Housing sales across India's seven largest city markets experienced their weakest quarter in over three years between April and June 2026. A new analysis by property consultant Anarock reveals a 6% year-on-year decline in sales, totalling approximately 90,715 units, marking the lowest quarterly figure since January 2023.
The slowdown is attributed to global economic uncertainties and the ongoing conflict in West Asia, which have dampened buyer enthusiasm. Despite this weaker absorption, developers maintained confidence, with new launches rising 7% year-on-year to around 1.06 lakh units during the same period.
Varied Performance Across Major Cities
While the overall market saw a dip, individual cities exhibited mixed results:
- Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR): Recorded the highest sales at approximately 28,710 units in Q2 2026, an 8% decrease from the previous year.
- National Capital Region (NCR): Sales fell 6% year-on-year to about 13,365 units.
- Bengaluru: Showed marginal annual growth of 1%, with around 15,285 units sold.
- Pune: Experienced a sharp 15% drop in sales.
- Hyderabad: Saw a 2% year-on-year increase, with 11,270 units sold.
- Chennai: Sales declined by 9% annually to 5,135 units.
- Kolkata: Witnessed a 10% rise year-on-year, reaching roughly 3,860 units.
Prices and Inventory Trends
Average residential prices across the seven cities increased by 7% year-on-year, though quarterly appreciation moderated to 1%. NCR led annual price growth at 13%, followed by Bengaluru at 8%.
Unsold inventory continued to accumulate, rising 10% year-on-year to over 6.16 lakh units by the end of June 2026. Bengaluru registered the most significant jump in inventory, up 34% to about 79,180 units, while NCR's inventory levels remained largely stable.
Shift Towards Premium Housing
A notable trend during the quarter was a clear shift in the composition of new supply towards premium and luxury segments. Homes priced between ₹80 lakh and ₹1.5 crore constituted the largest share of new launches at 27%, followed by properties in the ₹1.5-2.5 crore band (25%) and those above ₹2.5 crore (22%). Conversely, affordable housing (below ₹40 lakh) made up a mere 6% of new launches, indicating a retreat from the budget segment.
Anuj Puri, chairman of the ANAROCK group, commented on the findings, stating, "These readings are along expected lines, as the Middle East war’s impacts on the entire sector were all too obvious. What we have currently is a more balanced housing market where new supply is catching up absorption as sales growth moderates across most top cities. Notably, the most sales growth now is in premium housing, GCC-led employment hubs, and infrastructure-driven corridors."
MMR and Bengaluru together accounted for a significant 48% of homes sold and 53% of new launches during the quarter. Hyderabad led in launch growth with new supply up 53% year-on-year, followed by Kolkata (42%), Bengaluru (41%), and MMR (23%). In contrast, NCR and Chennai experienced steep declines in new launches, down 40% and 38% respectively.
Developers increasingly favoured higher-priced stock: 96% of Bengaluru’s new launches were above ₹80 lakh, over 82% of Hyderabad launches were in the ₹80 lakh–₹2.5 crore bracket, and 61% of NCR’s new supply was in the luxury segment exceeding ₹1.5 crore.