Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Led by healthy demand momentum and positive market sentiment, average housing prices across the top eight markets in India witnessed a 10 per cent rise (year-on-year) during the last quarter of 2024, a report showed on February 25. Average housing prices have been on a rising spree for the 16th consecutive quarter, starting 2021.
Price appreciation was evident in all the eight major cities, with Delhi-NCR witnessing the highest rise at 31 per cent YoY growth, followed by Bengaluru at 23 per cent rise during Q4 2024, according to the report by CREDAI-Colliers-Liases Foras. While affordable housing segment will continue to form the bulk of housing sales, demand within luxury and ultra-luxury segments can amplify further in 2025, the report mentioned.
Overall unsold inventory continued to decline for the fourth consecutive quarter and dropped 5 per cent annually during Q4 2024 backed by healthy demand. At the end of December, unsold inventory at the India level stood below 10 lakh housing units for the first time in the last two years.
Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), with a share of 40 per cent, continued to account for a majority of the unsold inventory.
Notably, Pune saw the highest annual drop in unsold inventory at 14 per cent, closely followed by Hyderabad with 13 per cent decline.
The sustained growth in housing prices underscores the strong confidence among homebuyers, driven by a preference for spacious living and lifestyle upgrades, said Boman Irani, President of CREDAI National.
With evolving consumer aspirations, we are witnessing increased demand for larger homes, better amenities, and integrated living spaces. “As we look ahead, a potential reduction in interest rates could further boost affordability and drive even greater demand. This positive trend is expected to continue and thrive through the year, making it an opportune time for homebuyers to invest in real estate,” Irani added.
Furthermore, the recent repo rate reduction, along with government initiatives, to fund stressed residential projects will provide boost to affordable housing segment.
“Going ahead, with elbowroom for further reduction in benchmark lending rates, most cities are likely to witness traction in housing sales across categories. Resultantly, average residential prices can potentially increase at similar levels in 2025 on an annual basis,” said Badal Yagnik, Chief Executive Officer, Colliers, India.
