Mumbai’s rising metro connectivity fuels home sales in new micro markets

• Mumbai’s home registrations topped 10,000 for the third consecutive month in August.
• New metro lines have become operational driving demand in new micro markets.
• Western suburbs are seeing a lot of new launches, while Kanjurmarg, Dombivli and Navi Mumbai are seeing traction too.
  

India’s most valuable real estate market has been on an upswing — for the third consecutive month in August, its monthly housing units registered were over 10,000. The number of home registrations in August were up 27% when compared to the same period a year before, while their overall value was up 26% — indicating that the market is growing in both value and volume.

“The Mumbai market has been stable despite interest rate hikes and the levy of metro cess. Increase in wages and employment opportunities and return-to-work scenario are expected to keep home buying activity healthy,” said a report by Nuvama which believes that the sales would improve going ahead and large developers will benefit most from the trend.

Metro lines & new markets

Real estate experts say that many trends are driving this change, including stabilisation in interest rates, the post pandemic-era need for large living spaces and the entry of young home buyers into the market. Within Mumbai, however, accelerated new launches as well as improvement in infrastructure — is propelling growth across micro markets.

“The upward trajectory is also fueled by the government's progressive policies and infrastructure investments across MMR. With new Metro lines, flyovers and roads, the connectivity factor has played a major role in offering options at newer locations, which often come at more efficient prices,” said Lucy Roychoudhury, head of sales and marketing at Runwal Group.

Homebuyers are also now confident of real estate as an asset class, comments Dhaval Ajmera, director, Ajmera Realty & Infra adding that the growth in sales is due to the-dual effect of the need to upgrade to a bigger and better living spaces and focused impetus on infrastructural developments across the city.

Rise in re-development projects, rising rentals are also driving people towards home buying.

Pockets of growth

Apart from the existing Versova to Ghatkopar metro line, the Dahisar to DN Nagar line has become operational along with Dahisar to Andheri. Moreso, seven more lines cutting across Mira Road, Vikhroli, Wadala and more are under construction along with Navi Mumbai lines cutting Kharghar, Belapur and more.

“The operationalisation of the second phase of two metro lines seems to have benefited the real estate activity in this region,” said Anuj Puri, chairman of Anarock Group. The highest number of new launches in April to June 2023 shows that the highest number was recorded in the Western suburbs at 55%, says data by Anarock.

“Housing demand in relatively newer micro-markets like Kandivali, Ghatkopar, and Kharghar has seen a sharp rise,” says Arun Sharma, AVP of sales & marketing at Viceroy Properties. Locations such as Kanjurmarg, Vikhroli, Dombivli and a few others in Navi Mumbai, have emerged as new points of interest in MMR, says Roychoudhury.

Even as patterns are changing, the love for ‘large homes’ are intact as properties priced above ₹2.5 crore accounted for a fifth of the launches — and the market is still skewed towards high-end and ultra-luxury segments.

The ultra-luxury segment includes HNIs and UHNIs looking to close favourable deals by utilising the gains made through other investment avenues, primarily the booming stock markets,” says Puri.