50,000 homes in stressed projects have already been completed, with keys handed over to homebuyers.

Additionally, another 40,000 units are expected to be completed in 2025, providing further relief to middle-class families struggling with EMIs on home loans while also paying rent for their current residences.

"Building on this success, SWAMIH Fund-2 will be established as a blended finance facility with contribution from the government, banks and private investors. This fund of Rs 15,000 crore will aim for expeditious completion of another 1 lakh units," Sitharaman said.

Under SWAMIH Fund-1, a total of Rs 15,530 crore has been raised so far to provide priority debt financing for stalled housing projects. The fund specifically targets stressed, brownfield, and RERA-registered residential projects in the affordable and mid-income housing segments, ensuring their completion.

What makes this fund unique is its broad eligibility criteria—it supports first-time developers, established players facing financial trouble, builders with a history of stalled projects, cases involving customer complaints or NPAs, and even those entangled in legal disputes. This flexibility has earned SWAMIH the reputation of being the "lender of last resort" for struggling real estate projects.

A study by PropEquity, commissioned by SBI Ventures Ltd in 2019, estimated that around 1,500 projects, covering 4.58 lakh housing units, were stalled or financially stressed. To complete these projects, an estimated Rs 55,000 crore in funding would be required.