Mumbai reports 11.53 percent YoY drop in property registrations in Q4, but sees by 28 percent MoM growth

Property deals in the month of March resulted in a revenue collection of Rs 1,143 crore, the data showed. (Photo credits: Mehul R Thakkar)

Mumbai city and suburbs reported an 11.53 percent year-on-year (YoY) drop in property registrations in the last quarter of FY22-23 compared to FY21-22. However, registrations increased 28 percent month-on-month (MoM) to 12,421 in March from 9,684 in February 2023, according to data shared by the Maharashtra Department of Registrations and Stamps (IGR).

Property deals in the month of March resulted in a revenue collection of Rs 1,143 crore, the data showed.

Between January and March 2022, over 35,260 properties were registered in Mumbai, which went down to 31,193 during the same period in 2023. In March 2022, 16,726 deals were registered compared to 12,421 in March 2023, a drop of about 25 percent.

Also read: Mumbai witnesses surge in property registrations with 9,268 recorded in February 2023

Of the total properties registered between January-March 2023, 84 percent were residential while 16 percent were non-residential. In March, home-buying patterns shifted, with flats priced Rs 2.5 crore and below accounting for 82 percent of the registrations, compared to 87 percent in February 2023.

Apartments priced Rs 2.5 crore and above accounted for 17 percent of registrations in March, compared to 14 percent in February 2023, according to Knight Frank, a real estate consultancy .

According to Knight Frank data, 41 percent of registrations in March 2023 were for units costing up to Rs 1 crore, and 41 percent were for units ranging between Rs 1 2.5 crore.

Flats costing between Rs 2.5-5 crore comprised 12 percent of the deals, while 4 percent of the registrations were for apartments ranging between Rs 5-10 crore. Properties costing between Rs 10-20 crore made up 1 percent of the transactions,  and those costing Rs 20 crore were less than 1 percent.

Rising mortgage

In its report, Knight Frank says that rising mortgage rates impacted affordability, but property sales remained buoyant due to robust consumer sentiment.

The report said that average property registration in March 2023 was 401  units (assuming the data is till March 29, doesn’t tally with the 12,421 figure in the 1st para), making it the third-best March month in the last 10 years. The stamp duty cut resulted in the highest average daily sale of 572 units in March 2021, while March 2022 saw an average daily sale of 540 units due to a rush for property registrations prior to the levy of the metro cess.

"Notwithstanding recent interest rate increases, the market saw the highest registrations for the fiscal year in March 2023, driven by the desire for home ownership. The state exchequer made significant gains supported by a rise in property registrations. This reflects the buoyancy of the Mumbai property market, which remains strong in the face of headwinds," said Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank.

Also read: Mumbai reports over 8.6k property registrations in January, down 7% from December 2022

500-1,000 sq ft flats dominate

Apartments measuring 500-1,000 square feet (sq ft) continued to be the preferred choice of customers, accounting for 48 percent of registrations. Apartments smaller than 500 sq ft saw a marginal decline in market share from 35 percent in January 2023 to 34 percent in March. The share of units larger than 1,000 sq ft also declined from 21 percent in February to 17 percent in March.

Luxury homes picking up?

“Although real estate sales in the month of March witnessed a marginal dip compared to the previous year, the end-user-driven property market has attracted a lot of interest from buyers of luxury homes. Buyers have understood the importance of larger and well-planned spaces and are reconsidering their priorities," said Cyrus Mody, Founder and Managing Partner, Viceroy Properties.

He added, "We launched our new project, Viceroy PRIVE, this Gudi Padwa, a 4-BHK and 5-BHK apartment tower in Mumbai’s Kandivali area with an overall saleable space of 1.48 lakh sq ft carpet area. We have already clocked 53 percent sales in a matter of one week."

Also read: Homebuyers feel the pinch as Maharashtra collects Rs 1,800 crore Metro cess from property registrations

31-45-year-olds make up the largest group of buyers

Those in the 31-45 age group comprised 44 percent of home buyers. Ten percent of the purchasers were under 30 years, while 33 percent of the buyers were in the 46-60 age range. Fourteen percent of the home buyers  were above 60 years,  according to Knight Frank.