Housing sales likely to exceed 3.6 lakh units in top seven cities in 2022

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Going by the momentum in housing sales in the ongoing festival season and the first three quarters of this year, total sales in the top seven cities of the country in 2022 are expected to exceed 3.6 lakh units, which will be a record, a report has said.

The housing sales look on course to breach the previous peak of 2014 when the top seven cities—MMR, Delhi-NCR, Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Bengaluru—together sold 3.43 lakh units, Anarock Research has said.

"2022 will create residential market history in India, having already breached all previous highs and continuing to witness strong sales momentum in the ongoing festive season,” ANAROCK Group chairman Anuj Puri said.

Housing sales and new launches in the January-September period of 2022 surpassed the full-year readings of pre-COVID 2019, with approximately 2.73 lakh units sold in 9M 2022 and new launches at 2.65 lakh units.

In 2019, more than 2.61 lakh units were sold in the entire year, while the new supply stood at 2.34 lakh units.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) retained the top spot followed by the National Capital Region, which includes Delhi, in the first nine months of 2022.

About 1,30,450 units were collectively sold in these two regions, accounting for 48 percent of the total sales in the top seven cities, the report said, without giving the break-up.

Other high-selling cities were Pune, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, which accounted for a 42 percent cumulative sales share.

Housing sales remained strong despite average property prices increasing in 2022, with the annual price appreciation in Q3 2022 being at 6 percent against Q3 2021.

"Home ownership 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 help large and listed developers. These players have reported consistently high sales and are stepping up new supply infusions into the market.

New launches in 2022 will, however, remain lower than the previous peak of 2014, which saw approximately 5.45 lakh homes launched across the top 7 cities.

Current trends indicate that launches in these cities will exceed 3.4 lakh units in 2022. In the first nine months, 2.65 lakh units were launched in the seven cities, with MMR and Hyderabad leading the pack and accounting for 54 percent of the new supply, the report said.