The Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (Credai) has expressed concern over the RBI decision to increase the repo rates by 25 bps to 8 per cent in the monetary policy review.

C Shekar Reddy, President Credai-National said, “The industry expected the RBI to maintain the status quo on rates as the index for industrial production was at a low of 2.1 per cent for December. The housing sector has a multiplier effect on the economy as it covers 300 allied industries.”

Sanjay Dutt, Executive Managing Director-South Asia, Cushman & Wakefield said “The RBI again adopted a hawkish stance and increased repo rate by 25 basis points, intensifying the crisis that the real estate sector is already witnessing.”

RBI’s stance is disappointing as, and just as we started to see some uptick in home sales, this move can potentially derail the sector, which has been witnessing financial headwinds due to subdued sales and limited access to funding, he said.