In
what could be an indicator of realty sector reviving and demand for residential and commercial
real estate bouncing back, over 10,000 potential buyers visited the
three-day ET Realty Expo held at Pragati Maidan last week. The biggest catch
for the visitors was not just wide option of residential properties, farm
houses, plots, office complexes and commercial spaces offered by 42 reputed
developers but also the participation of bankers, under one roof.
Inaugurating
the expo, Sheikh Danish Ahmed, CMD of Land Asia Infrastructure Ltd said, ‘‘such
events sensitise buyers and make them aware of how to go for the perfect
choice. Customers have become more educated, but there is a dire need of
greater awareness among them. Developers need to be
more transparent while dealing with buyers and ensure timely completion of
projects. Ahmed added that competitive pricing of the properties combined with
quality amenities would largely influence buyers. He said with the new
marketing dynamics, the industry is already in the revival mode. LA
Infrastructure has launched its flagship Land Asia project, a spa city in
Dehradun.
‘‘Property
prices are not falling further. As the economy revives, the realty industry
will also bounce back. The worst is over,” he said.
Some
of the major developers
participating in the ET Realty Expo held in association with Times
Property were Land Asia Infrastructure, Jaypee Greens, Parsavnath group, Asiana
Housing, Purvanchal developers, Unitech, Hero group and SVP group. Two bankers
— LIC Housing Finance and SBI also participated in the expo.
A single
regulatory body to monitor all the stakeholders of the real estate sector is a must
to bring in transparency and professionalism of global standards, says Archana
Sinha
To
bring the Indian property industry on par with the global real estate sector,
the Indian parliament is gearing up to pass the much talked about real estate
regulatory bill in the winter session. The industry is keenly watching out for
this one as the first draft was found to be faulty and rather lopsided,
excluding the government bodies from its purview.
So
while the experts feel that it is time to have a single-point regulatory body
on the lines of SEBI or TRAI, which would prove beneficial in the long run to
the endusers and developers, there is also a cry for bringing total objectivity
and professionalism in the workings of the body, to truly achieve its goal.
Developers also point out the dangers of over-regulation in an industry that
already faces several stumbling blocks.
The
bill seeks to grant approvals to projects on certain parameters and also
expedite all the approval processes mandatory for projects to take off. It is
expected to help improve transparency in the sector by rating developers on their
financial strength in terms of turnover, liquidity and profitability, scale of
operations, intellectual expertise based on the qualification and experience of
the management team, and past performance.
According
to Ashutosh Limaye, associate director (Strategic Consulting), Jones Lang
LaSalle Meghraj, “The stock market has SEBI to provide guidelines, define
conduct and processes, provide a redressal system for both buyers and sellers
and install necessary consistency and standardisation. The proposed real estate
regulatory body intends to do the same for the Indian property market, which
currently presents a rather under-organized picture.”
Deepak
Parekh, chairman of HDFC, had expressed the urgent need for a real estate regulatory body, which
should play the role of a monitor for promoting and overseeing real estate
reforms, ensuring transparency in sales and protecting buyers from a fraudulent
case, if any.
Parekh
recommended that the state housing boards should also be brought within the
ambit so that there is complete transparency in its working mechanism, the
checks and balances are well achieved from every quarter.
The
developers have welcomed the move too, but not in its current draft form. Kumar
Gera, chairman of CREDAI, India, says, “The intention is good but a lot of
thought needs to go into formulating the role of the body, otherwise the effect
can be counter-productive. Two main intentions are stated in the preamble:
protection of consumers’ interest and speeding up the clearances to facilitate
the smooth development of real estate. There are enough provisions to achieve
the first objective, but I haven’t seen anything regarding the second. It needs
inclusion of processes. In the present form it is likely to create more
processes and hence obstacles. The Urban Land Ceiling act was also formulated
with a noble intention, but the outcome was disastrous.”
R
Vasudevan, MD of Vascon Developers, has a similar view: “I think the intention
is very good if followed in its spirit with modification to include the process
of speeding up approvals. It will revamp a sluggish and a beleaguered system.
