The Top Posh Areas in Chennai - Landmarks, Real Estate Prices and More

Chennai is not limited by its rich and glorious past, its fanfare to Rajnikanth, the unique mantle of culture, or its filter-coffee-soaked aroma. The city also represents a growing pool of jobseekers, a cosmopolitan lifestyle, a plethora of artistic genius, as well as a diversity and infrastructure that welcomes all. Also considered as one of the more expensive property markets in India, this blog lists out the posh areas in Chennai you should know about, in case you are pondering a move to this metropolis, one of the ‘the cultural capitals of India’. Read on! 

Top 10  Richest Areas in Chennai That Are Admired by Everyone

1. Boat Club

The Boat Club is the most expensive area in Chennai. It is the most upscale neighbourhood, is a haven for top businessmen, actors, politicians, and conglomerates, including Venu Srinivasan, the Chairman of TVS Group, and Shyam Kothari, Mukesh Ambani's brother-in-law. This tranquil area, nestled along the Adyar River, remains enchanting with its natural beauty. It's renowned for housing the historic Madras Boat Club, hosting the prestigious Indian Rowing Championships. 

With limited commercial establishments, Boat Club offers excellent real estate investment opportunities, surrounded by lush greenery and colonial-era bungalows. Expect to encounter luxury cars like Jaguars, Lamborghinis, Rolls Royce, and BMWs cruising the streets in this opulent neighbourhood.

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Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 12,000 – 50,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 15,000 – 1,50,000 per month

 2. Nungambakkam

Nungambakkam is another costliest area in Chennai. It is a vital part of Chennai's Central Business District, and boasts prestigious educational institutions, upscale hotels, commercial centres, and residential neighbourhoods. It is renowned for its elevated real estate, though it offers some affordable options nearby. This upscale locality includes prime residential areas like Kothari Road, Wallace Gardens, and Khader Nawaz Khan Road. 

Originally developed in the 18th century, Nungambakkam retains its European-style charm, once housing influential city administrators and civil servants. Today, it hosts multinational companies, government offices, sports facilities, cultural centres, and tourist attractions. Moving here? Embrace Western fashion boutiques and explore languages at Alliance Francaise and Max Mueller Bhavan.

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 7,000 – 32,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 12,000 – 2,00,000 per month

3. Poes Garden

Another one of the richest places in Chennai that rival Boat Club is Poes Garden. Home to the legendary actor and superstar Rajnikanth, cricketer Dinesh Karthik, the late Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa, and actor Dhanush’s new INR 150 crore four-storied home, Poes Garden revels in vast and expensive bungalows. As one of the poshest places in Chennai, the locale is well connected to the other parts of Chennai via the Great Southern Trunk Road, the Teynampet Metro Station, Thirumayilai railway station, Mandaveli railway station, as well as the Chennai International Airport. Apart from being near to several employment hubs including the DLF IT Park, Mahindra City World and more, Poes Garden is also home to several luxury retail outlets like the Ramee Mall, VR Chennai etc. and fine dining restaurants in KB Dasan Road. 

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 20,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 10,000 – 55,000 per month

4. Besant Nagar

If you are not looking for one of the most expensive, but one of the best posh areas of Chennai, look no further than the beach attraction of the city. Named after the legendary theosophist Annie Besant, Besant Nagar is as exclusive in its luxury residential apartments as it is in being inclusive as the social hub of the city. The area is gifted with water bodies including the Chennai River, as well as the coast of the Bay of Bengal Sea with Elliot’s Beach. The locality’s heritage value is richly endowed since colonial times, serving today’s affluent populations with upmarket cafes, restaurants, and boutiques. The attractive tourist spot at Elliot’s Beach at hand’s bay also teems with both youngsters and elders. The city is also a religious hotspot with the Arulmigu Mahalakshmi Temple situated along the shores of the Besant Nagar Beach, the Varasiddhi Vinayaka temple, and the Velankanni Church.

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 20,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 10,000 – 2,50,000 per month

5. Adyar

Situated on the southern banks of the river Adyar, its namesake Adyar or Adaiyaaru comes among the top posh areas in Chennai. This locality has preserved its colonial-era heritage by being home to some of the oldest buildings in the city. This is also one of the greenest areas in the city, with Elliot’s beach in its close reach. Given this is also near the affluent residents of Besant Nagar, the properties in Adyar are also very costly, with nearly four times the value of a property of the same size in northern Chennai. In Adyar, you will find that Gandhi Nagar tops the list of Chennai posh localities. 

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 30,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 12,000 – 2,50,000 per month

6. Velachery

While Velachery used to be the growing home to a budding IT sector in Chennai, it has increasingly emerged as the preferred area to buy homes. It is in fact, the largest commercial centre in southern Chennai. The area is particularly preferred by residents who would like their offices nearby given the close distance of the IT hub making it one of  the top areas in Chennai for IT professionals to live in. The locality connects the rapidly growing business class professionals in the IT industry operated by the Vijayanagar Bus Terminus, flying to various parts of the city. The city is also home to some of the best educational institutions, medical care, and commercial establishments - perfectly balancing the distinct meld between the old colonial times and modern lifestyle.   

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 45,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 15,000 – 1,30,000 per month

7. Gopala Puram

Not only is Gopalapuram one of the poshest areas in Chennai, but it is also one of the most prime residential areas. It is one of the most expensive areas in Chennai. The locality is home to one of the oldest libraries called the Easwari Library, the Semmozhi Poonga botanical garden, the former Chief Minister Karunanidhi, as well as a famous cricketer you may know by the name of MS Dhoni. Needless to say, Gopalapuram has many established educational institutions, several heritage temples, and places of recreation. The locality boasts of housing some of the most expensive houses in Chennai.

