Why India's premium and luxury homes going unsold?
What's the story
According to a report by Knight Frank India, unsold residential inventory across eight major Indian markets has increased by 4% year-on-year. The total number of unsold homes stood at 525,695 units at the end of the first half of 2026. This trend of accumulation has been observed since 2020 and is largely concentrated in premium and luxury segments.
Market trends
Contrasting trends across price segments
The Knight Frank report highlights a contrasting trend across price segments.
While lower-priced housing continues to absorb, inventory is increasingly piling up in premium and luxury segments.
The sub-₹50 lakh category saw a 7% year-on-year decline in unsold units to 171,363.
Similarly, the ₹50 lakh-₹1 crore segment witnessed a 3% drop to 134,841 units due to limited new supply and continued absorption.
Inventory surge
Premium segments witness significant spike in unsold inventory
Unlike lower-priced housing, premium segments have witnessed a massive spike in unsold inventory.
The ₹1-2 crore segment saw a 12% year-on-year increase, while the ₹2-5 crore category recorded a whopping 43% jump to 65,671 units.
Even the ₹5-10 crore segment witnessed a 23% rise and the ultra-luxury ₹20-50 crore bracket saw a 52% surge in unsold homes.
Market indicators
Age of unsold inventory improves to 13.5 quarters
Despite the rising inventory in premium segments, the age of unsold inventory improved to 13.5 quarters in H1 2026 from 14.3 quarters a year ago.
This indicates older stock is being absorbed gradually as homebuyers prefer properties closer to completion.
However, the Quarters to Sell (QTS) metric, an estimate of how long it would take to clear existing stock based on sales trends, rose slightly due to rising inventories and flat sales rates.
Regional analysis
City-level performance and ₹2-5cr segment trends
At the city level, Ahmedabad recorded the highest QTS at 8.1 quarters, followed by NCR at 7.6 quarters.
Pune had the lowest QTS of 4.0 quarters, indicating stronger absorption while Chennai stood at 4.5 quarters.
The ₹2-5 crore segment saw a massive jump in unsold inventory but also witnessed a rise in sales by 19% year-on-year in H1 2026 with a QTS of 4.4 quarters.