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The second wave of the pandemic has influenced the future sentiment of real estate stakeholders in the country. With the substantial increase in Covid cases since March 2021, the outlook for residential launches and sales has softened in Q1 2021.
The 'Future Sentiment Score' saw a decline from 65 in Q4 2020 to 57 in Q1 2021 due to uncertainties resulting from the spread of a second wave of Covid-19 infections, according to the 28th Edition of Knight Frank-FICCI-NAREDCO Real Estate Sentiment Index Q1 2021 (January-March 2021) Survey.
On the macro-economic front, the pace of economic revival appears to have slowed down, with some key economic indicators showing weakness over the last two months. Influenced by the change in macro-economic developments, stakeholder outlook on the overall economic momentum and on credit availability has turned cautious in Q1 2021.
Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India, in a statement said, “The sentiment of stakeholders remained cautious for both Current and Future Sentiment scores in Q1 2021, owing primarily to the second wave of the pandemic, resulting in economic uncertainties. The real-estate sector had seen a strong bounce-back during the last few quarters, which has kept the future sentiment of stakeholders in the positive zone.”
Dr. Niranjan Hiranandani, National President, NAREDCO, said, "The dip in the future sentiment score in Q1 2021 mirrors the prevalent market uncertainties on account of the second Covid wave. However, there is no cause of worry for the industry as it is well geared to mitigate the risk on ground.”
The rising rate of Covid infections from mid-March 2021 has recreated the fears and concerns of March 2020 when the Covid pandemic first broke out.
Sanjay Dutt, Joint Chairman, FICCI Real Estate Committee, and Managing Director and CEO, Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd, said: “2020 was the year that changed everything, and 2021 will be the year where change will become ‘better’ through resilience, digital insurgency, and innovation. While 2021 may not evade all the challenges of a pandemic-affected economy, the planning and implementation for a sector-wide recovery have already been laid out.”
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