HOME PRICE INDEX - REPORT AND INDICES

News: RBI's home price index increases across India despite rate hikes

 

What's in the news?

       Home prices in the country have gone up - albeit at a slower pace - if data collected by the Reserve Bank of India is any indication, signalling that higher interest rates have not made much impact in the sector till now.

 

Key takeaways:

       The RBI’s All India Home Price Index (HPI) recorded a 2.79 percent growth (year-on-year) to 302 in the third quarter (ended December) of 2022-23 as compared with 293.8 when it showed a  3.1 percent growth a year ago despite the rise in interest rates.

 

Home Price Index:

       The RBI data is based on transaction-level data received from the registration authorities in ten major cities - Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow and Mumbai.

 

Trends:

       The RBI hiked the Repo rate by 250 basis points (bps) to 6.50 percent since May 2022 to rein in inflation.

       Home loan rates of banks and finance companies have gone up as most of the loans are now linked to an external benchmark rate like the Repo rate.

       The premium and luxury segment, in particular, has largely remained unaffected with the rising interest rates as customers are looking to invest in properties which provide them with a greater sense of living and offer them better returns as an investment.