Bengaluru sees 77% dip in housing sales in Q1

India’s technology hub Bengaluru has witnessed a whopping 77% decline in sales of housing units with just 2,990 during the first quarter ended June 2020 as the country was locked down to fight the Covid-19 pandemic since March 25.

On the all India basis, sale of housing units witnessed a massive 81.5% decline during the first quarter to 12,700 units across the top seven cities during the lockdown.

Bengaluru accounted for 24% of the national sales during the quarter. The country was under complete lockdown from March 25 to May 2. Bengaluru, along with Mumbai Metropolitan Region, accounted for nearly 52% of the total sales in the first quarter this year. Overall, the top seven cities accounted for sale of 68,600 units during the first quarter of 2019.

Prior to the commencement of lockdown, an estimated 35 million migrant workers were engaged in the construction sector. During the quarter, a majority of them returned to their native places, thereby impacting the construction activities, Prashant Thakur, director & head - Research, Anarock Property Consultants told DH.

“Construction activities across cities are yet to attain the normal pace. Given that most top cities are grappling with the pandemic, most developers have little choice but to follow strict social distancing protocols. Due to labour shortage, construction activity is moving at a slow pace,” Thakur said.

Amid the global pandemic, the top seven cities saw the launch of only 1,390 units in the June quarter as against 69,000 units in the corresponding period of 2019, a decline of 98%. Only four projects were launched -- two in Bengaluru and one each in Pune and Kolkata.