Mumbai, one of the most expensive real estate in the world, is a land of opportunity. It is a place where hundreds of thousands of people come from different parts of the country and the native population keeps growing, leading to the high demand for real estate. But, as per a recent report by Anarock Group, a real estate consultancy firm, it seems that is not the case this time around.
Despite lower interest rates on home loans, concession in stamp duties and registration charges increased affordability of housing properties, and the growing sentiment of homeownership amidst the ongoing pandemic, 90 percent of the housing inventory in South-Central Mumbai remains unsold.
There are about 10,700 unsold housing units in the South-Central Mumbai that include areas, where the textile mills of Mumbai once stood such as Lower Parel, Worli, Prabhadevi, Mahalaxmi, etc., the report suggests.
It finds out that out of the total available stock in the region, about 29 percent availability is in homes sized 1,500-2,000 sq. ft. carpet area, followed by 23 percent in sizes 1,000-1,500 sq. ft. and 2,000-3,000 sq. ft. The bigger and luxurious properties sized between 3,000-4,000 sq. ft have available stock of five percent while the area over 4,000 sq. ft. have two percent available stock.
Further, approximately 25,660 units have been launched between 2013 till Q3 2021 in South-Central micro-markets and only 1,910 units have been sold in the last year that is at least 86 percent more than the corresponding period a year ago.
Mr. Aditya Kedia, Managing Director- Transcon Developers reflected upon the upward trend and said, “After a downward momentum of the unsold inventory, there has been an uptick in the demand for properties in the south-central Mumbai, and the unsold inventories are reducing at a regular basis. This provides much-needed room for the property developers to add to the overall growth trajectory of real estate in Mumbai. Developers are breathing easy again!”
Despite witnessing maximum new supply in the top seven cities in the country during this period, The Mumbai Metropolitan Region shed at least 8 percent of its unsold stock – the MMR region trails South-Central Mumbai subset by shedding 10 percent of its unsold inventory – from 2,08,250 units as of Q3 2020-end to nearly 1,92,050 units as of Q3 2021-end.
“The stamp duty regime of 2% and 3% initiated earlier by the government is what kick-started the entire engine of the real estate industry. After getting back into action with this government move, the market has only picked up steam,” Rohit Garodia, Managing Partner, Pecan Reams said.
The high-net-worth homebuyers, those who invest in the luxurious homes in the area, were the least affected by the pandemic and looked for ready homes or those nearing completion causing South-Central Mumbai localities to witness a decline of at least 10% in their unsold stock, the report suggested.
“Today, HNIs are investing in homes that are completed or those nearing completion because it is linked to the people gaining trust over the completion of the product and its timelines being met. A ready home is always preferred over an under-construction project as the wait can get longer if the developer does not perform and deliver the home on time,” said Rohit Garodia, Managing Partner, Pecan Reams.
