An increasing number of consumers in the country are reportedly eyeing investment in real-estate as one of the most viable asset classes, compared to purchasing gold or investing in fixed deposits.
As per a survey by JLL India, of 2,500 prospective homebuyers from major cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi NCR and Pune, among others, 91 percent of the respondents said they wanted to buy a home when asked to choose between buying and renting.
This resurgence in the housing market has been attributed to the slow ‘unlocking’ of the economy, which has now started showing signs of recovery.
In another online survey – the Buyer’s Sentiment Survey by Magicbricks – around 93 percent of respondents reportedly said that they “positively wanted to purchase property” while at the same time, were willing to reduce their budget, thus boosting the affordable housing market.
The sentiment to purchase has reportedly seen a revival from only 67 percent reporting wanting to purchase property, as per the April survey by Magicbricks.
“Real estate has emerged as the most resilient asset class today and we see potential for more consumers to pivot towards home ownership in the longer-term,” Ramesh Nair, CEO & Country Head (India) of JLL said to MoneyControl.
The Magicbricks survey also revealed that “87 percent of the respondents were looking to buy property for self-use, and only 13 percent for investment,” Financial Express reported.
According to the survey, the COVID-19 crisis had resulted in liquidity problems and delays in construction schedules accompanied by a dulling of demand due to a dip in overall spending by consumers.
The JLL survey reportedly stated that while a large proportion of people aged 20-35 years were likely to delay their plans of buying a house, potential buyers aged over 35 years indicated that they would be likely to buy a house by January 2021.
More than 50 percent of the prospective home-buyers indicated a preference to buy a 2 BHK apartment with size ranging from 800 to 1,000 sqft, as per the JLL survey.
With the pandemic having accelerated digital transactions, a large number of buyers are reportedly opting for virtual tours and interactions, and displaying interest in a wholly online transaction, from end to end.
Budget Cuts & Discounts
While still wanting to ultimately invest in property and real-estate, customers are, however, reportedly inching towards bargains that get them a rate discounted than what they had originally planned their budget as being.
According to the Magicbricks survey, about 73 percent of the respondents had gone for a “definite cut” in their budget. Meanwhile, 32 percent of respondents said they were seeking properties that were discounted.
(With inputs from Financial Express & Money Control)
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