Nearly 50% homebuyers expect property price hike: Housing.com-NAREDCO survey

New Delhi, September 26, 2022: Real estate continues to be the preferred asset class for investment and nearly 50 per cent of prospective customers are expecting prices to rise in coming months due to strong demand during festive season, according to Housing.com and NAREDCO survey.

Housing.com, India’s leading full-stack prop-tech platform, and NAREDCO (National Real Estate Development Council) have conducted a joint survey with over 1000 participants to gauge consumer sentiment and released the ‘Residential Realty Consumer Sentiment Survey H2 2022′ report.

As per the survey findings, 47 per cent of respondents prefer to invest in real estate, the highest compared to other asset classes such as stocks, gold, and fixed deposit.

The data shows that 21 per cent of respondents prefer to invest in the stock market, 16 per cent in fixed deposits and 15 per cent in gold.

Housing prices recorded a 7 per cent YoY increase in April-June quarter of 2022.

The survey findings also suggest that 48 per cent of respondents anticipate prices to rise further in the coming months.

“India’s residential market has seen a sharp revival in demand after the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. The rising cost of borrowing, increase in input costs and strong demand has resulted in a rise in housing prices.,” said, Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO, Housing.com, PropTiger.com & Makaan.com

The survey observed that homebuyers are cautious yet optimistic about the economic scenario for the coming months; 73 per cent of respondents feel that the economy would continue to stay on its growth trajectory in the coming months. While ongoing global uncertainties have moderated the outlook, the sentiment regarding the economy still remains well above the dip recorded during 2020.

Commenting on the survey findings, Rajan Bandelkar, President, NAREDCO said: “Real Estate Sector in India is witnessing green shoots of recovery, thanks to various policy interventions implemented by Government, aiding the Real Estate sector to grow and ensuring speedy recovery of the industry Post Covid.

“Despite the hike in property prices and interest rates, homebuyer sentiment continues to remain in the positive zone for the remainder of 2022, according to our Consumer Sentiment Outlook survey. Potential homebuyers (65% of respondents) are positive regards their income stability for the coming six months; a sentiment highest since the lows of the pandemic period of 2020”, said Ankita Sood, Head of Research at Housing.com, PropTiger.com & Makaan.com

According to the survey, homebuyer sentiment has received a significant boost on the back of the increased importance of home ownership, the need for extra space amidst hybrid work policies adopted by many companies and the exigency for safety and security. Against this backdrop, the survey observed that 58 per cent of homebuyers who are primarily end-users are looking for ready-to-move-in (RTMI) property.

According to the Housing.com-NAREDCO report, the income outlook continues to strengthen and has reached an all-time high of 65 per cent since 2020. Strong services activity, an optimistic hiring scenario and a stable unemployment rate have all acted as sentiment boosters, bolstering consumer confidence in their future earnings.  

Digital sales and marketing platforms have become the mainstay not only to search for a home, but also to close deals online or in just one or two site visits. The survey shows that 34 per cent of homebuyers have suggested that they are willing to buy a home completely online or just after one site visit. Such platforms play a vital role in simplifying home buying, selling, renting and the access to allied services. Given the findings of the report, it’s likely that the real estate market will witness steady growth in the coming months.