'Housing prices in 16 cities rise up to 10.5%'

Housing prices have risen by up to 10.5 per cent in 16 major cities of the country in the April-June period, while only three towns have witnessed a marginal fall, according to National Housing Bank (NHB) data.

NHB 'RESIDEX' tracks the movement in prices of residential properties on a quarterly basis since 2007. The NHB RESIDEX now covers 20 cities.

"Residential housing prices in 16 cities have shown rise in prices in this quarter ended June, 2012 over the previous quarter ended March, 2012," NHB said in a statement.

The maximum increase in housing prices was observed in Pune (10.5 per cent) followed by Bengaluru (8.7 per cent), Patna (8.6 per cent), Ahmedabad (6.4 per cent) and Ludhiana (5.3 per cent).

Housing prices rose by 4.1 per cent in Lucknow, while homes became costlier in Mumbai by 3.7 per cent, Delhi and Kolkatta by 2.6 per cent each, Bhubaneshwar, Bhopal and Chennai by 1.7 per cent each, Surat and Guwahati 1.2 per cent each, and Vijaywada and Kochi by 1.1 per cent each.

However, housing prices declined in Jaipur by 2.6 per cent, Indore by 2.4 per cent and Hyderabad by one per cent, NHB said, adding that prices in Faridabad remained stable.

When contacted, NHB Chairman and Managing Director R V Verma told PTI that "housing prices are largely stable and there is no cause of worry. In the long run also, the prices are moving in a range bound".

Verma said the prices have increased marginally in the 16 cities, which he attributed to local factors like improvement in infrastructure.

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