Residential prices across 11 emerging markets rose 63% in 5 years, outpacing India's top 8 cities, as infrastructure, jobs and consumption reshape the country's next real estate growth centres.
India's next property growth story may not be confined to Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and the other major metros. Residential prices across 11 emerging markets rose 63% between 2021 and 2026, significantly ahead of the 42% growth recorded across India's top eight cities, according to a CII-Knight Frank India report.
The 11 markets are Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh Tricity, Goa, Indore, Jaipur, Kochi, Lucknow, Nagpur, Visakhapatnam and Coimbatore. More importantly, their average residential price CAGR between 2016 and 2026 stood at 8%, twice the 4% recorded across the top eight cities.
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It would be easy to read the 63% figure as simply a smaller-city housing boom. The report's underlying argument is more interesting: these markets are being supported by a combination of infrastructure, employment, enterprise, population growth and consumption.
That distinction matters because infrastructure alone does not guarantee lasting residential demand. A new highway or airport can improve accessibility, but the stronger housing markets are likely to be those where businesses, jobs and households actually follow.
Knight Frank India Chairman and Managing Director Shishir Baijal said the emerging opportunity will depend on cities converting connectivity into sustained economic activity, with employment, enterprise, population growth, consumption and urban capacity working together.
The 11 cities are also far from uniform when it comes to pricing. Goa currently has the highest quoted residential range among the markets at ₹11,500-13,500 per sq ft, followed by Chandigarh Tricity at ₹7,500-10,500. Jaipur and Kochi are in the ₹7,000-9,000 range, while Bhubaneswar and Lucknow are around ₹6,500-8,500 per sq ft. Nagpur and Visakhapatnam sit at the lower end at ₹4,500-6,500 per sq ft.
That spread is important for buyers and investors. Calling all 11 cities "affordable alternatives to metros" would overlook how differently their housing markets are developing.
There are signs that the shift extends beyond residential prices. Tier-2 cities accounted for 36 million sq ft of India's 134 million sq ft organised shopping-centre stock in 2025. Ten of the 11 markets identified by the report, excluding Coimbatore, together accounted for close to 60% of India's Tier-2 shopping-centre stock.
Warehousing is showing a similar pattern. Tier-2 markets recorded 11.2 million sq ft of leasing transactions in 2025, broadly comparable with 11.4 million sq ft in 2024. Lucknow, Jaipur, Nagpur, Indore, Coimbatore and Bhubaneswar alone accounted for 5.3 million sq ft.
That combination is worth watching because residential growth becomes more meaningful when commercial activity and employment expand alongside it.
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Government infrastructure spending is another major part of the story. Infrastructure's share of total government capital expenditure increased from 39% in FY15 to 55% in FY26, while a three-year public-private partnership pipeline includes 852 projects worth around ₹17 lakh crore.
Urbanisation could reinforce that trend. The report estimates India's urban population at around 597 million currently and projects it to reach roughly 740 million by 2050. Non-metro cities are expected to add population 28.2% faster than the top eight metropolitan markets.
The country's startup and MSME ecosystem is also becoming more distributed, with Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities hosting around half of India's 200,000-plus registered startups, according to the report.
The 63% increase is significant, but it should not be treated as a forecast for another 63% gain. The more useful takeaway is that India's real estate growth base is broadening. The next question is whether today's infrastructure spending and residential demand translate into deeper employment markets, stronger commercial ecosystems and sustained household demand.
That is also why the 11 markets cannot be evaluated simply by looking at their recent price appreciation. A city with rising prices but limited economic depth faces a different long-term equation from one where housing, jobs, retail, logistics and infrastructure are expanding together.
India's major metros are likely to remain the country's biggest real estate markets by volume. But the CII-Knight Frank data suggests the definition of India's growth markets is becoming considerably wider.