Residential homes real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 30,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 12,000 – 1,50,000 per month

8. East Coast Road

Commonly known as ECR, East Coast Road is located alongside the Bay of Bengal’s coromandel coast. Considered among the top Chennai posh area lists, ECR offers the perfect mix of peace, luxury, and fun. You will find tons of amusement parks including MGM and VGP. Due to the nearby beaches, you can enjoy the soothing coastal breeze while watching movies in a drive-in movie theatre, go surfing to enjoy adventure sports or the annual Covelong Music Festival at the Covelong beach, relish the authentic and must-try South Indian dishes by the bay, or even spend a relaxing day at any sea-facing villa along the entire stretch of the East Coast Road. 

Residential villas real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 9,000 – 20,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 30,000 – 2,50,000 per month

9. Thiruvanmiyur

Located in southern Chennai, Thiruvanmiyur is among the main areas in Chennai. It is a prime residential area. The locality was first to witness the spike in the economy with the setting up of Chennai’s first technology office space, i.e. the Tidel Information Technology Park, and thereafter several subsequent growths of business and research centres. Thiruvanmiyur beach is the primary attraction in the vicinity, making the property values higher than the average residential spot.

Residential villas real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 10,000 – 42,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 12,000 – 3,00,000 per month

10. Vadapalani

Located on the western side, Vadapalani is a VIP area in Chennai due to the presence of well-known film studios and actors. The area is also one of the more busy and densely populated parts of the city due to an important pilgrimage to the Vadapalani Andavar Temple, and the bust terminus on Arcot Road. Other than the well-known theatres and malls, Vadapalani is also home to several major medical care institutions, hospitals, colleges, and universities.  

Residential villas real estate price: 

• Buy - INR 8,000 – 45,000 per sq. ft. 
• Rent - INR 10,000 – 90,000 per month

Moving to Chennai? Remember these key points:

Chennai’s heat is no joke!

Chennai is very well known for its close connection to the heat. Winter is next to non-existent here and the seasons here are only hot and humid. The presence of beaches helps alleviate some of the discomfort. The weather, the beaches and the food, however, combine to make living in Chennai much more bearable.

Become an expert at haggling

Auto drivers in Chennai have been known to be notorious overcharges. This is particularly more evident when the customer is clearly not a local resident. Several efforts were made by the state’s government to set a cap on auto charges which failed to be implemented. A good rule of thumb would be to avoid autos as much as possible. However, if you ever do end up in one it would be smart to bargain and haggle over whatever the driver charges you at the end of the ride. 

Pick up a few Tamil phrases

Every Tamilian is very proud of their rich heritage, particularly of their language. This often means that while they might be willing to accommodate someone who doesn’t yet know how to speak Tamil, they do expect you to pick up a few basic phrases here and there. The more phrases you learn, the more likely you are to be accepted by the locals and appreciated. 

House hunting can be a task

It is quite commonly seen in Chennai that landlords are apprehensive about renting their places to bachelors, spinsters or live-in couples. This reluctance is often more prominent in certain areas while others seem to be more lax. It is also pretty common for home owners to have rules like no cooking of non-vegetarian food in the rental properties. These restrictions often make house hunting here difficult, however, there are also many landlords who are much more relaxed with their restrictions and with enough searching you will be able to find them.

Early to bed and early to rise

The nights often end comparatively early in the city of Chennai. One can expect nightclubs and restaurants to close shop by midnight on any given day. This however, is not the case with every establishment since there are a few places that tend to remain open for a couple of extra hours. Since the city sleeps early it also wakes up considerably early. It is a fairly common sight to see restaurants, shops and other establishments open and running at full capacity by 6:30 AM. Chennai mornings are full of life before the sun has even risen. The best breakfast establishments would be open and ready for customers as early as 7 in the morning, some even running out of stock by then. 

Cultural extravagance

Certain festivals such as holi do not hold as much prominence here as it would in the north. However, there are other festivals such as Pongal which are celebrated with a lot of pomp and circumstance here. People from all over the state of Tamil Nadu often arrive in Chennai for celebrations. Crowds and traffic on such days can increase in a split second and so residents need to be able to adapt and change routes when necessary. Political rallies and protests are also a common sight here. 

Expect some conservative behaviour

The local crowd of Chennai is a lot more conservative in comparison to other metropolitan cities. While finding a home in itself is a task, other mundane actions that may be acceptable in other cities can be seen as taboo here. For example, smoking in public, particularly for women, public displays of affection, or clothing that may be construed as revealing, are all often looked down upon. While the statistics of these actions leading to acts of violence are quite low, it would be best to avoid such situations in the city. 

Travel great distances

The city sprawls across the long coastline and spreads inland. Covering great distances, the city is quite large and vast. Travelling from one end of the city to the other would mean you would be covering great distances and traffic may affect the amount of time you would spend on the road. An extensive public transport system in the form of buses, local rail and metros is a welcome relief.

Like several other metropolitan cities in India, Chennai’s properties are on the higher side of the spectrum due to urbanisation. The residents of the city like to grind at work as hard as they like to enjoy the quality of life. You can choose any home of your dream within the busy posh areas in Chennai, as well as the more peaceful, tree-clad, sea-side havens. Need the help of experienced and top-starred real-estate professionals to know more? Head to NoBroker to find the house of your dreams - brokerage and hassle-free!

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