Mumbai property registrations down 16% YoY in September amid 'shradh' and higher home prices

Year-on-year registrations in September for Mumbai is down by 16%

Property registrations in Mumbai for September declined by 16 percent over the corresponding month in 2023, according to figures from the Maharashtra revenue department, accessed by Knight Frank. This trend was seen amid the inauspicious "shradh" month, in which many refrain from purchases such as property, coincided with a large part of the month. Some observers added that some investors retreating from purchasing real estate in a heated market may have also contributed to the slowdown in registrations.

In 2023, the "shradh" period was observed from the end of September to October 14.

As per figures at 5:30 pm today, a total of 9,005 properties were registered in Mumbai in September 2024, against 10,694 units in September 2023. The registration figures for the current month also represent a month-on-month decline, with 11,631 registrations reported in August, according to the data. The residential segment contributed 80 percent to the total registrations, according to Knight Frank.

The contribution to the exchequer as a result of the registrations also reduced both annually and sequentially in September, with around Rs 872 crore collected in the form of stamp duty till 5:30 pm on September 30 as against Rs 1,127 crore in the same month last year, and Rs 1,062 crore in August 2024.

According to a leading real estate broker in Mumbai, many would-be homebuyers, as well as those investing in real estate, have also taken a step back and deferred purchases, as home prices remain high in most suburbs of the city and affordability has shrunk. As per a report last week, published by Anarock, residential real estate prices across India have spiked by as much as 37 percent between the July-September quarter of 2022, to the same quarter in 2024.

According to an analyst at a brokerage firm, a sense of "fatigue" has seeped into real estate purchases, besides the seasonality factor, as well as political and bureaucratic churn that often affect project launches and sales. The analyst added that with home prices rising across most markets, especially in Mumbai, and salaries for entry-level homebuyers not increasing by a significant level, homebuying sentiment may currently be at a low.