Recent surveys reveal that home buyers are increasingly anticipating a drop in property prices over the next 6-8 months. This expectation is notably reflected in the Housing Sentiment Index (HSI), which witnessed a significant decline of 22 percent during the July to September period compared to the preceding quarter.
The Housing Sentiment Index (HSI) is based on an online survey conducted among potential home buyers across eight prominent cities in India, including Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, and Bangalore.
During this recent survey, the HSI experienced a drop to 97 from 120 in the earlier quarter, indicating a decline of over 22 percent.
An HSI reading of 100 implies that buyers believe prices will stabilize at their current levels, whereas values below 100 suggest expectations of a downward trend in prices.
A collective HSI of 97 for the eight cities surveyed signifies a prevalent expectation of a price reduction in the upcoming months. This drop from 117 in the last quarter implies a marked shift in the sentiment of potential buyers.
In Bangalore, buyers continue to anticipate a slight increase in prices, contrasting sharply with the sentiments in the other seven major cities, where expectations are largely negative. Notably, Mumbai recorded the lowest HSI score at 85. Furthermore, the ongoing bifurcation issue appears to have severely impacted buyer confidence in Hyderabad, as reflected in its HSI score, which plummeted over 32 percent to 88.
This trend appears to be consistent across all eight surveyed cities and indicates a clear departure from the previous quarter's sentiment, which was characterized by expectations of price growth.
Moreover, the percentage of buyers anticipating a price fall exceeding 12 percent has nearly doubled, rising from 16 percent last quarter to 27 percent in the current findings.