In
fact, no reputed
developer
would want a short cut to achieve his end, as his intention would be to become
a long-term player. It is not in his interest to delay projects and offer bad
products, as it will tarnish his image and his brand. Hence this is welcome but
only if it fulfills its intent.”
Sunny
Bijlani, director, Supreme Universal, which has projects in Pune and Mumbai,
says, “It is fine with us to have a regulatory body, which helps bring in
transparency to the customers. We are more than happy.
But
they have to bring more changes in the rating system to actually do proper
justice to the customers, by doing a complete financial analysis of the
developers, and not just by collecting some data. Secondly, it should be a
single point for all clearances and NOCs so that the project starts on time.
Most delays are caused by non-availability of clearances from the government
authorities.”
Real estate
is a major contributor to GDP growth and employment generation.
The minister of urban development acknowledges this fact and feels that a
single regulatory body at the state level is most needed, for faster approvals,
besides faster delivery of projects, accountability of the project developers,
professionalism and finally loan acquisition to make affordable housing a
reality.
Emaar MGF
presents Palm Drive , a community spread across 37.8 acres of land, designed
for contemporary living in green sanctuary settings of Gurgaon, one of the
commercial hubs of the National Capital Region. Prime Drive offers its buyer
with sufficient options to choose between the convenience of stylish premium
apartment living, or the opulence and freedom of a beautiful spacious villa and
sky terraces. The Premium Terraces and The Sky Terraces are G +18 high rise
towers with 3 & 4 BHK premium apartments.
The
highlight of the premium terrace towers will be the spectacular four and five
bedroom penthouses, which will provide breathtaking views from their landscaped
balconies over greens and beyond. The Villas with four or five bedrooms will
have generous interiors with high-ceilings and give a liberating impression of
spaciousness. Each villa will feature landscaped balconies, roof gardens and
pocket gardens, which embellish the exterior with an attractive natural look.
International
standard specifications and a wide range of amenities like club house, Golf Course, swimming pool, world class gymnasium, tennis
court, Jacuzzi, Multi-Purpose Function Hall, Home Theatre Room etc.
Set amidst
the serene green environs of DLF
City, Gurgaon, in
close proximity to the DLF Golf Links, DLF group presents their new project
'Park Place'. Offering a choice of 3 and 4 BHK, fully air-conditioned, well
appointed apartments, individual units in Park Place comes equipped with fully
fitted modular kitchens.
Designed by the best architect in the country Hafeez Contractor, airy and well
ventilated flats in an open layout plan is a fine example of the compact design
theory. Each apartment is positioned in a manner which guarantees privacy. Most
apartments have a view of the structured landscaping below, lush green
landscaped courts & lawns embraces nature from all sides. Park Place is a
secured gated community with great aesthetic set up.
Located on a
prime piece of property with high appreciation rate and good rental return; one
of the unique features of this project is, it has a loading of approximately
18% which means it offers same area of land at comparatively lower prices. This
makes Park Place a highly sensible and profitable investment option for both home buyers and property
investors.
MUMBAI-BASED Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Limited (DHFL) has recorded a 70% growth
in net profit to Rs 37.51 crore in the September quarter after posting a 53 %
rise in total income to Rs 246.12 crore.
DHFL chairman Kapil Wadhwan
attributed the growth to the company’s strong credit appraisal skills which
reduce instances of NPAs. “Over the last seven years, we have been consistently
growing at 33% CAGR, in terms of our home loan disbursements. We are hopeful of continuing the growth momentum in
this fiscal and maintaining a robust 35-40% growth for the next couple of
years.” DHFL posted a 93.76 % growth in loan sanctions to Rs 1180.67 crore.
The company’s net profit for
the corresponding quarter in 2008 was Rs 22.07 crore in the unaudited results
for the second quarter announced on Tuesday. During the July-September quarter,
DHFL raised Rs 300 crore through share sale to investors
and promoters. It also raised Rs 225
crore through private placement of long-term debentures to institutions and
banks. In a statement, the company said, the funds are being utilised to
augment long term resources, enhance and strengthen the company’s equity base
and for meeting the general business requirements.
