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Knight Frank India, the leading international property consultancy, in its latest assessment of the Indian residential market, reported that housing demand remained resilient during the first nine months of 2026. Residential sales across the eight key markets[3] held steady at 258,238 units between January and September 2026 (9M CY2026[4]), broadly in line with the same period last year, underscoring the sustained appetite for homeownership despite evolving market dynamics A total of 279,899 units were launched during 9M CY2026 registering a growth of 4%. In Q3 2026, launches stood at 92,549 units, also representing 4% higher year-on-year (YoY).  This suggests that developers are increasingly aligning supply with sales, even as inventory continues to build gradually. The volume of units launched continued to exceed sales in Q3 2026, marking the 16th consecutive quarter of this trend.

There was also a marginal rise in Quarters-to-sell (QTS) which stood at 6.1 quarters at the end of September 2026. Prices firmed up further registering a rise across the markets ranging from 3% to 17% YoY. Homes above INR 1 crore (Cr) continued to gain market share, accounting 55% of total residential sales in 9M CY2026, while the lower end represented by homes below INR 50 Lakhs slid further by 10%.

Mumbai, the largest residential market by volume, led with sales of 72,804 units during 9M CY2026 registering a 1% YoY growth, followed by Bengaluru with 43,140 units (5%) and Pune with 36,402 units (0%). Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Kolkata also recorded positive trends in residential sales in this period with volumes rising between 2% - 4% YoY in 9M CY2026.

The National Capital Region (NCR) stood out as the only market to record a decline in residential sales during the first nine months of 2026, with 35,574 homes sold, down 11% year-on-year. This moderation comes after a prolonged period of strong growth and premiumisation in the market. Importantly, the slowdown was not broad-based but largely concentrated in the INR 5-10 crore price segment, where sales declined by 39% year-on-year to 4,033 units, compared with 5,002 units launched during the period. Geographically, Gurugram accounted for the bulk of this correction and represented 57% of NCR's unsold inventory. In contrast, the remaining seven major residential markets recorded stable to positive sales growth, ranging from broadly unchanged performance in Pune to growth of 5% in Bengaluru and 4% in Kolkata, highlighting the continued strength of housing demand across most urban centres.

The macroeconomic backdrop remained supportive, even while monetary policy is no longer providing additional momentum. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew 7.8% YoY in April-June 2026, more than RBI's 7% projection, while the RBI raised its FY 2027 growth forecast to 6.7% in August and kept the REPO rate unchanged at 5.25%. CPI inflation rose to 4.8% in August from 4.4% in June, with higher energy costs and food prices contributing to the increase. With the RBI projecting inflation of 5.9% for October-December 2026, further rate cuts appear less likely in the near term. Cumulative easing of 125 bps remains embedded in-home loan rates, while further affordability gains are increasingly dependent on income growth.

Market Summary: Top Eight Indian Cities

Source: Knight Frank Research

Shishir Baijal, International Partner, Chairman & Managing Director, Knight Frank India, said, "India's residential market is entering a more discerning phase, in which the quality and relevance of supply will matter as much as the strength of demand. Sales held steady in the first nine months of 2026 as the market plateaus after several years of strong growth, and combined sales in the seven markets outside NCR rose 2% YoY. NCR's 11% moderation has been led by the INR 5–10 crore segment, while the INR 2–5 crore segment continues to grow across most major markets, NCR included. The shift towards higher ticket sizes and a gradual rise in Quarters to Sell show that buyers are becoming more selective, pointing to normalisation rather than a broad-based slowdown. As the benefit of lower interest rates moderates, income growth, relevant new supply and local demand drivers will shape the next phase of growth across India's leading cities."

Sales Trends as per Price Category

The shift towards higher ticket sizes continued in 9M CY2026. Homes priced above INR 1 crore accounted for 55% of sales, up from 50% in 9M CY2025, while sales of homes priced below INR 1 crore declined by around 10% YoY. The INR 1–2 crore segment emerged as the largest category, accounting for 30% of total sales, compared with 28% in 9M CY2025.

Within the 9M CY 2026 period, the share of homes priced below INR 50 lakhs declined to 18% from 22% a year earlier, while the share of homes priced above INR 1 Crore increased to 55% from 50%. This indicates a continued shift in the residential market towards higher-ticket housing.

Below INR 50 lakhs | Sales moderation continues

The segment recorded sales of 47,660 units in 9M CY2026, declining 14% YoY and accounting for 18% of total residential sales across the eight cities. Mumbai remained the dominant market for this segment, accounting for 55% of segment sales, with 26,136 units sold during the quarter.

INR 50 lakhs – 1 crore | Sales decline

Sales in the INR 50 lakh–1 crore segment stood at 69,380 units in 9M CY2026, down 5.9% YoY and contributing 26.9% of overall sales. Mumbai led with 17,601 units, followed by Pune at 15,811 units and Bengaluru at 8,061 units.

INR 1 crore – 2 crores | Largest sales segment

The INR 1–2 crore category recorded the highest sales volume at 77,087 units, representing 30% of total sales and registering 6.8% YoY growth. Bengaluru led the segment with 19,713 units sold.

INR 2 crore – 5 crores | Strongest growth among major segments

Sales in the INR 2–5 crore price segment grew 19.4% YoY to 51,501 units in 9M CY2026, accounting for 19.9% of total residential sales. Bengaluru led this segment with 12,965 units, while Chennai recorded the highest YoY growth at 54%.

INR 5 crore – 10 crores | Moderation in sales traction

The INR 5–10 crore segment recorded 9,397 units in 9M CY2026, marking a 9% YoY decline. While NCR was the only market to record a decline in this segment, it was also the market with the highest sales volume recorded of 4,033 units.

INR 10 crore – 20 crores | Strong growth on a smaller base

Sales in the INR 10–20 crore segment increased 16% YoY to 2,587 units. NCR led the segment with 1,536 residential units sold.

INR 20 crore – 50 crores | Continued growth

Sales in the INR 20–50 crore segment increased 69% YoY to 571 units, with Mumbai accounting for 58% of the overall sales traction.

INR 50 crore and above | Lower sales on a small base

The INR 50 crore and above segment recorded 53 residential sales in 9M CY2026 with Mumbai recording the highest number of units sold in the period.

City-wise Ticket Size Sales in 9M CY 2026 (Part 1)

Source: Knight Frank Research

City-wise Ticket Size Sales in 9M 2026 (Part 2)

Source: Knight Frank Research

QTS edges higher as inventory continues to build

The Quarters to Sell (QTS) metric rose to 6.1 quarters in Q3 2026, from 5.8 quarters in Q3 2025, marking its fourth consecutive quarterly increase and the highest level since Q2 2023. While the metric remains below the seven to eleven quarters recorded between 2018 and 2021, the upward movement indicates a gradual increase in absorption time.

Residential Price Movement

Prices increased across every tracked market in Q3 2026. Outside NCR and Bengaluru, annual price growth ranged between 3% and 6%, broadly close to consumer price inflation. Bengaluru recorded 11% YoY growth, which may partly reflect the rapid addition of higher-priced stock to the inventory-weighted average.

Residential Price Movement

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