NEW DELHI: Owing to the second Covid-19 wave and subsequent regional lockdowns, housing sales in the second quarter (Q2) of 2021 (April-June) fell 58 per cent to 24,570 units compared to 58,290 units in the previous quarter (Q1 2021), data released by real estate consultancy firm Anarock said.
These sales numbers are compiled from India’s top seven largest cities and urban areas: the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Delhi NCR, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Pune. However, on an annual basis, sales in Q2 2021 were up by 93 per cent since only 12,740 units were sold in the corresponding quarter of 2020 due to the nationwide lockdown.
The MMR and Pune led the residential market during the period under review, with a 46 per cent share of total sales. Developers launched new projects (mostly digitally) and put approximately 36,260 units on the market across the top seven cities. Hyderabad saw the maximum launches with approximately 8,850 units during the quarter, followed by MMR with 6,880 units, and Bengaluru with 6,690 units.
Anuj Puri, Chairman, Anarock Property Consultants, said that the localised lockdowns and restrictions did not dent activity as much as the complete nation-wide lockdown had last year. Listed and leading developers also saw their share of sales increase further during the quarter, compared to smaller and unorganized players—going from 40:60 previously to 43:57 now.
Back in FY2017, this ratio had stood at 17:83. This indicates that the impact of the second wave was felt more intensely by smaller and unorganised players. On a yearly basis, Bengaluru and NCR saw average residential prices rise 2 per cent, while MMR, Pune, Hyderabad and Chennai saw average property prices increase by 1 per cent. Kolkata saw no yearly change in average property prices.
24,570 Units sold during April-June 2021
58,290 Units sold in Jan-Feb 2021
12,740 Units sold in Apr-Jun 2020
46% of sales in MMR, Pune