The decision to begin allotment was made on Thursday after the
Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Delhi Police declared the draw was not rigged.
The EOW had sent the software report of the draw to
Thiruvananthapuram-based Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC)
for investigation.
The EOW, in its report submitted to Delhi Lieutenant Governor
Tejender Khanna on Tuesday said, "The C-DAC report does not indicate any
connivance or favoritism by any DDA serving officers or those connected with
the draw. C-DAC could not find any evidence that the software had any vulnerability
to be compromised nor could they detect any evidence of external
tampering."
"We will start giving possession of flats to successful
allottees from November."
The successful allottees welcomed the development.
"Finally our wait is over. I have been paying a hefty interest on the Rs 1
lac loan that I took from a private bank to pay the registration money,"
said Naresh Taneja who was allotted an LIG flat in Rohini.
Allotment
of flats under the 2008 Housing Scheme was put on hold by the Union Urban
Development Ministry in January after allegations were leveled against DDA that
a cartel of builders had forged documents and availed of loans from banks to
get flats under the reserved category. Soon after this, EOW was handed over the
case for investigation.
While real
estate demand as of now seems to buoyant in the residential space and is
likely to gather momentum, is it significant? Says Sanjay Dutt, CEO, Business
Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, a realty consulting firm, “The slowdown hit the
property market shortly after the Navratri-Diwaly season in 2008 after
registering the usual 30-35 per cent upsurge in real estate project sales
typicalof the period. Real estate
projects Sales increased 25-30 per cent this time around and is significant as
this is the first upsurge in demand after a prolong downturn.” Driving home the
point, Ramnath cites the sales of DLF and Unitech, India’s largest listed
realty companies, during the current financial year. “ Unitech has launched
about 17 million square feet (mnsqft) worth of properties across the country
selling over 40 per cent of that real estate project.
Incrementally, Unitech has launched about 6 mnsqft of affordable housing
properties selling about 1 mnsqft of properties till date. DLF too has sold a
total of about 4 mnsqft of properties till date. These events indicate an
uptick in volumes in the real estate sector.”
While there are visible signs of a recovery in the real
estate market, property price hikes by developers and any increase in
interest rates could halt this momentum
The
realty sector; which was the worst affected by the downturn last year,
seems to be exhibiting early signs of a real estate market recovery. Real
estate Price cuts on projects over the last six months and healthy pre-project
sales during the festive season seems to suggest that property projects demand,
which had all but disappeared in the third and fourth quarter of 2008-09, seems
to be trickling back. Real estate Developers are tweaking their real estate
business model by launching smaller apartment sizes and playing the volume game
to keep property prices low and
create property buyers interest. What was helped matters, believes Ramnath S, director;
Research, IDFC-SSKI, are factors such as job security and affordability, which
are gradually improving, and a lot of companies likely to revise salaries
upwards as against a freeze last year. The benign interest rate environment has
also helped. Ramnath believes that pay commission hikes will also increase
disposable income of government employees.
Nobody can say with final authority
as to what type of realty project or projects will make a dent in the market,
says Vivek Shukla
Day: Sunday.
Place: Greater Noida Expressway. Time: 2pm. On the way from Delhi to Greater
Noida on any Saturday or Sunday, you would find tents of realtors. Staffers of
realty companies sit inside these makeshift tents, and there is a huge a
stretch of land behind the tents. Naturally, the staffers of realty firms wait
for their prospective customers.
However, what
strikes any passerby is that in most such tents, either there is nobody or only
a few people enquiring about the details of the projects. Given the fact that
realty market is reviving after realtors slashed the cost of flats, floors
and plots, the above scene looks a little confusing. The pertinent question
that arises is whether customers are avoiding projects where construction work
has not started at all. The jury is still out on this issue, but some experts
on realty matters admit that unlike in the past the new-age customer is very
smart and he/she ensures that their investment does not create headache for
him/her later. Hence, they thoroughly check the background of realty firms
before taking the final call. They even inspect past projects of builders,
whose current projects are of interest to them.
