Housing Sales Up 34% in July-Sept: JLL

India’s residential market was more active in the third quarter of 2020, with sales increasing by 34 percent quarter on quarter, according to JLL Research. While Mumbai accounted for 29 percent of the total sales in the quarter, 22 percent of those came from Delhi-NCR. Growth in sales activity was also driven by stronger demand in Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune. Residential market activity is also being supported by renewed interest from NRIs in Q3 2020, resulting in more pent-up demand in the market and increased enquiries received by developers. New launches were restricted with 12,654 units being launched in the quarter, a decline of 14 percent QoQ. Developers focused on completion of under-construction projects and clearing their existing inventory. Hyderabad and Mumbai accounted for over 60 percent of the total new launches in the quarter. The drop in new launches was driven by Bengaluru, which witnessed a decline of over 80 percent as compared to the year-ago period, the report said. Development focus on mid and affordable segments continued in the quarter, with nearly 75 percent of the new launches in the sub-Rs 1 crore category. Moving ahead, the focus on these price segments is expected to continue with developers focussing to reap the benefits of strong pent-up demand.