Despite the gradual hike in property prices and home loan interest rates in 2022, it has been a fantastic year for residential real estate. Latest ANAROCK Research indicates that housing sales in the top 7 cities have created a new peak in 2022, breaching the previous high of 2014. Approx. 3,64,900 units were sold in 2022 against 2,36,500 units in 2021 across the top 7 cities – rising by 54% on Y-o-Y. The last peak was seen in 2014 when 3.43 lakh units were sold across the top 7 cities.

In terms of cities, MMR witnessed the highest sales of approx. 1,09,700 units in 2022, followed by NCR with approx. 63,700 units. The two realty hotspots are together once again the leading residential markets.

Meanwhile, new launches across the top 7 cities saw a 51% annual rise – from 2,36,700 units in 2021 to nearly 3,57,600 new units in 2022. MMR and Hyderabad witnessed maximum new launches in 2022, together comprising nearly 54% share of the total new launches in the year.

Anuj Puri, Chairman – of ANAROCK Group, said, “2022 has been a phenomenal year for residential real estate despite all headwinds including rising property prices, interest rate hikes and all geopolitical tensions, etc. Housing sales in the top 7 cities breached the previous highs of 2014 while new launches in comparison remained restricted.”

“While it was widely anticipated that the rise in property costs and interest rates towards the second half of 2022 would have a cascading impact on the residential sales, Q4 2022 remained quite robust with as many as 92,160 units sold in the period,” says Puri. “Interestingly, NCR became the shining star in 2022 which deliberately restricted new supply in the year to approx. 22,350 units but witnessed robust housing sales of 63,700 units.”

Further, as we march into a new year, we anticipate the current sales momentum in the housing sector to continue in the first quarter of 2023. The appetite for homeownership has remained undeterred, with maximum sales being driven by the end-users. However, various risks loom large around the residential segment. A lot will depend on how the home loan interest rates pan out over the next year.

Puri goes on to state that in 2023, we may see new launches remain well under control across most top cities. Ready-to-move-in will continue to top buyer demand but the demand for new launches will also gain momentum. This is large because the new supply in the market is and will continue to be dominated by the large and listed developers in the new year. There is a sense of confidence among the buyers for these developers and hence they will continue to perform well and see significant sales, just as they did in 2022.

Housing Sales Overview City-wise

Residential sales stood at approx. 3,64,900 units in 2022 against 2,36,500 units in 2021 across the top 7 cities – rising yearly by 54%. NCR, MMR, Bengaluru, Pune, and Hyderabad together accounted for 90% of the sales in the quarter.

• MMR recorded the highest sales in 2022 across the top 7 cities. With nearly 1,09,800 units sold in 2022, the city witnessed an annual increase of 44%.
• NCRrecorded sales of approx. 63,800 units in 2022, a significant increase of 59% over the last year.
• Punerecorded sales of around 57,200 units in 2022, an increase of 59% over 2021.
• 49,500 units were sold in Bengaluru in 2022, an annual increase of 50%.
• Hyderabadrecorded sales of approx. 47,500 units in 2022, a massive yearly increase of 87% over 2021.
• Kolkatarecorded sales of approx. 21,200 units in 2022, an annual increase of 62% from the previous year.
• 16,100 units were sold in Chennai in 2022, a yearly jump of 29% over 2021.

New Launches Overview City-wise

The top 7 cities recorded new launches of around 3,57,600 units in 2022 as opposed to 2,36,700 units in 2021, an annual increase of 51% over the previous year. Key cities contributing to 2022 new unit launches included MMR, Hyderabad, Pune, and Bengaluru, altogether accounting for 86% of the total addition.

• MMR witnessed the highest number of new unit launches of 1,24,650 units in 2022 among the top 7 cities. Over 68% of the new supply was added in INR 40 Lakh to INR 2.5 Cr budget segment.
• Hyderabad added a new supply of approx. 68,000 units in 2022 compared to 51,500 units in 2021 – a healthy increase of 32%.
• Pune added approx. 64,300 units in 2022, a significant annual increase of 61% over the previous year. Over 74% of the new supply was added in the INR 40 Lakh – INR 1.5 Cr budget segment.
• Bengaluru added approx. 49,200 units in 2022, a yearly increase of 61%. Approx. 72% new supply was added in the INR 40 Lakh – INR 1.5 Cr budget segment.
• NCR’s new launches in 2022 recorded a decrease of 20% from the previous year with approx. 25,350 units launched this year.
• Chennai added approx. 10,000 units in 2022, an annual decrease of 19% over the previous year.
• Kolkata added approx. 16,100 units in 2022, an annual increase of 17% over 2021. Approx. 72% new supply was added in the sub-INR 80 Lakh budget segment.

Price Movements

On annual basis, prices have risen in the range of 4 – 7% primarily due to an increase in the input costs and demand comeback post-COVID.

Available inventory as of Q4 2022-end

On annual basis, available inventory declined by 1% in Q4 2022 across the top 7 cities despite strong new housing supply in the current year 2022. As many as 6,30,953 units are available for sale across the top 7 cities in India.

About the author- Anuj Puri, Chairman – ANAROCK Group