Housing sales across the eight key markets remained largely stable at nearly 2.6 lakh units between January and September 2026, with Mumbai leading with 72,804 units, followed by Bengaluru and Pune. NCR was the only market to record a decline, with sales falling 11%, led by Gurugram, even as the other seven markets grew 2%. The bigger structural shift was at the premium end, with homes priced above ₹1 crore accounting for 56% of sales, up sharply from 16% in 2018, signalling a sustained shift towards higher-value housing.
A total of 279,899 units were launched during 9M CY2026, registering 4% growth. In Q3 2026, launches stood at 92,549 units, also up 4% year-on-year (YoY). This suggests that developers are increasingly aligning supply with sales, even as inventory continues to build gradually. However, the volume of units launched continued to exceed sales in Q3 2026, marking the 16th consecutive quarter of this trend, the Knight Frank India report noted.
Mumbai leads housing sales; NCR sales decline 11%, led by Gurugram
Mumbai, the largest residential market by volume, led with sales of 72,804 units in 9M CY2026, registering 1% YoY growth, followed by Bengaluru with 43,140 units, up 5%, and Pune with 36,402 units, largely unchanged from a year earlier. Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Kolkata also recorded positive trends, with residential sales rising between 2% and 4% YoY during the period.
NCR was the only market to record a decline in residential sales during the first nine months of 2026, with 35,574 homes sold, down 11% YoY. Gurugram accounted for the majority of the decline and holds 57% of NCR’s unsold inventory. Outside Gurugram, NCR sales grew 3%, while unsold stock has nearly halved since 2021.
{{/usCountry}}NCR was the only market to record a decline in residential sales during the first nine months of 2026, with 35,574 homes sold, down 11% YoY. Gurugram accounted for the majority of the decline and holds 57% of NCR’s unsold inventory. Outside Gurugram, NCR sales grew 3%, while unsold stock has nearly halved since 2021.
{{/usCountry}}The slowdown was not broad-based but largely concentrated in the ₹5–10 crore price segment, where sales declined 39% YoY to 4,033 units, compared with 5,002 units launched during the period. In contrast, demand in the ₹2–5 crore segment remained steady, the report noted.
NCR’s residential market is undergoing a recalibration in its supply mix rather than experiencing a broad-based contraction in housing demand. The decline in overall sales is concentrated in the ₹5–10 crore segment and the Gurugram market, while demand in the ₹2–5 crore segment remains steady. The divergence between supply and demand highlights an opportunity for developers to calibrate new inventory more closely with the established buyer base below ₹2 crore, the report noted.
The remaining seven major residential markets recorded stable to positive sales growth, ranging from broadly unchanged performance in Pune to 5% growth in Bengaluru and 4% in Kolkata, highlighting the continued strength of housing demand across most urban centres.
Homes priced above ₹1 crore account for 55% of residential sales
Homes priced above ₹1 crore accounted for 55% of residential sales across the eight major cities in 9M CY2026, up from 50% a year earlier, while sales of homes priced below ₹1 crore declined by around 10% YoY, indicating a continued shift towards higher-ticket housing.
The ₹1–2 crore segment emerged as the largest category, accounting for 30% of total sales, up from 28% in 9M CY2025, with sales rising 6.8% YoY to 77,087 units, led by Bengaluru with 19,713 units.
Sales of homes priced below ₹50 lakh fell 14% YoY to 47,660 units, accounting for 18% of total sales, while the ₹50 lakh– ₹1 crore segment declined 5.9% to 69,380 units, contributing 26.9% of overall sales.
The ₹2–5 crore segment recorded the strongest growth among the major categories, with sales rising 19.4% YoY to 51,501 units, accounting for 19.9% of total sales. Bengaluru led this segment with 12,965 units, while Chennai recorded the highest YoY growth at 54%.
Sales in the ₹5–10 crore segment declined 9% to 9,397 units, with NCR recording the highest sales at 4,033 units. The ₹10–20 crore segment grew 16% to 2,587 units, led by NCR with 1,536 units, while the ₹20–50 crore segment recorded a 69% YoY increase to 571 units, with Mumbai accounting for 58% of sales. At the ultra-luxury end, homes priced at ₹50 crore and above recorded 53 sales, with Mumbai registering the highest number of transactions, the report noted.
Housing prices firm up across markets
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, rising between 3% and 17% YoY across markets. Homes priced above ₹1 crore continued to gain market share, accounting for 55% of total residential sales in 9M CY2026, while the share of homes priced below ₹50 lakh declined further.
Weighted average prices increased YoY across all NCR markets: 17% in Delhi, 14% in Ghaziabad, 11% in Greater Noida, 7% in Noida and Faridabad, and 4% in Gurugram. A demand-led slowdown would typically show falling prices rather than rising prices, the report noted.
“NCR’s residential market is undergoing a recalibration in its supply mix, rather than experiencing a broad-based contraction in housing demand. The decline in overall sales is concentrated in the ₹5–10 crore segment and the Gurugram market, while demand in the ₹2–5 crore segment remains steady," said Mudassir Zaidi, Executive Director – North, Knight Frank India.
The divergence between supply and demand highlights a clear opportunity for developers to calibrate new inventory more closely with the established buyer base below ₹2 crore. At the same time, infrastructure-led development is reshaping the region’s residential geography, with third-quarter launches concentrated along Sohna, the Dwarka Expressway, the NH-24 corridor in Ghaziabad and the Yamuna Expressway, he said.