The redeeming fact about Delhi NCR is its fast emergence as a retail destination. Retail businesses of every ilk, from high end luxury retail brands to coffee shops, prefer to launch their stores in this geography ahead of any other. 

These facts make Delhi NCR the foremost commercial leasing market in India. After a hiatus of almost two years due to Covid, the commercial leasing activity in the region is back with a vengeance. It recorded a staggering 55% y-o-y growth in gross leasing during Q1 2022.  This was led by professional services and e-commerce segments with respective shares of 17% and 13%. Healthcare & pharma was another sector that recorded traction with an 11% share in leasing. 

Fresh leasing, including expansion and consolidation by occupiers, constituted 91% share of the quarter’s leasing. Flexible workspaces are finding new occupiers with occupancy levels touching new highs every passing month. Co-working and managed working spaces are finding their feet again and are witnessing hectic activity across Delhi NCR.

The leasing activity momentum that picked up after the second Covid wave in 2021 continues to show an upward trend. The confidence employers and employees exude, as a result of successful mass vaccination drives, are resulting in people getting back to offices, belying all the fears of a slump in new leases due to work from home policies. Large size deals of more than 100,000 sq. ft. spaces are back in vogue and there is a pressure for new supplies to be made available.

The leasing activities have picked up steam across Delhi NCR. However, different clusters seem to be attracting different categories of users. With new supplies in Delhi highly constrained, some office and retail leasing activities are seen only in Aerocity and Jasola micro markets. Rest of the locations in Delhi have seen new leases in less than 2000 sq ft sizes. 

After a detailed analysis, we have picked up these 5 markets as the most upcoming locations for commercial leasing activities in Delhi NCR.
 

1. Noida-Greater Noida market

The twin cities Noida and Greater Noida are one of the brightest spots in the NCR’s realty market. Rapid infrastructural development such as industrial corridors and metro networks over the years has continuously enhanced the region’s growth. The fast progress on international airport and the ambitious Film City Projects have further added to its value as being a commercial hotspot. The supplies across this belt are good and with smooth flow of traffic, the commute time is low. 

The region is a flourishing destination for IT-ITes, retail, and electronic manufacturing companies with the presence of various big conglomerates in the region. In the post-lockdown period when the companies are pondering over a cut in operational cost, these cities are gaining more attention due to the competitive price of services. The area also scores over other Delhi NCR locations in terms of employee costs, especially for IT sectors.

With completion of two new commercial projects, next to DND, a good supply of grade A office space was made available and was grabbed quickly by interested corporates. Elsewhere in Noida, good commercial space supplies are coming up on both sides of Noida-Greater noida expressway. Greater noida also has a good supply of industrial sheds and warehousing spaces.  
 

2. Gurugram

The millennium city, Gurugram has evolved over the years and emerged as one of the finest business destinations for MNCs. Owing to the seamless connectivity with Delhi and other parts of NCR and great infrastructure, Gurugram has been an attractive destination for big corporate houses to establish and expand their business operations. This has regularly boosted the demand for commercial spaces in the city. 

Expressways, Delhi Metro, and Rapid Metro have strengthened the connectivity in the city, a prerequisite to conducting business operations. Equipped with all the facilities, the city provides a promising environment for corporate houses that have witnessed significant year-on-year growth. 

Gurugram has led the office leasing activity in Delhi NCR in Q1 2022 by contributing almost 72% of all Grade A office space leasing in the region. DLF cyber city has been the center of most of the large plate deals and with consistent new supply of Grade A office spaces across Gurugram, DLF cyber city developers are expected to keep the pole position in office leasing for next few years. There are other supplies on NH 48, Golf course road, Golf course extension road and Sohna road, which are also attracting large corporates.
 

3. Faridabad

Situated along Delhi-Mathura Highway (NH-44), Faridabad is an industrial hub of Haryana. The city is home to a great number of manufacturing units in sectors such as machinery products, automotive, apparel, and others. With the government’s emphasis on initiatives like Make-in India, One District One Product, etc growth districts at Faridabad are expected to witness a lot of action for industrial clusters in the region. 

Owing to the EPE, NH2, FNG, and other proposed infrastructure coupled with affordable services, growth districts in Faridabad have been gaining huge importance amongst MSMEs and Start-up sector. A strategic location, enjoying great connectivity boosts Faridabad – Greater Faridabad a ready base in emerging as an integrated industrial growth and commercial hub. Though there is no significant supply of Grade A office space in Faridabad, retail leasing activities have started in earnest, especially in the new sectors.

Faridabad is also expected to catch up with Noida-Greater noida belt over next few years with new connectivity being created to Noida and Delhi, which will cut the travel time. 
 

4. Kundli

Located in Sonipat of Haryana, Kundli has evolved rapidly on the real estate map of NCR with continuous appreciation in property prices. The region has been witnessing the accelerated growth and budget-friendly services are the major contributors to it. Situated along NH-1, the area has emerged as an educational hub as well with the Rajiv Gandhi Educational City comprising around 100 universities and many world-class schools. 

Kundli, till recently the neglected back-lane of Delhi, is the cauldron of commercial activities now. It has been quite a favourite of retail brands for warehousing due to its advantageous location. The environment is quite favourable for companies, giving thrust to the demand for commercial spaces. Though there is no supply or requirement of Grade A office spaces here, there are a number of small setups showing signs of a good future for commercial leasing activities.

5. Manesar-Bhiwadi belt

Close to the commercial hub Gurugram, Manesar – Bhiwadi has immense possibilities of growth of a range of industries such as IT/ITes, hotels, manufacturing units, educational institutions, and others. Part of the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC), the region hosts a dedicated industrial zone IMT Manesar which is thriving by the day. 

The area houses not only Maruti, but also multiple other auto manufacturers owing to an excellent ecosystem of auto-ancilliary vendors. With prices in Gurugram going up, the prospects for commercial property seem bright here as several MNCs are looking for expansion in the area.

Delhi NCR region is the first choice for a corporate looking to set up an office or retail brand setting out to expand. With good supplies of all types of commercial spaces across the price points, it offers compelling choices. The five locations mentioned above are leading this by continuously making new supplies available.

ImpactR is a leading data-driven commercial leasing platform working with brands and property owners in the region.