FROM LUXURY TO LOGISTICS: THE REAL ESTATE MILESTONES THAT REWIRED INDIA IN 2025

India’s residential market has entered a phase of strategic resilience. While macroeconomic fundamentals remain strong, the standout growth of luxury and premium housing indicates rising consumer confidence and lifestyle aspirations. Gaurav Kumar, Managing Director, Capital Markets and Land, CBRE India.

‘Demand in 2025 reflects genuine end user depth rather than speculative spikes. The market is transitioning from rapid expansion to a more calibrated trajectory, supported by strong household balance sheets and long-term urban fundamentals. Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India

Indian real estate did not explode in 2025. It settled into itself. After years of volatility, policy resets, and post-pandemic recalibration, the sector found balance. Demand proved resilient, capital stayed patient, and growth spread outward—from luxury homes to logistics parks, from metro cores to Tier-2 cities.

What defined 2025 was not one headline moment, but a series of milestones that together signalled maturity. Here are the shifts that mattered most.

Luxury Housing Became the Market’s Growth Engine

Luxury housing was no longer a side story in 2025. It was the headline. According to the joint CBRE–ASSOCHAM report The New Paradigm in Indian Housing, luxury housing sales surged 85 percent year-on-year in January–June 2025, with around 7,000 units sold across the top seven cities. Delhi-NCR dominated decisively, accounting for approximately 4,000 units, or 57 percent of total luxury sales, marking a threefold increase over the same period last year. Mumbai followed with about 1,240 units, registering 29 percent YoY growth. Even markets traditionally dominated by mid-segment housing began to shift. Chennai and Pune together accounted for around 5 percent of total luxury sales in H1 2025, an early signal of changing buyer appetite. On the supply side, developers responded with confidence. The period saw 7,300 luxury unit launches, a 30 percent YoY increase, with Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Hyderabad contributing over 90 percent of total launches. HNIs, UHNWIs, and NRIs drove this momentum, viewing Indian luxury real estate as a hedge against global uncertainty and currency volatility, particularly amid a strengthening US dollar. Construction industry is a major contributor to global carbon emissions, accounting for nearly 40% of greenhouse gas emissions. The real estate sector stands at a crossroads where sustainability is no longer an option but a necessity. Badal Yagnik, CEO, Colliers India.

Premium Homes Replaced Affordable as the Market’s Centre of Gravity

Knight Frank India’s Office and Residential Market – July to December 2025 report confirmed what developers were already seeing on the ground. Total housing sales across the top eight cities stood at 3,48,207 units in 2025, only 1 percent lower YoY, signalling consolidation rather than slowdown. Crucially, H2 2025 recorded 1,78,406 sales, the strongest second-half performance since 2013. But the composition of demand changed. Homes priced above Rs. 1 crore now account for nearly half of all sales, marking a structural shift in buyer behaviour. Affordable housing, meanwhile, struggled to keep pace. Rising land costs, higher construction expenses, and tighter financing pushed developers toward premium segments with stronger viability. Sustainability Turned From Aspiration Into Obligation If 2024 made green buildings desirable, 2025 made them unavoidable. According to Colliers and CREDAI’s report Sustainability in Real Estate: Towards a Greener Skyline, buildings account for nearly 40 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, placing real estate at the centre of India’s decarbonisation challenge. Regulatory frameworks such as ECBC, Eco Niwas Samhita, and SEBI-mandated ESG disclosures accelerated adoption, while occupiers increasingly demanded energy efficient assets. Green certifications including LEED, IGBC, GRIHA, WELL, and GRESB evolved from differentiators into near-mandates, especially in commercial real estate. The plans authorities and market studies depict the buyer and investor moving out of the saturated metro cores towards less saturated new zones like Kundli and Sonipat. Projects such as the KMP Expressway, UER II, the Delhi Panipat RRTS corridor and next Delhi–Sonipat Metro extension are fueling this move. Akshay Taneja, CEO, TDI Infrastructure.

India’s Office Market Quietly Went Green The transformation was most visible in offices. By 2024, 66 percent of India’s Grade A office stock was green-certified, up from 52 percent in 2010. Between 2020 and 2024, nearly 80 percent of new Grade A supply carried green credentials. Hyderabad led the country with 75 percent green penetration, reflecting how sustainability and global occupier demand now move together. This shift was not cosmetic. Green-certified offices consistently reported better occupancies, higher tenant retention, and stronger rental stability. Tier-2 and Tier-3 Cities Claimed Their Share of the Future One of the most consequential shifts of 2025 happened beyond the metros. The CREDAI–Liases Foras report Overview of Residential Real Estate Market in 60 Major Cities revealed that 44 percent of the 3,294 acres of land acquired in 2024 was concentrated in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. Housing sales across 60 cities touched 6,81,138 units, a 23 percent YoY increase, while sales value jumped 43 percent to Rs. 7.5 trillion.

