Now Reading: Affordable housing stock shrinks, premium home inventory jumps 43%
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Affordable housing stock shrinks, premium home inventory jumps 43%
Affordable housing stock shrinks, premium home inventory jumps 43%
Unsold homes priced below Rs 1 crore are being absorbed, while premium housing inventory is piling up rapidly across eight major Indian markets. According to a Knight Frank India report, total unsold…
The Story in Brief
Unsold homes priced below Rs 1 crore are being absorbed, while premium housing inventory is piling up rapidly across eight major Indian markets. According to a Knight Frank India report, total unsold residential stock rose 4% year-on-year to 5,25,695 units at the end of H1 2026. But the headline figure masks a sharp split: inventory in the Rs 2-5 crore segment surged 43% to 65,671 units, while affordable segments recorded declines of 7% (below Rs 50 lakh) and 3% (Rs 50 lakh-Rs 1 crore).
The overall Quarters to Sell (QTS) metric stood at 6.0 quarters, up from 5.8 at end of 2025. Ahmedabad posted the highest QTS at 8.1 quarters, followed by NCR at 7.6. Pune was lowest at 4.0 quarters. Notably, the Rs 2-5 crore segment saw sales rise 19% alongside rising inventory, giving it a relatively healthy QTS of 4.4 quarters. At the ultra-luxury end (Rs 20-50 crore), QTS stretched to 14.2 quarters, though total inventory in that bracket is only around 2,081 units.
The Indian Opinion
The usual narrative that 'rising unsold stock' signals a housing slowdown ignores the stark divide: affordable homes are selling out while premium supply expands. Builders are chasing higher margins, but the luxury end already shows warning signs, 14.2 quarters to clear stock at Rs 20-50 crore. This isn't a bubble yet, but it is a tale of two markets. The real test will come when quarterly sales in the Rs 2-5 crore segment start to plateau. That number will tell us if demand can keep pace with supply.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
