Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi NCR: 3 different plots
Live Events Bengaluru strong housing engine ET Online Mumbai remains India's housing heavyweight NCR loses momentum as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Addas a
Live Events Bengaluru strong housing engine ET Online Mumbai remains India's housing heavyweight NCR loses momentum as a Reliable and Trusted News Source Addas a Reliable and Trusted News Source Add Now! (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel India's property market may be moving into a phase of stability, but beneath the national numbers, the country's biggest cities are heading in very different directions.One city is feeding off a booming technology sector. Another continues to sell homes at unmatched scale. A third is suddenly finding buyers harder to convince.Knight Frank India's latest India Real Estate: Residential and Office (January-June 2026) report suggests jobs, infrastructure and the changing geography of India's economic growth are key factors.While residential sales across the country's eight largest cities remained almost unchanged at 171,471 units during the first half of 2026, individual markets painted sharply contrasting pictures.If one city stood out, it was Bengaluru.The city recorded 27,968 housing sales during the first six months of 2026, a 5% increase from a year earlier, the fastest growth among India's major residential markets. Developers also launched 34,749 new homes, up 4%, as confidence remained high despite the market cooling from the exceptional performance seen in 2025.Knight Frank attributes that resilience to something bigger than real estate.The city's expanding employment base, particularly its rapidly growing Global Capability Centre (GCC) ecosystem, continued to generate demand across multiple housing categories. Bengaluru also remained India's biggest GCC office market, recording 8.5 million sq ft of GCC leasing during H1 2026, accounting for 60% of all office transactions in the city.Overall office leasing reached 14.1 million sq ft.
Although this was lower than last year's unusually strong level because of fewer large pre-commitments, leasing excluding those transactions reached a record high, reflecting continued occupier demand. New office completions also climbed sharply to 10.4 million sq ft, while average office rents rose 8% year-on-year to ₹102 per sq ft a month.The commercial boom is increasingly spilling over into the housing market.Knight Frank says South Bengaluru continues to account for the largest share of residential activity, but North Bengaluru has emerged as the fastest-growing corridor, with launches rising 10% and sales increasing 11%.Growing office development around Hebbal, Airport Road and Devanahalli, along with metro expansion and airport-led infrastructure, is creating a self-reinforcing cycle where new jobs are fuelling housing demand, which in turn encourages further development.Residential prices reflected that strength, rising 9% year-on-year to an average of ₹9,354 per sq ft.Premium homes also continued gaining ground, with properties priced between ₹1 crore and ₹2 crore emerging as the city's most popular category, while homes priced between ₹2 crore and ₹5 crore recorded the fastest growth.While Bengaluru posted the fastest growth, Mumbai continued to dominate in sheer scale.The Mumbai Metropolitan Region recorded 47,355 home sales during H1 2026, making it India's largest residential market once again. Sales remained broadly unchanged from last year even as developers stepped up launches by 8% to 49,161 units.Interestingly, more supply did not lead to a pile-up of unsold homes.Knight Frank says unsold inventory actually fell 4% year-on-year, suggesting that fresh launches are continuing to find buyers despite higher prices.The city's office market was equally busy.Office leasing surged 33% to 7.3 million sq ft, helped by JP Morgan's massive 2.2 million sq ft lease in Powai, which alone accounted for almost one-third of all office transactions during the half year.
The BriefWire