Housing sector cheers as sales in top 7 cities set to climb new high in 2022

In the first nine months of this year, housing sales and new launches surpassed the full-year readings of 2019. An approximate number of 2.73 lakh units were sold and 2.65 lakh units launched from January to September. However, only 2.61 lakh units were sold in the entire year of 2019, while the new supply stood at 2.34 lakh units.

The regions of MMR and NCR have retained their top slot rankings in the first nine months with an approximate number of 1,30,450 housing units getting sold collectively. They accounted for 48 per cent of the total sales. Pune, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, which accounted for a 42 per cent of the cumulative sales share, were the other high-selling cities.

The demand for purchasing houses remained strong despite average property prices increasing in 2022, with the annual price appreciation in the third quarter of the year being the best in seven years – 6% against Quarter 3 2021.

Anuj Puri, chairman of ANAROCK Group, expressed confidence that the year 2022 would create residential market history in India. “It has already breached all previous highs and continues to witness strong sales momentum in the ongoing festive season. Homeownership sentiment retained the vibrancy ushered in by the Covid-19 era, despite interest rates hikes of 190 bps, increased property rates, and the conspicuous lack of festive season offers and discounts this year,” Puri said.

A combination of end-user and investor demand continues to zero in on projects by large and listed developers. These players report consistently high sales and are stepping up new supply infusions into the market.

The total number of new launches in 2022 will, however, remain lower than the previous peak of 2014, which saw around 5.45 lakh houses being launched across the top seven cities.