Transforming Trends in an Evolving Realty Landscape

Undoubtedly, the coronavirus pandemic has hit the Indian real estate sector hard, with developers impacted by losses. The builders were hopeful that the industry would finally revive in 2020, after a period of stagnancy. Even though it did show signs of revival in the first quarter of the year, sales plummeted with the imposition of the lockdown near the end of March 2020.

Naturally, the real estate players are starting to evolve and adapt to the new normal, coming up with innovative ways to survive in the current market. This has created a number of trends in the realty sector.

Digitization is probably the most prominent trend which has emerged as a result of the pandemic. Modern technologies such as artificial reality, API integration, etc. are gaining popularity. With physical site visits reduced to minimal levels due to the pandemic, developers are relying on online means. These include providing potential buyers with 3D models and AR models of the homes, virtual tours through video calls, etc. Considering the advantages of these methods over the hassles of repeated site visits in conventional methods, this trend is expected to stay even after the pandemic.

Although it was initially expected that the developers would lower property prices in order to boost sales, the prices are staying stagnant for now. This is because the lockdown has resulted in increased cost of production due to rising prices of construction materials, labour, etc. However, the builders are coming up with various lucrative deals and additional incentives to boost property sales. These include discounts, assured returns, waiving of registration fees, free membership to clubhouses and other perks.

The central and state governments too, are taking a number of steps to help the sector revive. For example, Gurgaon witnessed the introduction of a property exchange scheme while in Mumbai, the stamp duty charges have been lowered. These trends are indeed beneficial for the real estate sector and would help it revive.