Mumbai's stamp duty revenue rises 14% in May despite higher interest rates

Despite higher mortgage rates and property prices, Mumbai scaled a new peak in terms of stamp duty collection for the month of May, a report in The Economic Times said. The state exchequer’s revenue from stamp duty collections rose 14 per cent in May from year-on-year (YoY) to around Rs 827 crore at a total of 9,786 deals, according to data from the Inspector General of Registration, Maharashtra.

Demand for housing remains firm, despite hikes in the interest rates in the last year and a steady rise in housing prices testing homebuyers’ appetite to buy. The rise in revenues was attributed to an increase in both mid-income and higher-value property transactions.

Although the majority of the properties registered in May were located in western suburbs and constituted 58 per cent of the market share, sales in South Mumbai saw a big uptick with 10 per cent in the month when compared to five per cent a year ago.

“The demand continues to be solid as most enquiries are translating into actual sales in a relatively shorter lead time,” Jaxay Shah, CMD, Savvy Group told the Economic Times. “While prices are steady and have been showing an uptick in the last couple of months, the right mix of location and configuration is ensuring conversion. The change brought in by the pandemic in terms of preference for home buying has managed to keep the sentiment robust.”

The firm has ventured into the Mumbai real estate market and has recently launched the Andheri project, which received a positive response.

The share for properties larger than 1,000 sq ft r grew to 24 per cent in May from 18 per cent a year ago.