India's housing market tilts premium: homes above Rs 1 crore now 54% of sales as launches outpace demand

Verified key facts

• Developers sold 171,471 homes and launched 187,350 units across eight major cities in H1 2026, with launches up 4% year-on-year, per Knight Frank India
• Homes priced above Rs 1 crore accounted for 54% of sales, up from 49% a year earlier, and more than 60% of new launches
• Pune led launch growth at 17%, followed by Mumbai at 8%; NCR, Hyderabad and Kolkata saw launches decline, with NCR sales down 7%
• Knight Frank describes the market as entering consolidation, not correction, supported by lower home loan rates and stronger developer balance sheets

A steady half-year with a premium tilt

India's residential market delivered one of its strongest half-year performances of the past decade, even as its centre of gravity shifted decisively upmarket. Developers sold 171,471 homes across eight major cities between January and June 2026, according to Knight Frank India's half-yearly report, covered by The Tribune. New launches rose 4 per cent year-on-year to 187,350 units.

Shishir Baijal, chairman and managing director of Knight Frank India, said the market continues to reflect stability. The first half, he noted, delivered one of the strongest sales periods in ten years. The consultancy's headline judgement: the sector is entering a phase of consolidation rather than correction.

The gap between the two headline numbers matters. Launches exceeding sales means unsold inventory is edging up, a trend Knight Frank flags as one to watch through the second half.

Rs 1 crore is the new middle of the market

The defining trend is premiumisation. Homes priced at Rs 1 crore and above accounted for 54 per cent of all sales in the first half, the Knight Frank data shows. A year earlier, the share was 49 per cent. On the supply side, the tilt is even sharper: premium homes made up more than 60 per cent of new launches, Pune Pulse reported.

Developers are following the money. Buyers with stable incomes and access to cheaper credit have traded up, while demand in the affordable segment has stayed subdued. Price growth, Knight Frank notes, is now concentrating in the premium and luxury brackets rather than spreading across the market.

The pattern extends a cycle that has run since the pandemic: upgraders and second-home buyers, not first-time purchasers, have led demand. Larger apartments, gated communities and branded developer projects have absorbed most of the incremental sales in the top cities, leaving the entry-level pipeline thin.

Pune and Mumbai pull ahead, NCR cools

City-level performance diverged sharply in the half:

• Pune posted the fastest launch growth among major cities at 17 per cent year-on-year
• Mumbai recorded an 8 per cent increase in new housing supply
• NCR, Hyderabad and Kolkata all saw new project launches decline
• NCR also reported a 7 per cent drop in housing sales

The western corridor's strength reflects its employment base in IT, manufacturing and financial services, along with infrastructure spending around both cities. NCR's soft patch follows several years of rapid price appreciation that has stretched affordability, analysts cited in the report's coverage said.

BusinessToday reported that Knight Frank expects the market to stay resilient despite global uncertainties, including the oil-driven volatility that has rattled equity markets through July. Housing demand, the consultancy argues, responds to local incomes and interest rates far more than to headline geopolitics.

Why Knight Frank sees consolidation, not correction

The consultancy's optimism for the second half rests on four supports. Urbanisation continues to add households in the main job markets. Employment levels remain stable. Home loan rates have come down as monetary easing transmits through the banking system. And developer balance sheets are stronger than in any previous cycle, reducing the risk of distress-driven price cuts.

The risks sit on the other side of the ledger. Sales have plateaued at a high level rather than growing. Unsold inventory is gradually rising as launches outrun demand. And the market's dependence on premium buyers leaves it exposed if equity markets or white-collar hiring stumble.

Knight Frank expects developers to respond with incentives rather than list-price cuts. The Tribune reported that flexible payment plans, stamp duty waivers and subvention schemes are likely to feature through the festive season.

What developers' own numbers show

Early June-quarter disclosures from listed developers support the premium-demand story. Puravankara reported a 28 per cent rise in sales bookings to Rs 1,439 crore for the first quarter, on better volumes and higher realisations, Business Standard reported. Oberoi Realty logged gross bookings of about Rs 8,109 crore at Three Sixty North, its first luxury project in the NCR.

Those numbers illustrate both sides of the Knight Frank thesis. Well-capitalised developers with premium products are selling briskly. The broader market, especially below the Rs 1 crore mark, is where momentum has thinned.

Who is affected

For homebuyers, the second half may bring negotiating room in cities where inventory is building, particularly NCR, Hyderabad and Kolkata. First-time buyers face a narrowing pipeline of affordable launches, a structural gap the report highlights.

For developers, the report's message is discipline. Knight Frank credits RERA-era reforms and better capital management for the sector's stability. The growing weight of well-capitalised players, it notes, reduces the odds of the deep discounting that marked earlier downturns.

For lenders, the shift means larger average ticket sizes on home loans and greater exposure to premium segments. For policymakers, the data underlines a two-speed market: headline sales near decade highs, with the entry-level segment still waiting for its cycle to turn. Knight Frank's central call is that stability, not a sharp move in either direction, defines the road to December.

Sources

• The Tribune - Premium housing demand, urbanisation to support India's realty market in H2 2026: Knight Frank (July 2026)
• Pune Pulse - Pune leads India's housing boom as residential launches rise 4% in H1 2026 (July 2026)
• BusinessToday - India's housing market to stay resilient despite global uncertainties: Knight Frank (10 July 2026)
• New Kerala - Premium housing demand, urbanisation to support India's realty market (July 2026)