If there is
even an iota of truth in the argument that prospective customers prefer to book
their house in only ongoing projects, where they can see some flurry of
activity, then DLF’s Capital Green project in Phase-II is an exception. Booking
for the project was commenced on September 22 and on the very first day, over
three thousand people made their bookings with earnest money — and for 1250
flats on offer, bookings were three times the figure. This is enough to prove
that realty market is improving, even if it is not on fire.
However,
Sunil Jindal, CEO of SVP group, has a different take on this matter. “I can
tell you from my own experience that more often than not, customers invest in
those properties where they find some kind of activity. If they see that work
is on, then they invest. I have observed this tendency among customers in our
many projects. Let alone the projects of big-time realty firms, selling flat,
floor or plot on barren land is not at all an easy task. Selling dream is not
possible nowadays as media has exposed the handiwork of a large number of
realty firms in cornering huge sums from people after promising the moon,”
Jindal says.
R K Arora,
CMD of Supertech Limited, takes a different line and says
that it is not right to say customers prefer to book their dream houses only
when they see some kind of construction work in progress. “If that is the case
then all the realty firms will start their projects and easily sell their
products. However, the world of realty does not work that way. Fact of the
matter is, nobody knows which project can kick up a storm in the market and
which one will fall flat.”
Meanwhile,
Anu Gupta, director of realty advisory Century 21, says it is a huge task to
read the mindset of any particular customer. Of course, some prefer to book
their houses where construction work is on. That gives them a huge a sense of
confidence. However, the image of some realty firms too counts. “It goes without saying
that the image of realty firms like Unitech, Hiranandani, Jaypee, DLF and
others have stood the test of time owing to many years of their solid work.
Naturally, a large number of discerning customers consider this fact also.
Hence, when such companies launch their projects, people go and book their
flats and floors there,” Gupta says. Sharing his views, Rajeev Rai,
vicepresident of Assotech, says the relationship shared between customers and
an established brand is very important as no buyer is willing to compromise on
the functionality and quality of the real estate product.
“In the light
of this fact I can say the brand value of the developer affects the buying
decision of customers. The popularity of a brand results in optimum sales and
increased consumer awareness, which is independent of the construction status
of that project.” East Delhi based businessman Sandeep Wahal belongs to that
category of customers who have booked flats in that builder’s project who
promised construction-linked payment plan. That is why he decided to book a
flat constructed by a fairly well-known company in Gurgaon. At the end of the
day, one thing is absolutely clear that nobody can say with final authority as
to what type of realty project or projects will make a dent in the market.
It is perhaps the best time for a
value purchase in real estate with developers going big on
affordable home launches. Buyers seeking a steal deal must go home shopping
now, says Shri Ram Shaw
Jaago, yeh hi
right time, scream property exhibition advertisements in newspapers. So what if
residential real estate prices are going up, a majority of the middle class
that aspires to own a home is still taking the plunge. The reason being that
homes are still affordable, and also thanks due to availability of funds and
rising trust in the borrower. SBI, Deutsche Post Bank, ING Vysya Bank and
P&SB are funding up to 80-85% of property value.
It is perhaps
the best time to look around for a value purchase in real estate.
With lower price points in locations that were not earlier within the
affordable range, buyers are scouting for good ‘value’ bargains at this time.
And with developers going big on affordable home launches, the timing may just
be one of the best for buyers seeking a steal deal. The scene has improved with
the Reserve Bank of India cutting lending rates to record lows and pumping in
unprecedented amount of money into the system.
According to
Anoop Pabby, joint managing director of Deutsche Post Bank (home finance), “The
economy has improved and the liquidity situation is much better and interest
rates have eased off considerably. It is only natural then that home buyers
expect the reduced risks to result in reduction in interest rates and
relaxation of margin money norms.”
The housing finance company is now funding up to 80% of the
property value to most salaried people, and 85% in a few cases, depending on
the creditworthiness of the borrower. This is more than the 70% it used to lend
a few months back.
