A PropEquity report in May said that around 55,138 housing units were sold across the major cities during the first quarter of the Covid-hit January-March quarter. In a report comparing the scenario in the real estate sector, data from PropEquity showed that the sale of apartments during the first quarter of 2020, which was impacted by the coronavirus pandemic to some extent, was 119 per cent higher than 25,139 units sold during the October-December quarter of 2008, which was the first quarter to be impacted by the global financial crisis as a fallout of the Lehman Brothers’ collapse.

Total new supply across the nine major markets in the country also was higher by 38 per cent at 50,361 during the quarter ended March compared to 36,532 units in the fourth quarter of the 2008. The survey was done across Bengaluru, Kolkata, Pune, Mumbai, Thane, Gurugram, Noida, Chennai and Hyderabad. Samir Jasuja, Founder & MD, PropEquity said: “While the situation may look similar to the 2008 crisis, the real estate market has evolved during this period. The residential market now is an end user driven market and people are now preferring nearing completion and ready to move in properties. Furthermore, in the present scenario the demand in the residential segment is higher than the supply which is contrasting to the situation in 2008.”

He noted that the pandemic has affected the operations of almost all sectors which has created a cash crunch in the market which may have a significant impact on smaller firms. The past policy reforms have already forced the unorganized developers out of the market and the pandemic will further check the sustainability of the developers in the realty market which will further lead to more consolidation, he added.