1,2 or 3 BHK? What do home buyers like most?

Real Estate: Buying your dream house is everyone’s desire. Generally people used to build houses or buy flats in or around their retirement. But now the trend has changed. The first thing people are buying at the beginning of their job is their house. Along with this, people are looking for bigger apartments despite the rising property prices. The FICCI-Anarock Consumer Sentiment Survey (H2 2023) revealed that 50 percent of home buyers in cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi-NCR prefer 3-BHK. Anarock Research Company conducted the online survey from July-December 2023, in which 5,510 participants responded through various digital sources including email campaigns, web links and messages. This survey was conducted in 14 cities. The age of the participants during the survey was between 22-76 years. The findings of this survey were revealed at the FICCI Real Estate Summit in Delhi on March 5.

Read Also: From portfolio to top holdings, know who are the top 5 women investors of India

Three BHK became people’s choice

Real Estate survey found that 50 percent people wanted 3 BHK, while 38 percent people were in favor of 2 BHK. However, most people in Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Pune still prefer small houses. Despite rising property rates, the demand for large apartments remains constant. “The demand for luxury homes priced above Rs 1.5 crore has also increased in line with the growing preference for larger apartments,” the report said. The demand for affordable housing has further reduced. According to the FICCI-Anarock Consumer Sentiment (H2) survey, this demand was 25 percent in the year 2021, which reached 21 percent in the year 2023. In the year 2020 this figure was 40 percent.

‘Supply is happening as per demand in real estate’

Anarock Group Chairman Anuj Puri said that the supply of big houses is according to their demand. According to Anarock data, the average flat size in the top seven cities has increased by 11 per cent annually last year from 1,175 sq ft in 2022 to 1,300 sq ft in 2023. The survey revealed that the demand for ready-to-move homes is less as compared to new homes launched for the first time. The survey highlighted the increasing trend of home buyers towards small and big cities. This surge has come due to the Return to Office (RTO) policy after the Covid-19 pandemic. The current survey showed that 30 percent of the participants chose sub-urban areas as their first preference for buying a home, compared to 25 percent in 2021. The current survey shows an increase in the desire for more open spaces within homes as compared to previous years. In the past, there was more focus on utilizing every square inch for indoor use. Now, 75 percent of property buyers want properties with balconies. 74 percent home buyers insist on better construction quality.

Trend changed after Covid

Manoj Gaur, Chairman of CREDAI NCR and CMD of Gaur Group, says that if we look at the recent times, home buyers are getting more attracted towards bigger houses. Especially after Covid, people are demanding more space and extra rooms to work and fulfill their needs. Even in investment, buyers are turning more towards bigger houses due to which more launches have been seen in luxury real estate. Developers are also moving forward with this thinking. There is no doubt that in the coming times the demand for high range properties will increase further and the demand and sales of small houses will further decrease.