Housing prices jump in 43 cities, slump in 7: NHB

Seven cities registered a decline in the property prices, the survey added.

As many as 43 of 50 cities witnessed a year-on-year increase in property prices during the fourth quarter of 2022-23, according to the 50-city Housing Price Index (HPI) published by the National Housing Bank (NHB).

Among the major metros, Kolkata led the charge with a jump of 11 percent, followed by Ahmedabad at 10.8 percent, Bengaluru at 9.4 percent, Pune 8.2 percent, and Hyderabad at 7.9 percent. Chennai, Mumbai, and Delhi trailed with a price hike of 6.8, 3.1, and 1.7 percent, respectively.

Seven cities registered a decline in the property prices, it said.

Delhi, Navi Mumbai, Kochi, Coimbatore, Raipur, Faridabad, Bidhan Nagar, and New Town, Kolkata, recorded a sequential decline in prices during the quarter, with Raipur recording the maximum decline of 6.7 percent due to projects launched by Raipur Municipal Corporation for the EWS and LIG categories.

The HPI, based on property prices collected from banks and housing finance companies, recorded an annual increase of 5.8 percent during the fourth quarter of the fiscal 2023 compared with 5.3 percent a year ago, the NHB said.

The annual change in prices varied widely across the cities, ranging from a jump of 19.6 percent in Gandhinagar to a slump of 12.9 percent in Ludhiana.

On a sequential basis, the 50-city index registered an expansion of 1.3 per cent in January-March 2023 as against 1.5 per cent in the previous quarter.

The prices of under-construction and unsold ready-to-move-in properties also recorded an annual price increase of 11.7 per cent in the March quarter, as against 4.8 per cent a year ago.

The NHB said home loan rates are still lower than in the pre-pandemic era, leading to healthy affordability.