In line with the past three-four years, the performance of real estate in 2017 was lacklustre in terms of growth in prices and sales.

Reforms such as Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) and Goods & Services Tax (GST) and demonetisation   to curb the black money menace have hit the real estate sector hard.

It is reported that only 94,000 units were added in top 7 cities of India between Q1-Q3 2017, which is a drop of more than 50% from the same period in 2016.

However, experts believe that real estate market is going through a transitional phase. Things are going to get better over time and the reforms will help in shaping up the industry to a more consumer friendly market.

Anuj Puri, Chairman – Anarock Property Consultants says: “Overall, 2017 saw the Government making it clear that home buyers will no longer be at the mercy of real estate developers, and putting various measures in place to ensure that housing supply syncs up with demand and pertinent projects are developed.”

There are doubtlessly some teething troubles – some of them very obvious – in implementing and executing the new policies and reforms. However, they have made a deep impact even now.

Affordable housing is going to be the big thing in 2018 given the thrust by the government. The government has awarded it with the much needed infrastructure status.

The definition of affordable housing and houses classified under mid-income group was also changed   to cover a larger buyer base and help developers offload their budget homes inventory.

Samir Jasuja, MD & Founder, PropEquity said: “The real estate market in 2018 is expected to show price levels on a similar scale when compared with those of 2017. All in all, the year will remain a good time to buy. It is expected that the market will see more options in ready stock since a greater number of completions are to take place in the next year.”

(ends)