According to
Anshuman Magazine, CMD of global real estate consultancy CB Richards Ellis
(CBRE), value buying is happening mostly in suburban locations, as that is
where the current supply is. “Certain pockets in Gurgaon and Noida, where the
price used to be Rs 65 lakh to Rs 1.5 crore earlier, have deals to offer
anywhere between Rs 35 lakh to Rs 50 lakh today! Developers have reduced the
total ticket sizes, adjusted area, price and given amenities. This has got
people back and is making them lust for value deals right now.”
According to
Navin M Raheja, chairman and managing director of Raheja Developers, “Locations
such as Gurgaon, Faridabad, Noida in Delhi NCR are some of the good locations
for value buying. Anything that is available between Rs 2,500 to Rs 3,000 per
sq ft is the right price depending, of course, upon the location and
infrastructural facilities available in the vicinity with specifications
offered.
“There are
three kinds of value buying that are taking place in the real estate market right now. Ready to move in residential property in
and around metros and their suburbs, ready to move in commercial property which
is already leased, or generating income and low income and middle income
housing ranging from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 40 lakh are the primary types of value
purchases,” Raheja adds.
On the other
hand, lenders such as ING Vysya Bank, and Punjab & Sind Bank have reduced
the margin money requirement to 15-20% from 25-30% towards the cost of the home
on their home loans, as they try to tap potential homebuyers. This leads to a
borrower investing lesser capital than before. So on a home loan of Rs 25 lakh,
a customer would need to pay only Rs 2.75 lakh against Rs 6.25 lakh demanded
earlier, where the margin norm is relaxed to 15% from 25%. State Bank of India,
which has cut the margin requirement to 20% from 25%, may reduce it by a
further 5%.
G S Vedi, the
newly appointed chairman and managing director of Punjab and Sind Bank, said,
“Interest rates are likely to harden over the next six months with the credit
offtake improving and inflation moving into the positive territory. This is the
best time for a potential buyer to go home shopping.”
Many of those
who were holding out have also decided to make a purchase now as prices have
bottomed out. Plus, with many affordable housing launches by developers, the
view is that prices are now pocket-friendly at this time. “Prices have reached
the bottom and in these prices you are bound to get good appreciation in
future. So, if you are buying a particular property now, one is definitely going to
feel later that they grabbed a good deal,” said Vijay Jindal, CMD, SVP Group.
But it is
best not to overlook the pros and cons before deciding on such value buys.
Though the pricing and the product may both look highly appealing, it is best
to read the fineprint carefully. This will hold in good stead for the future.
As far as dos are concerned, one must set their benchmarks on the price,
location, size etc, so if you have been thinking of investing your money in a
home, it’s the right time to go deal hunting.
Affordable
houses to provide Rs 5,00,000 crore biz opportunity: The affordable housing
segment will offer business opportunities worth over Rs 5,00,000 crore as India
requires more than ten million houses to be built by 2013-14. According to a
report prepared by property consultant Knight Frank on
Public-Private-Partnership model on housing in India, an estimated 11.84
million dwelling units are required to be built in India by the end of 2013-14
across all income segments in 37 cities.
The need from
the economically weaker section (EWS), lower income group (LIG) and lower
mid-income group (MIG) is nearly 90% of the total housing requirement, the
report says. “The cumulative task of delivering over 10 million units in
affordable housing category in top 37 cities of the country quantifies to a
business opportunity in excess of Rs 5,00,000 crore,” the report, prepared for
realty body NAREDCO, said.
Commenting on
the potential of the segment, the report said though the margins realized from
affordable homes are comparatively lesser, the segment offers an opportunity to
exploit volume of transactions to derive higher profits. The consultant pointed
out that government alone would not be able to meet the pan-India housing
requirement, “thus venturing into a joint model with the government can be a
practical solution”. The synergies could be utilized towards achieving the
central government’s objective of ‘housing for all’ and making India a
slum-free nation, the report said.