Luxury and ultra-luxury housing accounted for 71 percent of total sales value, driven by larger ticket sizes in emerging cities. Infrastructure Corridors Redefined Real Estate Logic Infrastructure was not just supportive in 2025. It was decisive. ICRA Research highlighted how connectivity-driven micro-markets outperformed traditional cores. Corridors such as Dwarka Expressway, Jewar Airport–Yamuna For India, the flexible workspace story is only strengthening. With more operators entering, leasing volumes rising, and IPOs validating the sector, India has built the world’s most agile, enterprise-ready ecosystem. Ramita Arora, Managing Director, Bengaluru & Head – Flex, Cushman & Wakefield India

Expressway, Navi Mumbai International Airport-Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, Samruddhi Mahamarg, Ayodhya Airport- Purvanchal Expressway (Uttar Pradesh) and Hirasar Airport- Ahmedabad-Rajkot Expressway (Gujarat) reshaped demand patterns. Logistics parks, warehousing, and affordable rentals followed employment creation along these corridors. Cities such as Indore, Coimbatore, Bhubaneswar, Jaipur, and Lucknow benefited from improved connectivity, industrial growth, and expanding education hubs.

Senior Living Evolved Into a Serious Asset Class

Savills India’s report ‘Living the Years That Count: Elevating India’s Senior Living Through Global Best Practices’ captured a quiet demographic reality: India’s senior population is projected to reach 21 percent by 2050. India’s real estate sector is undergoing a paradigm shift, with Tier 2 and 3 cities playing a central role in urban expansion. As these cities become economic and industrial hubs, there is an increasing demand for affordable and mid-segment housing. Boman Irani, President, CREDAI

Senior living moved beyond charity-led models into integrated communities offering healthcare, autonomy, and social engagement. Around 34 percent of under-construction senior living projects are now in non-metro cities. The sector is estimated to require USD 4.8–8.4 billion in investment between 2025 and 2030.

Flexible Offices Entered the Institutional Mainstream

India cemented its position as the largest flex office market in APAC in 2025. According to Cushman & Wakefield, India’s flex stock reached 79.7 million sq. ft by Q2 2025 and is expected to cross 100 million sq. ft by 2026. Since 2020, flex demand has risen nearly sixfold. In 2024 alone, flex spaces accounted for 15 percent of total office leasing. Managed offices now account for 70–80 percent of flex demand, driven largely by global enterprises and GCCs .

Technology Became Real Estate’s Operating System

PropTech stopped being peripheral. According to Cushman & Wakefield, India’s commercial real estate is accelerating digital adoption—smart platforms, home tech, and blockchain to cut delays, curb cost overruns, and improve transparency as inefficiencies persist. With over 2,200 PropTech firms operating across the lifecycle, AI-driven scheduling, smart buildings, blockchain led transparency, and predictive analytics became essential tools. Real estate shifted from square footage to smart footage, improving efficiency, compliance, and long-term asset value. Branded Residences Found Their Moment

India emerged as the 10th-largest branded residences market globally in 2025, with 34 operational and planned schemes across eight cities, according to NOESIS report The Landscape of Branded Residences in India 2025. Price premiums reached up to 75 percent in markets like Pune, driven by global brand assurance, lifestyle services, and wellness integration. Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Pune together accounted for 71 percent of total branded inventory, confirming strong metro-led demand.

Affordable Housing Reached a Critical Crossroads

 While premium housing thrived, affordable housing faltered. In 2025 (till June), homes priced under Rs. 50 lakh accounted for just 17 percent of supply, down sharply from 52.4 percent in 2018. Industry bodies called for urgent supply-side reforms, including faster approvals, subsidised finance, and public private land partnerships.

Regulation Matured, If Unevenly

RERA continued its evolution. The 7-year CAGRs for registered projects and Registered projects and agents grew at 23 percent and 21 percent CAGR, while the number of cases resolved have also increased significantly YoY with a 7-year CAGR of 33% between 2018 and 2025. Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka and Gujarat emerged as leaders in resolution efficiency. Despite gaps in enforcement and coordination, RERA cemented transparency and institutional confidence.

The Year Real Estate Grew Up

2025 will not be remembered for frenzy or fear. It will be remembered as the year Indian real estate chose discipline over drama, depth over velocity, and long term value over short-term gain. That choice, more than any single statistic, may define the decade ahead.