Despite spiralling COVID-19 cases, the real estate market in India has started showing signs of revival – especially as the unlock process began with resumption of industrial activities. So much so that the top 7 cities are likely to cumulatively witness a 35 per cent jump in housing sales in the ongoing festive quarter (October-December 2020) as against the July to September period, according to ANAROCK.

It says that the housing sales in Delhi-NCR are expected to witness a 27-31 per cent jump this festive season, while the MMR housing sales — which stood at 9,200 units in Q3 2020 — may see a 33-36 per cent rise during the October to December period, with buyers looking to make the most of limited period offer of reduced stamp duty charges, developer discounts and freebies, and the prevailing low home loan interest rates.

Commenting on the same, Santhosh Kumar, Vice Chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants, says, “Previous year trends suggest that housing sales across top cities in festive quarter mostly saw an uptick – anywhere between 5 and 10 per cent – over the preceding quarter. This is largely because the festive season is considered most auspicious for property buying in India and developers also roll out various schemes and offers to fuel the fervour.”

The years 2016 and 2017 were a marked contrast as the festive quarter sales in these years actually reduced against the preceding quarter, mainly because of structural reforms including Demo, RERA and GST. This year, however, the top 7 cities can cumulatively witness a 35 per cent jump in housing sales in the ongoing festive quarter against the July to September period.

“In spite of the spiralling COVID-19 cases in the second quarter of 2020, residential sales rose significantly. This provides sufficient reason to expect a significant increase during the upcoming festive season, which will prompt many fence-sitters to avail the best deals on offer. Developers have pulled out all the stops to attract buyers, announcing schemes for festive season – many of which result in an actual reduction in the cost of acquisition,” says Kumar.

These offers come with an expiry date – when the housing market regains enough momentum, they will be withdrawn. Most end-users will aim to use this period to their advantage. The prevailing lowest-best home loan interest rates coupled with limited-period government incentives such as reduced stamp duty and registration charges in markets like MMR are added flavours to the festive treat.

Moreover, the Q3 2020 base period saw nearly 29,520 units sold across the top 7 cities – much lower than the pre-COVID-19 quarter (Q1 2020) which saw nearly 45,200 homes sold. This effectively results in larger scope for growth. In all, housing sales are all set to rebound to 90 per cent of the pre-COVID-19 levels (Q1 2020), reveals the ANAROCK study.

In Hyderabad, for example, a 20-24 per cent jump in housing sales is likely in Q4 2020 as against the preceding quarter, when nearly 1,650 units were sold. In Bengaluru, the housing sales — which stood at 5,400 units in Q3 2020 — are expected to rise by 30-35 per cent in the October-December period.

Similarly, Pune may see housing sales rise by 34 per cent in Q4 2020 as against Q3 2020 when sales stood at 4,850 units, while Chennai may see a 20-25 per cent rise in sales in Q4 2020 as against Q3 2020 when sales stood at 1,600 units.