New Delhi: Majority of potential homebuyers expect housing prices to rise over the next six months on higher input costs and they are looking for flexible payment plans along with discounts while deciding on making purchases of their dream homes, according to a joint survey by Housing.com & NAREDCO.
India’s leading full stack digital real estate platform Housing.com along with leading industry body NAREDCO has conducted a survey of more than 3,000 people to gauge consumer sentiments for the first half of 2022 calendar year.
In its ‘Residential Realty Consumer Sentiment Outlook (January—June 2022)’ report, Housing.com & NAREDCO highlighted that 47 per cent of the consumers prefer to invest in real estate, highest compared to other asset classes such as stocks, gold, and fixed deposits. In the survey for the second half of 2020, only 35 per cent respondents showed interest in buying real estate.
Consumers continue to prefer real estate over other investment asset class amidst the pandemic
Asset class investment outlook
“The COVID pandemic has reinforced the need for owning a house for every individual. People want bigger and better homes. Our data showed that housing sales rose 13 per cent in 2021 with revival in demand. We strongly believe that sales will cross pre-COVID levels this year,” said Mr. Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO of Housing.com, Makaan.com and PropTiger.com.
Commenting on the survey findings, Shri Rajan Bandelkar, President, NAREDCO said: “It is encouraging for us that consumers are optimistic about the growth potential of the Indian economy and their own income. Nearly 50 per cent of people surveyed prefer to buy real estate. This means that demand will continue to remain strong.”
According to the survey, more than half (51 percent) of the potential homebuyers feel that residential prices will rise in the coming six months.
The survey revealed that 73 per cent of respondents were of the view that flexible payment plans and discounts would bring them closer to making the purchase decision.
Housing.com & NAREDCO suggested that the government should hike tax rebate on housing loans’ interest rate, reduce Goods and Services Tax (GST) on construction materials, expand credit availability to small developers, and cut stamp duty to boost housing demand.
In a healthy sign for proptech companies, 40 percent of respondents are willing to buy a home completely online or close the deal in just one site visit. The pace of adoption of technology in the overall real estate sector has gained momentum since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The survey also indicated that 57 per cent of the potential homebuyers would prefer to buy a ready-to-move-in (RTMI) property.
“This shows that prospective buyers are still cautious to book flats in under-construction flats because of a trust deficit,” Mr. Agarwala said, but added that the situation is likely to change as developers are increasingly focusing on ensuring that they meet their committed deadlines.
Another positive trend that has emerged from the COVID pandemic is that homebuyers across top-eight cities are looking for property with access and proximity to social infrastructure such as educational institutes, healthcare facilities, and recreational / open spaces. Majority of respondents want such facilities within 1—1.5 km from their homes.
The survey found that 79 percent of respondents feel that the economy would continue to stay on its growth trajectory in the coming six months.
Only 21 percent of respondents suggested that the economy would get worse compared to 41 per cent during the first wave of the pandemic.
“63 per cent of homebuyers are confident about their income for the coming six months,” the report added.
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