Gurgaon lags behind NCR in sale of residential units

In growth terms, when it comes to absorption or sale of residential units and project launches, Greater Noida and Faridabad have left Gurgaon way behind. A survey of the national capital region (NCR) during the first quarter of the year shows absorption in Greater Noida shot up to 12,342 units, recording a growth of around 519 per cent compared with the same time last year.

In the first quarter, the launches also rose 180.8 per cent in Greater Noida to 7,785 units. In contrast, Gurgaon, an investor-driven market, saw a 12.8 per cent decline in absorption, touching 3,675 units in the first quarter, and a 38.9 per cent dip in launches at 5,416 units, according to data by real estate research firm PropEquity.

In Faridabad, another NCR area close to Delhi, the absorption increased by 91.2 per cent and launches by over 302 per cent during the first quarter this year. On the whole, the absorption or sale of units in the NCR region in the first quarter of 2013 increased by 45 per cent compared to the same period last year. But, the NCR launches dropped 24 per cent in the same period.

Experts have reasoned that developers are focusing on clearing their inventory, which is still very high. Gaurav Pandey, Senior vice-president and Head Research & Consulting, PropEquity said that the reason for the NCR region depicting a healthy absorption number in the first quarter is mainly due to demand picking up for affordable options available in Greater Noida and Faridabad. In the current scenario, logically, prices in Gurgaon should be muted, pointed out experts. As for the numbers, developers are launching projects rationally, which can be absorbed well. Also, absorption/sales decline is much less compared to new launches in Gurgaon, which is a healthy trend.