Pune & PCMC Housing Markets - 2025 and 2026
- by Akash Pharande, Managing Director - Pharande Spaces
The Pune residential real estate market in 2025 tells a mixed story, as below
the city's strong fundamentals was a lot of stress. The city went from a period
of rapid growth to a more stable, selective market, with affordability and
changing buyer demographics becoming more defining characteristics in the year.
The Highs: Strong registration in the face of uncertainty
At first glance, 2025 saw many transactions. Pune had its best property
registration run in four years, with over 1.70 lakh transactions from January
to November, only slightly higher than in the same time period in 2024. The
holiday season was critical because in September alone, registrations jumped by
over 22% from the previous year. By November, the city had been going strong
with over 14,200 registrations.
But despite the overall strength, there was a big decline in actual unit sales.
According to property consultants ANAROCK, Pune's housing sales for the whole
year of 2025 fell 20% from 81,090 units in 2024 to 65,135 units. This was the
second-largest drop among major cities, after Mumbai's 18% drop.
This difference between registration volumes and unit sales shows what really
happened – the market moved more towards luxury, with higher-value transactions
making up most of registrations. Buyers in Pune's affordable segment either put
off buying or got off the market for now. For a market which was once defined
by rational, affordable housing prices, this is worrisome.
Central Pune and PCMC
Central Pune, which includes PMC, PCMC, and Haveli Taluka in terms of municipal
boundaries, remained the city's real estate engine and contributed over 60% of
all housing transactions in 2025. This is mainly due to this corridor's
proximity to the city's IT job hubs and well-established social infrastructure.
Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) specifically benefited from
micro-market tailwinds. Prices in the area rose over 10% in Q1 2025 compared to
Q1 2024. This increase was slightly faster than Pune Municipal Corporation
(PMC)'s 8.7% growth, which was driven by new corridors in Moshi, Punawale, and
Wakad.
The rental yields of PCMC remained powerful, and Ravet currently had the
highest annual returns of 4.3% among emerging zones, which is much higher than
Mumbai's 2.5% benchmark.
This rental performance continues to pull yield-focused investors who see PCMC
as the right bet to earn excellent risk-adjusted returns. Properties in Ravet
and Nigdi are currently priced in the Rs. 6,500–9,000 per square foot range,
making them attractive for first-time and mid-range end-users who cannot afford
western corridors like Baner (priced between Rs. 9,000–13,000/sqft) and Kharadi
(Rs. 9,500–14,500/sqft).
The Lows: High Property Prices = More Unsold Inventory
In 2025, there was a significant decline in affordability in Pune. To
illustrate – a 60 lakh flat that cost 40 lakh in 2020 now costs Rs.
12,000–18,000 more per month in EMI, even with small rate cuts.
Sales in the under-Rs. 50 lakh range fell sharply, with some areas seeing drops
of 5–30% year-on-year. The problem of unsold inventory got worse – by the
middle of 2025, Pune had more than 75,000 unsold units, and the inventory
overhang was well over 10 months (the longest since 2020). By the end of the
year, there were over 77,800 units lying unsold in the primary market.
This excess supply has tied up developer capital and threatens to impact
pricing negatively in 2026.
Sectoral & Geopolitical Challenges
Even though India's economy was mostly protected from global commodity shocks
and financial instability, 2025 was still a tough year for sectors that depend
on jobs. The technology industry, which is Pune's main source of demand, saw
significant layoffs and hiring freezes, especially in the second and third
quarters.
Geopolitical tensions affected supply chains and investor sentiment, and tariff
uncertainties unsettled NRI investment flows. It is worth noting that NRI
demand has historically helped Pune's real estate market – and its overall
economy – during downturns.
The combined effect resulted in homebuyers becoming increasingly hesitant in
the middle segment, which is precisely where most developers had
concentrated their supply. Luxury did well, but it still accounts for less
than 20% of Pune's annual housing sales. In other words, 80% of the market
requires stronger demand signals in 2026.
2026 Outlook: Good for End-users, Neutral for Investors
All leading real estate consultants agree that the housing industry's future
currently looks more like stabilisation than recovery. Prices are expected to
rise at a slower rate of 5–10% per year. This is healthy by historical
standards of inflation, but it also means that in most areas, investors will
not see the kind of 10-15% appreciation seen from 2020 to 2024.
This is not a bad thing. It will help increase affordability as people's
salaries and investment growth catch up with housing prices, something that has
been overdue for the last 2–3 years. However, if slower price increases become
the norm in 2026 and possibly beyond, there will be exceptions. Infrastructure
delivery will be the major differentiator for areas and projects.
For example, the delayed completion of the Pune Metro Phase 1 is expected to
happen in mid-to-late 2026. This can cause prices in 500-meter corridors to go
up by 15–20%. The Ring Road will open up areas on the outskirts, so impacted
areas will see prices appreciate by 20–25% as redevelopment nodes form at
important intersections. Likewise, the Purandar Airport project will transform
the southern corridor of Pune.
As of the end of 2025, affordability is definitely still a problem in Pune. The
market movement towards the mid-premium and luxury housing segments is driving
many buyers either to the outskirts or off the market. Developers need to
change the supply mix in their projects and make sure that "price
discovery" remains rational and aligned with actual demand.
About the Author:
Akash Pharande is Managing Director - Pharande Spaces,
a leading real estate construction and development
firm famous for its township projects in
Greater Pune and beyond. Pharande Promoters & Builders, the
flagship company of Pharande Spaces and an ISO 9001-2000
certified company, is a pioneer of townships in the region. With the recent
inclusion of Puneville Commercial into one of its most iconic
townships, Pharande Spaces taken a major step towards addressing
Pune's current and future requirements for fully integrated
residential-commercial convenience
