Real estate becomes preferred choice of investors

Despite the disastrous impact of covid pandemic on real estate, residential real estate which staged a smart recovery post-pandemic, has become the preferred choice of consumers.

Nearly 50 percent consumers prefer real estate for investment, especially as covid has reinforced the need for owning a home.?Not just that, many who already own a house, want bigger and better houses. According to a recent Consumer Sentiment Survey, across 8 top?cities??by Housing.com and NAREDCO, housing sales rose 13 percent in 2021 with revival in demand. The survey projects residential real estate sales to cross pre-covid levels this year. Today, as many as 47 percent of consumers prefer to invest in real estate, highest compared to other asset classes?such as stocks, gold?and fixed deposits. In the second half of 2020, following Corona, only 35 percent consumers showed interest in investing in residential real estate. As the input costs are fast rising, consumers believe that home prices will go up in the short term. A majority of the consumers (73 percent) want flexible payment plans and discounts to bring them closer to making the purchase decision. They also want residential property with access and proximity to social infrastructure such as educational institutes, healthcare facilities and recreational and open spaces.

The ongoing trend of consumers preferring ready-to-move homes over?under-construction homes continues.??As many as 57 percent of prospective home buyers want to invest in ready to move homes. The consumers' preference for investment in residential real estate asset classes, bodes well for the overall growth?of the?real estate sector.