By BLOOMBERG

SINGAPORE • Home sales rose 9% across India’s seven biggest cities in the third quarter (3Q), boosted by low-budget apartments, according to Anarock Property Consultants Pte Ltd.

The highest sales were recorded in Mumbai and neighbouring Pune, which accounted for about 27% of purchases across the seven cities, real estate broker Anarock said in a report.

The National Capital Region, which covers New Delhi and surrounding areas, and Hyderabad both posted the lowest growth, with a 2% increase from the previous quarter, the data showed.

The 3Q of the year is usually a slow period for the housing market because of the 15-day “shraddh” period, when people honour their dead ancestors and which is considered inauspicious for buying property.

Housing supply rose just 3% last quarter from the previous three months, the data showed. This was largely dominated by low-budget housing, with homes costing less than four million rupees (RM224,100) accounting for about 42% of total new supply.

Homes costing between four million rupees and eight million rupees made up 33%, with the balance coming from luxury and ultra-luxury developments.

Separately, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government may have to shell out more to compensate farmers for low market prices of some c rops under a plan announced this year with a view to double farm incomes by 2022.