Mumbai: NoBroker.com, the world’s largest ‘peer-to-peer’ real estate portal, has identified the key property trends that dominated the Mumbai’s real estate over the last year in its ‘India Real Estate Report 2020’. According to the findings, 78% of the respondents in Mumbai are looking to buy a house in 2021. Mumbai also has the highest percentage of buyers looking for society accommodation (82%). This trend can be attributed to the lack of independent houses in the city, as well as the enhanced safety and convenience that society living offers.

The following are the major property purchase trends in Mumbai that dominated in 2020, as observed by NoBroker.com in its latest report:

·         Majority of of the homeseekers (87%) in Mumbai prefer ready-to-move-in or resale houses. Given the difficulty faced by people who have invested in under-construction projects, this seems to be a legit choice.

·         Nearly three-fourths (73%) of the surveyed homeseekers from Mumbai are first-time buyers.

·         A majority of the buyers (92%) in the region are looking to purchase a property for end-use. Only 8% of them are interested in owning a property for investment purposes.

·         Nearly 67% of homeseekers in Mumbai consider Vastu compliance an important factor in their decision-making process.

·         At 20%, Mumbai has the highest percentage of property seekers looking to buy a house in 2021 with a budget of INR 1 crore or above. This can be attributed to the high cost of properties in the region, and also the reduction in stamp duty charges.

·         Mumbai hosts the largest percentage of people looking for 1 BHK units (49%). This too could be because of the fact that prices on average are higher in Mumbai.

·         The impact of the pandemic on the city’s real estate sector reflected in property prices, with the highest dip of 3.7% in per square feet prices. This was in line with the trend across most other major cities in India.

Top rental trends

·         Tenants from Mumbai were amongst those most actively avoiding real estate brokers, with 43% of the respondents choosing real estate websites and 41% opting to search through their social circles, over the middlemen. This was done to avoid unnecessary brokerage fees, as tenants in the city are required to pay a month’s rent as brokerage even if they are renewing their contract with the same landlord.

·         Security is the most important amenity for 66% of tenants in Mumbai. About 13% of them also mentioned that they look for visitor and society management apps on account of the convenience and security they offer. Mumbai is also home to the highest percentage of tenants (75%) who prefer society accommodation over independent houses and independent floors.

·         The use of digital payment tools reigned supreme amid the pandemic. Almost two-thirds (63%) of the tenants in Mumbai paid their rent through online channels such as bank transfer and NoBroker Pay. Mumbai and Pune aced the trend of digital transactions. Only 24% of them transacted using cash.

·         NoBroker observed that 88% of the tenants in Mumbai use online portals to make their rental agreements. This is again the highest among all cities surveyed.

·         On account of the pandemic, the region experienced negative rent inflation, with the average rent dropping by 1.56% compared to the previous year.

The human side of landlords

·         NoBroker.com also made an interesting observation about the behaviour of Indian landlords in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. Of the surveyed landlords in Mumbai, nearly half (49%) mentioned that they waived off some rent during the lockdown for the benefit of their tenants.

·         79% of landlords across cities prefer families as tenants. Only 19% of landlords in Mumbai expressed their willingness to rent to bachelors.

Speaking on the latest findings, Saurabh Garg, Co-Founder & CBO, NoBroker.com, said, “The real estate trends of 2020 cannot be discussed without talking about the pandemic. This pandemic made people realise the importance of owning a home and 78% of respondents are looking to explore buying a home in 2021. The viral outbreak-led safety concerns are driving buyers as well as tenants towards opting for society accommodation, where new-age apps are elevating the residential experience of users. We believe that this trend is here to stay.”

By relying on consistent innovation, NoBroker.com has emerged as a domain leader in the Indian proptech space. It helped homeseekers in the Mumbai region save a whopping INR 267 crore in brokerage this year – nearly a third of the INR 1,017 crore saved across six top cities in India. Underscoring its mission of providing its users with safe and convenient services, the platform also offers several related offerings. These include packers & movers, home loans, NoBroker Pay, rental agreements, home painting and cleaning services, and NoBrokerHood society management app, among others.