How tech layoffs and job concerns are hitting sub- ₹1 crore housing sales

Pune led housing sales decline at 20.8%, followed by Ahmedabad at 20.2% and Bengaluru at 9.2%; Hyderabad and Chennai bucked the trend, rising 14.6% and 36% YoY

Housing sales across the top six cities declined 6.1% year-on-year, driven by a sequential moderation due to seasonal factors ahead of the monsoon and heightened buyer caution amid the US-Iran war. The impact was sharper in technology-driven markets such as Bengaluru, Pune and Hyderabad, where AI-led workforce restructuring and tech-sector layoffs affected housing demand, particularly in the sub- ₹1 crore segment, according to PropTiger’s latest Real Insight Residential report.

Housing sales across the top six cities declined 6.1% year-on-year, driven by a sequential slowdown due to seasonal factors ahead of the monsoon and heightened buyer caution amid the US-Iran war. (Photo for representational purposes only) (Pexels)

A total of 91,729 homes were sold across the country’s top eight cities in Q2, down from 97,674 units a year earlier and 4.4% from the preceding quarter. New launches, however, rose 6% year-on-year to 89,161 units as sales continued to outpace fresh supply, it showed.

Pune recorded the steepest annual sales decline among the major markets, with sales falling 20.8% to 12,642 units. Ahmedabad followed with a 20.2% decline to 7,541 units. Bengaluru sales fell 9.2% to 14,186 units, while Delhi-NCR and MMR each recorded a 7% annual decline, the report showed.

Hyderabad saw sales increasing by 14.6% year-on-year to 13,196 units, while Chennai posted the strongest annual growth among the eight markets, with sales jumping 36% to 7,183 units. Kolkata recorded a 22% sequential increase, the strongest quarter-on-quarter recovery nationally, although its sales remained 8.6% below Q2 2025, the Real Insight Residential report, released by Aurum PropTech Limited, has said.

The report attributes the sequential moderation to pre-monsoon seasonality and buyer caution tied to the US–Iran conflict, with the sharpest impact in technology-led markets such as Bengaluru, Pune, and Hyderabad, where AI-led workforce restructuring and tech-sector layoffs weighed on sentiment in the sub- ₹1 crore segment.

Bengaluru records the strongest annual price growth

Despite the softer volumes, prices continued to rise. The sales-weighted average price across the eight cities increased 1% sequentially to ₹10,153 per square foot, marking the second consecutive quarter above ₹10,000, the report showed.

Bengaluru recorded the strongest annual price appreciation, with prices rising 26% to ₹9,931 per square foot despite weaker sales. MMR remained the largest market by volume and value, with 24,112 homes sold at an average of ₹15,422 per square foot, up 20.4% year-on-year.

Pune crossed ₹8,000 per square foot for the first time, rising 13.7% annually to ₹8,084, the report noted.

Ahmedabad remained the most affordable of the top eight markets at ₹5,295 per square foot, while also recording the strongest sequential price increase of 7%.

Kolkata led sequential sales growth at 22% QoQ, while Chennai’s sales jumped 36% YoY despite supply remaining 43.3% below year-ago levels. Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad remained relatively stable, with Hyderabad’s launches rising 21.6% YoY, supported by its IT, pharmaceutical and data-centre ecosystem, the report showed.

A stable RBI repo rate of 5.25%, moderating inflation, and sustained government capex provided a predictable macroeconomic backdrop. GST cuts on cement, from 28% to 18%, and on marble and granite, from 12% to 5%, have been factored into the project economics, providing an estimated 2–3% buffer in construction costs. However, the report describes this as a partial cost offset rather than a trigger for lower housing prices, with residential prices rising year-on-year across all eight cities.

“Q2 2026 confirms India's residential market is maturing, not weakening,” said Prakash Tejwani, CEO, PropTiger.com. “Prices have held above ₹10,000 per square foot for two straight quarters even as buyers turn more selective. Kolkata and Chennai are showing genuine demand-led recovery, while Bengaluru and Pune continue to command pricing power despite caution in the tech sector. Disciplined supply positions developers well for the festive quarter, though affordability remains the key variable to watch,” he said.

Outlook for the festive season

The report expects Q3 2026 to benefit from festive-season demand, continued recovery in Kolkata, supply normalisation in Chennai, and sustained momentum in Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR, aided by infrastructure completions including Bengaluru Metro Phase 3, the Pune Line 3 extension, and Chennai Phase 2.

The report flags affordability as the key watchpoint, with annual price appreciation ranging from 4.4% in Chennai to 26.0% in Bengaluru, stretching mid-income budgets. The festive quarter, the report concludes, will be the year's decisive demand test, and “a maturing market, by definition, rewards precision over volume.”