Real estate prices in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Delhi National Capital Region (NCR), the two topmost markets in India appreciated by nearly 50% since in the five-year period since, 2019, the year the COVID-19 pandemic began.
A recent report by Anarock Property Consultants reveals that the average price of real estate in the MMR has gone up from Rs. 10,610 per square foot to Rs. 15,650 per square foot, representing an increase of 48%. A similar change is seen in the NCR, where the average price of real estate per square foot has gone from Rs. 4,565 to Rs. 6,800, representing a 49% increase.
Additionally, the amount of unsold inventory in both cities has also reduced significantly. The inventory overhang, a measure of how many months it would take to sell the current housing listings in an area, has fallen from 34 months in 2019 to 14 months in Mumbai, and from 44 months to 16 months in Delhi.
“Paradoxically, the pandemic was an undisguised blessing for the National Capital Region,” says Anuj Puri, Chairman of ANAROCK Group. “Once infamous for high unsold inventory fed by speculative demand and supply, the region has seen a sharp decline of over 52% in its unsold stock in the last five years – from around 1.82 lakh units at H1 2019-end to around. 86,900 units by H1 2024-end. Interestingly, the inventory overhang has reduced to 16 months in NCR in H1 2024 as against 44 months back in H1 2019.”
In Mumbai, the period between 2019 and 2024 saw sales outpace the supply of new units, with around 5,49,650 units being sold while around 5,24,230 were launched.
