Covid-19 first, second and third waves, Russia-Ukraine war, revision of interest rates on house loans by the RBI affected the demand for housing. The increased input costs have pushed up the prices of housing units in the quarter beginning from June by 5 per cent. The sale of cement and steel has come down by 15 per cent. However, experts predict that it would last for only for a short period. The sale of units will improve from the festival season, they predicted.
The first quarter of the current year saw the sale of 99,550 units across seven main cities of the country. However, the sale dropped to 84,930 units in the second quarter. In Mumbai metropolitan region, the highest number of 25,785 units was sold in the second quarter. But, it is less than the number of units sold in the first quarter, 29,130. The national capital region of Delhi sold 15,340 units, which is less than 19 per cent of the units sold in the first quarter (18,835). With a sale of over 11,505 units, Bangalore city ranked number three in the second quarter as against 13,378 sold in the first quarter. The inventory was down by 4% if the sales of units in all seven cities were any indication.
Repo rate impact only temporary
Anarock property consultants chairman Anuj Puri describes the repo rate impact on sale of units in the second quarter was only temporary. Compared to volatile stock markets, the real estate sector emerged as the most priority sector. He predicted that the sale of units in seven cities would register an increase of at least 20 per cent by virtue of various offers and discounts. The inventory of units not sold diminished in the second quarter to an extent, but real estate prices shot up by 5 % in Delhi-NCR region, Mumbai, Kolkata, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore and Ahmedabad, according to a study undertaken by CREDAI, Kohler’s India and Liases Foras. Prices of residential properties have increased maximum in Delhi by 10 per cent, 9 per cent in Ahmadabad and 8 per cent in Hyderabad.
