Sizes of Flats Shrinking too with Demand
The price of Maggi (though banned now) stood same at Rs.10 not minding the forces of the market but it did eventually cut down on its quantity. Similarly, the FMCG companies in the late 1990s introduced the sachets as a marketing strategy in the country. The history is repeating itself in the real estate sector too.
According to a report by JLL India, the builders in the last five years have cut down on the average size of the flats upto 26% across seven major cities. The market is sluggish and therefore, the builders have devised ways, particularly in the residential segment, to cope up with the times. They are cutting the housing size without any reduction in its prices.
Its major impact has been seen in Mumbai Metropolitan Region including Mumbai, Thane and Navi Mumbai along with Bangalore, Chennai and Kolkata. Those of you planning to buy flats in Delhi NCR, Hyderabad and Pune are also witnessing the same in the median apartment sizes.
At a time, when it is increasingly becoming difficult to sell expensive apartments, the builders are making arrangements to sell flats in accordance to the affordability of the buyers. Mumbai is a city where the sizes of the flats are already small and a 26.4% decrease since the past five years have created a new story.
An average apartment size reduction in Bengaluru stood at 23.7% while Kolkata and Chennai witnessed 24% and 22.2% respectively. If you are stepping out to buy flats in Delhi NCR, the average apartment size has been reduced by 9.7% and 7% in Pune.
Talking about the current slowdown, it is predicted to continue for some more time now. The scenario is akin to a falling knife. You never know when it hits the bottom. However, a turnaround is expected to be in the long term.
