Mumbai's residential market recorded its strongest January–September sales performance since 2018, with 72,804 units sold in the first nine months of 2026 — a 1 per cent rise year-on-year (YoY), according to a report released on Monday, 5 October 2026 by Knight Frank India. The city retained its position as India's largest residential market, absorbing 28 per cent of all homes sold across the country's top eight cities during the period.

Sales Momentum and New Supply

Developers launched 72,673 units in Mumbai during the nine-month period, up 13 per cent YoY, keeping new supply broadly in step with demand. Across India's top eight cities combined, residential sales held largely steady at 258,238 units, while new launches grew 4 per cent to 279,899 units. Mumbai alone accounted for 26 per cent of all new launches nationally.

Quarterly sales in Mumbai climbed progressively through the year — from 23,185 units in the first quarter to 25,449 units in the third quarter, marking the highest quarterly sales level since 2018. Unsold inventory, meanwhile, declined 2 per cent YoY to approximately 155,473 units, and the quarters-to-sell (QTS) metric — which measures how quickly existing stock can be absorbed — improved to 6.4 quarters in Q3 2026 from 6.6 quarters a year earlier.

Premium Segment Drives Growth

While homes priced below ₹1 crore continued to dominate total sales volumes, the report identifies a clear demand shift toward higher-value properties. Sales of homes in the ₹1 crore–₹2 crore band rose 9 per cent to 16,296 units, while the ₹2 crore–₹5 crore segment expanded 11 per cent to 9,861 units.

The ultra-premium end was even more striking. Transactions in the ₹5 crore–₹10 crore segment climbed 16 per cent, while the ₹10 crore–₹20 crore and ₹20 crore–₹50 crore brackets surged 40 per cent and 35 per cent, respectively. Mumbai also dominated India's hyper-luxury segment, accounting for 41 of the 53 homes priced above ₹50 crore sold across the eight major markets.

Affordable Segment Under Pressure

Not all price bands shared the upturn. Sales of homes priced below ₹50 lakh fell 6 per cent YoY to 26,136 units, representing 36 per cent of total sales. Properties in the ₹50 lakh–₹1 crore range recorded a marginal 1 per cent decline to 17,601 units, accounting for 24 per cent of sales. This divergence points to a broadening affordability gap even as overall market volumes hold firm.

Prices and Expert View

The weighted average price in Mumbai rose 5 per cent YoY to ₹37,064 per sq ft in Q3 2026. Gulam Zia of Knight Frank India said the market's resilience is increasingly being driven by demand for higher-value homes, even as Mumbai continues to function as the country's largest affordable housing market. This comes amid a broader national trend of premiumisation in real estate, where rising incomes and wealth concentration are reshaping the demand mix.

With inventory levels declining and launches calibrated close to absorption, analysts will watch whether the affordable segment can regain traction in the final quarter of 2026 — or whether the two-speed market dynamic deepens further.