With 13,150 Deals in March, Real Estate in Mumbai Sticks to Growth Trajectory

With Mumbai’s real estate industry swiftly recovering from stagnation, the largest realty market of India witnessed as many as 13,150 deals in March. Incidentally, the city continues with its growth trajectory as far as the real estate industry is concerned, with investors gaining back their confidence. This can be gauged from the data recorded by the office of Inspector General of Registration, Maharashtra. In the last seven months, this figure happens to be the second-highest since the government announced a slash in the stamp duty on properties.

Last December, the city’s real estate market recorded a historic record of 19,552 deals. Compared to the figures just one year ago, this was around 204% high. Even in the last month, the city recorded 10,059 deals. In terms of performance in the month of February, this was the best since 2012. Counting from September 1, the state government has realized a revenue of INR 2,578 crore. Evidently, reducing the stamp duty on properties boosted the growth of the real estate sector. Before this phase, particularly between January and August 2020, the state government had collected a revenue of INR 1,756 crores. This revenue came in the form of stamp duty. Therefore, the indication is clear that lowering the stamp duty has fostered more sales in the real estate sector.

 Till 24th March, the new rates of registration showed a 332% YOY growth. After the stamp duty cut regime, this was the highest growth rate recorded. At this pace, March 2021 is likely to witness a sale of more than 17,000 units.

In this regard, it should be noted that the Maharashtra government announced the stamp duty reduction on property registration. Previously, the rate was 5%, which was slashed to 2% for all the transactions that would take place between 1st September and 31st December. Between January and March 2021, the stamp duty would be 3%.

Previously, CREDAI MCHI had advised the Maharashtra government to extend the benefit of reduced stamp duty till March 2022. After the announcement of reduced stamp duty, Maharashtra’s urban zones, particularly Mumbai and Pune, recorded a sharp jump in property transactions. The impact was such that the registrar had to keep the 26 offices in Mumbai open on the Saturdays. This enabled the authorities to deal with the increased number of deals.