Bengaluru housing sales down 19% in April-June: Report

A report said housing sales rose in Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad, but fell in Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata.

High demand in Maharashtra's Mumbai and Pune drove housing sales higher this quarter.

India’s housing market saw an eight per cent increase in sales in the second quarter of the year across major cities including Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad, but declined in five others, namely Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata, an analysis by real estate advisory firm, PropTiger, said.

High demand in Maharashtra’s Mumbai and Pune drove housing sales higher by eight per cent to 80,250 units compared to last year’s April to June period, when 74,320 units were sold across “primary (fresh sales) residential markets” of the eight cities, the firm said in a ‘Real Insight Residential — April-June 2023’ report released on Wednesday.

The report said housing sales rose in three cities, namely, Mumbai, Pune and Ahmedabad. However, it fell in the other five cities including Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata.

Vikas Wadhawan, the CFO of REA India — which owns PropTiger — said, as quoted by news agency PTI, “India’s top eight residential markets continue on a growth path. The RBI’s decision to pause the hike in the key lending rate helped in sustaining strong positive sentiments for buying residential properties.”

“The driving factors behind the uptick in housing sales over the last two years are pent-up demand from the COVID-affected period, growing appetite for home ownership, revival in the economy post-pandemic, and the evolving need for more spacious homes,” he added.

The report further said that housing sales in Bengaluru fell 19 per cent from 8,350 units, to 6,790 units, while Ahmedabad saw a 17 per cent increase to 8,450 units during the April to June period. Chennai’s housing sales dipped 5 per cent to 3,050 units from 3,210 units, and Delhi NCR saw a 28 per cent fall in sales from 4,510 units to 3,230 units.

Hyderabad and Kolkata also observed decline in sales by 3 per cent and 40 per cent, respectively, while the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) sold 16 per cent more housing units than the year ago period. Pune’s sales spiked by 37 per cent during the second quarter to 18,850 units from 13,720 units.