Why is the Pitru Paksha a time when real estate transactions in Mumbai literally goes into hibernation ?

One of the dullest periods during the entire year for the real estate market is the Pitru Paksha as the property buying majority refrains from doing any deals or even making any commitment towards buying a property. The Shraddh period is regarded as inauspicious for buying things by many and therefore the lull in literally visible in the entire market.

The property buying population literally grinds the market to a halt with hardly any movement during the 15 days of this period. The site visits stop, the phone conversations die down, the mails stop coming and actually nothing moves for the real estate fraternity in general.

A lot of people are actually engaged in focusing their attention on other things during this period and the buying aspect is actually put on hold. This applies for everything not only for real estate. However the most hit industry is the real estate because one tends to avoid buying because Pitru Paksha is considered by Hindus to be inauspicious, given the death rite performed during the ceremony, known as Shraddha or tarpan.

Pitru Paksha is a 16–lunar day period when Hindus pay homage to their ancestor (Pitrs), especially through food offerings. The period is also known as Pitru Pakshya, Pitri Pokkho, Sola Shraddha ("sixteen shraddhas"), etc.

Hinduism believes that the souls of three preceding generations of one's ancestor reside in Pitru–loka, a realm that is assumed to be between heaven and earth. This divine realm is governed by Yama, the Ggod of death, who is responsible to take the soul of a dying man from earth to Pitru–loka. When a person of the next generation dies, the first generation shifts to heaven and unites with God, therefore Shraddha offerings are not given. Only the three generations in Pitru–loka are given Shraddha rites. The shraddha involves pinda-daan, which is an offering to the ancestors of pindas (cooked rice and barley flour balls mixed with ghee and black sesame seeds), accompanying the release of water from the hand.

It is believed that at the beginning of Pitru Paksha, the sun enters the zodiac sign of Libra and coinciding with this moment, it is believed that the spirits leave Pitru–loka and reside in their descendants' homes for a month until the sun enters the next zodiac—Scorpio and there is a full moon. Hindus are expected to propitiate the ancestors in the first half, during the dark 16 day period.

With Pitru Paksha, a lot of things are see a slowdown as most people reflect back and remember their lost loved ones and monetary transactions take a back seat during this period.

The market hardly witnesses see any property deals convert during Pitru Paksha, as people don't make fresh commitments towards buying a property. In fact many people don’t make any site visits or even talk about property. The real estate sector actually undergoes a massive drop, almost 80%, in queries and site visits.

Many real estate professionals have learnt lessons from many years of practice and many of these companies actually go back to the drawing board and use this time to introspect and inspect every aspect of their business. It also helps companies to improve their systems, client interaction modules, client support systems so that when the real activity begins they are better prepared to convert deals and service the realty market.

Booking a property or giving out a token is out of question, there are people who don't even talk about it, thinking that it might be inauspicious.

The cooling period is actually the harbinger of a very robust and vibrant market post this period. The slow down, however, tests the best in the business and the biggest real estate developers and the largest real estate broking firms are literally “DRY” with no queries or activities to even talk about.

The first day of Navratri actually marks the end of this period and the buying and selling transaction resumes with more vigor and there is tremendous activity till the month of February in the next year. Immediately after Navratri, Diwali and other festivals bring lot of momentum in the real estate market as buyers believe that this time is very auspicious for property finalizations.