HDFC’s July disbursals at 81% of last year – Times of India

MUMBAI: HDFC has said that there has been a substantial pickup in home loan disbursements in the second quarter, with July alone at 81% of previous year’s level. The corporation has seen month-on-month improvement in disbursement in subsequent months as well, although it has not released the numbers yet.
To push loans during the festive season, the corporation has launched the ‘India Home Fair 2020’ online by partnering with 175 approved developers who have 350 projects in 50 cities. To open up new markets, it has created separate portals for investors in London, Singapore and the Middle East.
Inaugurating the online event, HDFC MD Renu Sud Karnad said, “We feel that the demand for housing will pick up gradually as the economy emerges out of this difficult period. We at HDFC have seen demand coming back. In July 2020, HDFC achieved 81% of July 2019 disbursements, which was better than what we had expected given the lockdown and other restrictions, and the subsequent months have been even better.”
According to sources, the pickup for homes is largely in smaller centres. Although in Mumbai, developers have started offering discounts and the state government has announced a sharp discount in stamp duty, sales are yet to pick up. The projects on offer include those located in smaller cities like Silvassa, Vizianagaram, Haridwar and Zirakpur.
HDFC executives said that despite the slowdown in the economy, there was a natural demand for housing because of India’s demographic, and sales typically picked up ahead of the marriage season. Also, there was a demand for larger houses from those who had shifted to working from home.