Mumbai records over Rs 840 crore stamp duty fees collection in April

The total registrations, however, dipped in April 2023. Total property registrations in April 2023 stood at 9,867, down 16 per cent year-over-year (YoY). The decline was largely led by two reasons — firstly a base effect as April-22 saw a spillover of registrations from the previous months with 17 per cent of properties registered in April 2022 being filled in March 2022.

Secondly, a seasonality impact as in the last eight out of 10 years, the month of April witnessed a dip in registrations against the March of that year, as per Knight Frank India, a real estate consultancy firm.

In April 2023, the age group of 31 and 45 made up the biggest percentage of home buyers, accounting for 44 per cent of all residential property registrations. As much as 12 per cent of house purchasers are under 30 years old, while 30 per cent of the buyers are in the 46 to 60 age range. The share of home buyers who were over 60 years old was 14 per cent.

Shishir Baijal, Chairman & Managing Director, Knight Frank India, said, “The state exchequer has benefitted from the market vibrancy that now marks its best April month in revenue collections. While the YoY registration momentum in April 2023 is lower due to the base effect, and the financial year closing in March playing its role in lower MoM numbers, the month saw a big cheer in the form of a pause in policy interest rate hikes. This provides a breather to homebuyers, keeping their affordability intact which is crucial to fulfilling their desire to own a home.”

Apartments measuring 500 square feet (sq ft) to 1,000 sq ft continued to be purchasers’ preference, accounting for 44 per cent of all apartments in April 2023. Apartments with less than 500 sq ft saw a marginal decline in market share from 36 per cent in April 2022 to 32 per cent in April 2023. The share take-up for areas larger than 1,000 sq ft increased from 17 per cent in April 2022.

Homebuyers’ buying patterns on housing shifted, with Rs 2.5 crore and below accounting for 87 per cent of registered properties compared to 84 per cent in April 2022, and Rs 2.5 crore and above accounting for 13 per cent of all registered houses compared to 16 per cent in April 2022.

Bulk of the sales registrations were for properties in Western suburbs constituting 54 per cent of the market share in April 2023, while 30 per cent of registrations were for properties in Central Mumbai. In April 2023, 6 per cent of registrations were for Central Mumbai, while South Mumbai’s share of total property registrations stood at 10 per cent.

The two markets of Central and Westerns Suburbs have in the recent months seen large volumes of launches as a response to the robust demand.

The Central Suburb and Western Suburb have the highest percentage of property registrations under Rs 5 crore. However, most transactions exceeding Rs 5 crore were registered in Central and South Mumbai.