With the second covid wave receding across most cities now, residential sales are gaining momentum. Genuine buyers are presently exploring options, and enquiries have begun to see a rise.
“Value of owning a home has been reinforced by the Covid-19 crisis with the renewed preferences. The economic recovery is scaling up gradually in the backdrop of festive tailwinds, buoyant capital markets, softening of home loan interest rates, record-high foreign reserve and optimistic demand impetus,” said Niranjan Hiranandani, NAREDCO President & Founder & MD Hiranandani Group said.
Against this backdrop, we took a stock of homebuyers’ preferences in July 2021 across five cities, namely Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, and Coimbatore. Based on the user activity on RoofandFloor and information collected by extensive surveys and calls, here are some insights:
- Villas were the most preferred property type in Chennai and Coimbatore. While Bangalore and Hyderabad recorded good interest for plots in July 2021.
- Properties in mid and affordable segments continue to attract home seekers.
- In terms of BHK configurations, home seekers in Bangalore, Chennai, and Coimbatore prefers 2BHKs. Interestingly, people in Hyderabad prefers 3BHKs while in Pune, 1BHKs stole the show in July 2021.
Bangalore highlights
Regulatory
- To enhance transparency, Karnataka-RERA has now put project details in the public domain. Home seekers can now view information related to extension and rejection of projects as well as a copy of the orders under the ‘Services’ tab on the website.
- In a bid to revive the realty sector in the state, the state slashed stamp duty on registration of apartments costing Rs 35-45 Lakh from 5% to 3%. You can read more on it here.
- The state government has also cut the fee for sanctioning building plans of residential properties in Bangalore. The fee has been reduced from 0.5% square metre of the guidance value to 0.2%.
Commercial
- WeWork has leased out 17,000 sq. ft. space to 3M India in Bangalore. About 400 employees of 3M India are expected to sit at its new headquarter.
Sustainability
- To promote the implementation of rainwater harvesting in the city, the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is contemplating offering a 5% discount on monthly water bills to properties with RWH facilities.
Residential update
Property type: Let’s begin with the preferred property type. As always, apartments ruled the roost in Bangalore with 54%. With a good percentage of buyers being from the service sector, the demand for apartments has always been high in the city.
When compared to June 2021, the interest for plotted developments has increased by 13% as a good percentage of buyers still prefer plots to construct their homes. According to market experts, this number is likely to increase in the near term as more and more people will now prefer to have their own space.
Budget: Moving to budget, homes in mid-segment were most preferred. About 43% of home seekers were looking for properties in Rs 40 – 80 Lakh price range, followed by properties in the affordable segment (<Rs 40 Lakh)
It must be noted that interest for luxury (Rs 80 Lakh- 1 Crore) and ultra-luxury properties (Rs 1-3 Crore) recorded cumulative interest from about 31% of home seekers.
BHK: 3BHKs continue to steal the show in Bangalore even in July, with a whopping 55% of users showing interest in large spaces. This was followed by 2BHKs with 38% interest and 4BHKs with 5% interest.
Popular localities
- Whitefield
- JP Nagar
- Electronic City
- Hebbal
- Devanahalli
Chennai Highlights
Regulatory
- The Tamil Nadu government is looking at a land pooling route for creating future satellite towns. Model towns have been planned on 800 acres of Agaramthen village near Tambaram in Chennai’s southern suburbs.
Commercial
- Rail Land Development Authority (RLDA) is in the process of inviting online bids for leasing seven land parcels for commercial development in Chennai. Out of the seven land parcels, three are situated at the Ayanavaram site, the fourth is at the Waltax Road site, and the fifth land parcel is at the Pulianthope Site, while another land parcel is located at the Victoria Crescent site.
Residential update
Property type: Unlike Bangalore, Chennai saw maximum interest for villas. According to RoofandFloor research, about 41% of home seekers were looking to buy villas, followed by apartments and plots with 32% and 27%, respectively.
