The real estate sector is set for better days ahead with the sector likely to witness a revival in 2016, according to a survey.

Almost 70 per cent of investors foresee improvement in sales over the next 12 months, according to a recent sentiment survey conducted by RICS and JLL titled ‘Peering into 2016: Taking Pulse Of Investor Preference’. The survey was conducted across a wide range of the investors, including private equity investors in the real estate sector.

RICS is a global professional body that promotes and enforces standards and qualifications in real estate, construction and infrastructure.

The anonymous survey of seasoned real estate investors in the Indian real estate market focused on capturing the mood of participants and identified their specific areas of concern. The focus of the survey centered around specific factors such as return expectations, exits, preference on asset typology and impact of new and proposed regulatory reforms on the real estate market over the next 12 months.

As per the report, investors clearly voiced that even though the refinancing cycle is not expected to meet its logical conclusion in 2016, the number of successful exits will increase over the next 12 months.

Speaking of asset classes, commercial office and mid-segment residential property will be the top two preferred choices of investors with IT/ITeS office rounding up the third spot. From a city perspective, Mumbai and Bengaluru remain close contenders as the top two preferred investment destinations, with Pune coming in a distant third beating the NCR.