The Indian housing market continued to witness a bull run in the first quarter of the year with housing sales at an all-time high.
Approximately 1,30,170 units were sold in the January-March quarter of 2024 across the top seven cities of India, according to date published by real estate consultant Anarock.
This meant a sharp 14 per cent yearly rise against close to 1,13,775 units sold in the country in the same quarter last year.
According to the data, Mumbai and Pune accounted for most of the total sales among the top seven cities at around 51 per cent. Greater Mumbai region witnessed a 24 per cent yearly spike, while Pune saw an over 15 per cent rise in the same period.
The number of new launches in the top seven cities remained above 1,00,000, but only saw a slight increase of 1 per cent compared to the previous year. Specifically, the number of units went up from 1,09,570 in the first quarter of 2023 to over 1,10,865 in the first quarter of 2024. Notably, Mumbai and Hyderabad saw the maximum new supply, accounting for 51 per cent of the total new launches across the top seven cities.
In the first quarter of 2024, Hyderabad experienced a 57 per cent annual growth in new property availability, whereas Mumbai witnessed a nine per cent decrease in new property availability during the same period. This quarter marked the highest sales in the past decade, driven by a substantial surge in demand for luxury homes priced at Rs 1.5 crore and above.
Despite the number of new launches staying above 1,00,000 in this quarter, the amount of available inventory in the top seven cities decreased by seven per cent compared to the previous year. The inventory dropped from around 6,26,750 units at the end of January-March quarter in 2023 to 5,80,890 units at the end of the first quarter of 2024.
Among the leading cities, the National Capital Region (NCR) experienced the most significant decrease of 27 per cent in its inventory of unsold properties during the January-March quarter this year. At present, the unsold stock in NCR is lower compared to other major cities such as Mumbai, Pune, and Hyderabad.
According to Anarock, the economic situation in India is favorable overall, as the country has the highest GDP growth rate worldwide and inflation is also well-managed. This positive outlook is expected to sustain the sentiment of homebuyers.