Budget: In terms of budget, the user interest was skewed towards affordable properties (Less than Rs 40 Lakh) with 51%. Reiterating the same, Suresh Babu, GM, VGN Projects Estates said, “Home seekers in Chennai are still looking for properties in the affordable segment. A good percentage of enquiries, that we get, are for properties priced between Rs 30-35 Lakh.”
This was followed by properties in the mid-segment (Rs 40-80 Lakh) with 39%. Luxury properties recorded minuscule interest in the city.
BHK: Homes in 2BHK configuration clocked maximum user interest in Chennai. RoofandFloor’s research indicates that about 58% of users were looking for 2BHK homes, while about 31% of users were interested in 3BHKs.
Interestingly, 10% buyers also showed interest in compact 1BHK apartments.
Popular localities
- Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR)
- Grand Southern Trunk Road (GST)
- Avadi
- Porur
- Mogappair
Hyderabad highlights
Regulatory
- After seven years, the state government revised the market values of lands and flats. The lowest value for flats/apartments has been increased to Rs 1, 000 per sq. ft. from earlier Rs 800 per sq. ft. In the case of flats/apartments, the increase is 20% in the lower ranges and 30% per cent in the higher range.
- To develop Hyderabad’s Neopolis Kokapet township, the Telangana government has allotted Rs 265 Crore. The township is likely to have infrastructure facilities such as roads, underground drainage, water supply, etc.
Residential update
Property type: Hyderabad has good demand for all three property types. Apartments ruled the roost with 43% user interest, followed by villas and plots.
Budget: In terms of budget segmentation, properties in mid-segment saw a maximum interest from 34% users, followed by properties in the ultra-luxury segment with 28%. Affordable properties recorded interest from about 21% of home seekers.
BHK: According to RoofandFloor research, about 56% of home seekers were looking for homes in 3BHK configuration, followed by 2BHKs with 34%.
Homes in larger configurations such as 4BHK also saw some interest in Hyderabad.
Popular localities
- Gachibowli
- Patancheru
- Kompally
- Miyapur
- Shamshabad
Pune highlights
Regulatory
The PMRDA will grant building permissions in 23 villages recently merged into the PMC limits. Additionally, the PMRDA will also draft a development plan for these 23 villages.
Residential update
Property type: Like other metro cities, apartments dominate the property spectrum in Pune too. About 77% users showed interest in apartments in July 2021, followed by plots with 22%.
Budget: In Pune, affordable properties showed a clear majority with 81% users showing interest in properties priced within Rs 40 Lakh. Further, about 13% users were looking for mid-segment properties. The interest for premium properties was insignificant.
BHK: In terms of BHK configurations, compact 1BHKs ruled the roost with 64% interest. This can also be correlated with the fact that maximum users are looking for properties within Rs 40 Lakh. Homes in 2BHK configuration also recorded decent user interest with 25%.
Popular localities
- Chikhali
- Hinjawadi
- Wagholi
- Moshi
- Ravet
Coimbatore highlights
Sustainability
To improve the city’s green cover, Coimbatore Corporation is planning to go for Miyawaki gardens across the city. The civic body has planned these gardens at 100 places – all reserved sites – in the five zones.
Residential update
Property type: Coimbatore has a high demand for villas and independent homes with 71% user interest, followed by plots with 19%. The apartment culture is also slowly catching up in the city. In July, about 11% of users showed interest in apartments.
Budget: Home seekers in Coimbatore prefer properties in the affordable segment and mid-segment. For 67% users, less than Rs 40 Lakh is the most preferred budget, followed by Rs 40-80 Lakh for 26% users. Not to mention, the capital values in the city are still realistic.
BHK: In terms of BHK preferences, 2BHK stole the show in the city with 58%, followed by 3BHK and 1BHK with 25% and 15%, respectively.
Popular localities
- Saravanampatti
- Avinashi Road
- Mettupalayam Road
- Ramanathapuram
- Kovaipudur
(Note: The data used in this post is for July 2021 and has been collected based on user activity on RoofandFloor, extensive surveys, and calls.)