Corporate Grapevine     

Published: September 30, 2024
Updated: September 30, 2024

Realty takes a hit in Q2FY24 Housing prices put off investors

After unabated growth since the Covid-19 pandemic, the September quarter of 2024 saw housing sales across the top seven cities fall by 11% yoy, with 1.07 lakh units sold as compared to more than 1.20 lakh units sold in the same period of 2023.

This indicates that investors are pouring money into the stock market as they realise that over a long period, returns from real estate are lower than from the stock market.

Mumbai led housing sales with approximately 36,190 units, followed by Pune with around 19,050 units; together, these cities represented 52% of total sales in 2024’s second quarter.

New supply also saw a significant decline, dropping 19% and falling below the 1 lakh mark for the first time since Q1FY23. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) topped new supply with about 29,615 units launched, while Bengaluru followed with approximately 15,915 units.

The share of new luxury homes (priced over Rs 1.5 crore) reached a peak of 33%, while the share of affordable housing supply dipped to a record low of 13%. Additionally, existing inventory in the top seven cities decreased by 8% annually, from over 6.10 lakh units in Q3FY23 to around 5.64 lakh units in Q3FY24, as per Anarock.

Average residential prices in these cities experienced robust double-digit growth of 23% compared to Q3FY23, with Hyderabad witnessing the highest increase at 32%. Bengaluru and NCR recorded a rise of 29% each. These high prices are making investors look at other, more attractive investment avenues.