Many prospective buyers of homes have been deferring their decision to buy, hoping for property prices to come down. But many realtors say prices won't correct, as input prices have soared in the past few months and demand is still holding on.
Sunil Mantri of Mumbai-based Sunil Mantri Realty believes prices may actually go another 10 per cent in cities like Mumbai, as there's not much supply expected, with approvals (for building plans) getting delayed.
''Prices coming down is a myth. Neither has demand come down nor supply increased. If anything, the demand-supply gap is widening.
"With the economy growing and salaries rising, how do you expect real estate prices to remain the same?'' asked Lalit Kumar Jain, Chairman of Pune-based Kumar Developers.
Niranjan Hiranandani, managing director, Hiranandani Constructions, said: ''As far as Mumbai city is concerned, barring a few places such as Parel, I do not think prices will come down. While supply is not increasing, demand is ever increasing."
Approvals are getting delayed as authorities are treading cautiously after the Adarsh housing and 2G telecom scams.
Supply could be a constraint in Mumbai, but more of it could drive down prices in parts of the National Capital Region such as Noida Extension, Raj Nagar Extension in Ghaziabad and Sohna Road in Gurgaon. But they all face the same pressures on costs.
Cement and steel prices have shot up sharply in the past four months, with steel prices rising 10 per cent and cement increasing 34 per cent since January.
''Steel prices had corrected 10-15
per cent in March, but they have again gone up. Similarly, cement had come down in the first week of April but has gone up again,'' said a builder in the NCR.