Tuesday, August 14, 2012

DICHOTOMY BETWEEN HOUSING PRICES AND LOAN GROWTH

HOUSING PRICES RISE BUT LOAN GROWTH SUBDUED

UP UP AND AWAY
As per a study conducted by the National Housing Bank housing prices have risen by up to 10.5 per cent in 16 major cities in India during the April-June period. NHB 'RESIDEX' tracks the movement in prices of residential properties on a quarterly basis since 2007. The maximum increase in housing prices was observed in Pune (10.5 per cent) followed by Bengaluru (8.7 per cent), Patna (8.6 per cent), Ahmedabad (6.4 per cent) and Ludhiana (5.3 per cent). Housing prices rose by 4.1 per cent in Lucknow, while homes became costlier in Mumbai by 3.7 per cent, Delhi and Kolkatta by 2.6 per cent each, Bhubaneshwar, Bhopal and Chennai by 1.7 per cent each, Surat and Guwahati 1.2 per cent each, and Vijaywada and Kochi by 1.1 per cent each. According to a recent Knight Frank report, Indian real estate prices rose 12% in the past year, the third highest in the world.

LOAN GROWTH SUBDUED
Reserve Bank data shows housing loan growth slowed to 12.1% for the year ended March 2012 from 16% in the previous year. Also, before real estate prices peaked in 2008, big lenders were managing to grow their home loan portfolio at an annual average of 25%. Loan growth at LIC Housing Finance slipped to 17% in 2011-12 from 28% a year ago, forcing the company to set a lower target of 20% for the current fiscal. State Bank of India's housing loan disbursement grew 15% in 2011-12 against its target of 20%. State Bank of India (SBI) has revealed that it has cut its annual home loan growth target by up to 10 per cent age points. The biggest lender of the country has to revise their target due to sluggish growth in property market. Bank management stated that earlier target was 25 per cent growth in its home loan book. However, due to constant drop in home registrations, they now expect that the home loan segment will grow by only 15-20 per cent.

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