Indian Real Estate Sees Sharp Drop in Foreign Investments Amid Global Uncertainties
Foreign investors were cautious to put money in Indian real estate during January-March 2026 amid the West Asia conflict, as their investments plunged 75% to USD 400 million compared to the previous quarter, according to Colliers. Real estate consultant Colliers India expects foreign investors to remain cautious through this year due to global economic uncertainties.
The consultant data showed that the total institutional investments in real estate fell drastically by 61% to USD 1.6 billion in January-March from USD 4.2 billion in the preceding October-December quarter of 2025. Out of this, domestic investors pumped in USD 1.2 billion while foreign players invested just USD 400 million during the last quarter. During October-December 2025, the inflow from domestic and foreign investors stood at USD 2.6 billion and USD 1.6 billion, respectively.
Badal Yagnik, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director, Colliers India, said that institutional investments in India's real estate market continue to remain resilient, supported by strong domestic demand across asset classes. In fact, he said, domestic real estate investments witnessed a strong surge and accounted for three-fourths of the USD 1.6 billion inflows in Q1 2026.
While global investors are likely to remain cautious in the near-term on account of volatilities in trade, crude, and commodities markets, this phase is expected to be transient in nature, Yagnik added. India's favourable demographics, consumption-driven economy, and investor appetite to expand into both core and alternative assets are likely to keep its unique positioning in the wider APAC region intact.
Colliers mentioned that the institutional flow of funds includes investments by Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), family offices, foreign corporate groups, foreign banks, pension funds, private equity, real estate funds & platforms, foreign-funded NBFCs, listed REITs, and sovereign wealth funds. The consultant noted that global investors may adopt a more measured, wait-and-watch approach in the near-term, potentially impacting inflows over the next few quarters.
However, Colliers added that domestic investors are likely to remain firm and may offset the potential impact to some extent. Among asset classes, institutional investments in office properties fell sharply to USD 821.1 million in January-March from USD 3051.8 million in the preceding quarter.
