By: Prameet Narula
Track2Realty Exclusive: The home buyers’ have often been complaining about the lack of choice in the property market. It is not only the demand and supply gap that has been cribbed about, rather in the available segment also the available options have been few and far between.
Of course, the dilemma of new launch vis-à-vis the under-construction and ready to move in has also been something where the buyers had few choices to make as ready apartment has often been a wishful thinking. However, this luxury of choice is today visible in the market which is not only most competitive but also most sought after.
In the highly aspirational property market of Mumbai the problem of plenty is making the home buyers pretty happy this festive season. It is actually very unique dynamics of property market where the developers are also not complaining either.
After all, the Mumbai housing market is on course to a fast recovery post the slowdown of the last few years when the macro-economic outlook made the home buyers wait and watch. Most of the developers that this correspondent spoke to are rather thrilled by the fact that the market has suddenly turned quite positive with the start of the festive season.
The developers maintain that the transaction volume is something that has not been visible in the last four to five years and if the rate of transaction continues throughout the festive season it may end up as a season of record property sales. This is quite phenomenal for a market that was till only recently blamed to be sitting over an inventory of 48 months. But it seems the curse has turned out to be a blessing now since this has given the buyers a luxury of choice in terms of ready to move in apartments.
Having said that, there is equally high demand for new launches and the under-construction properties and collectively it can be termed as a market which has a property for every budget segment at every stage of construction. It seems various projects being sold through various marketing methodologies are finding the buyers across the property landscape of the city.
Suman Dubey, a financial analyst suggests it is much better to advice the home seekers in Mumbai now for multiple of reasons. First, there is better macro-economic outlook; secondly, there are very many properties available in many of the micro markets and hence comparison is easier for the buyers; thirdly, the developers’ focus has shifted to sell the inventory as financial market is looking bright for new launches; and lastly, the buyers do understand that the properties are at the right price point at this time.
“Of course, the festive spirit has been the catalytic factor to the economic and financial realities on the ground. But what needs to be understood from the buyers’ perspective is the fact that even in the wake of worst market scenario in the last few years, this kind of luxury of choice was not available for them at any given time. Today, it is neither the buyers’ market nor the sellers’ market but an equal opportunity market which is a rarity in a city like Mumbai where the demand far exceeds the supply. It is hence the perfect time to buy and this advice to the home buyers is being reflected in the sales graph of various developers, says Dubey.
It is not just the home buyers but the developers also seem to agree with the take of this financial analyst. Abhay Kumar, CMD of Grih Pravesh Buildteck says that it is not about any one developer or two, but the sector by and large is doing brisk business this festive season. According to him, it was expected that with the change in the government at centre and improvement in the macro-economic outlook the housing market will improve; yet the pace of improvement and the transactions during the festivals is something that has been beyond the expectations of a large number of developers.
“At a time when the stock market started skyrocketing I was pretty much confident that the spill over effect on the property market will happen soon. There, of course, has been a historical precedence to this not only in Mumbai but globally and with the festive season ahead it was expected to see the turnaround. However, the pace of this turnaround of fortunes has indeed come to me as a pleasant surprise. And it is not just my experience with the improved sales graph but most of the developer friends are also maintaining the same,” says Abhay.
Hiral Sheth, Director- Marketing & Sales with Sheth Creators also agrees that there has been phenomenal booking this Navratra and the festive fervor this year has seen a tremendous transformation as compared to last year. A lot of developers are launching new projects and offering discounts and value added services to lure buyers. This festival period from October to December is expected to garner sales and has definitely encouraged more people to come and invest in the real estate.
“The special schemes offered by developer have assisted the fence sitters in taking decision to invest in the sector. This season has witnessed a change in demand and is going to stay till December and we expect the sales will go up significantly during this period. The home buyers have been watching the property market on the sidelines for long and have now understood the fundamentals of realty quite well. Hence, they feel that the time has come to invest as the market is evenly balanced for both the developers as well as the buyers now,” says Hiral.
Analysts point out that the current festive season is extremely important for the realty sector since the market is now on a revival path and demand is looking up in the residential sector. Most of the developers also want to make the best of this period. Buyers tend to choose this auspices period to invest in real estate as it is considered to bring luck and prosperity, and developers too hinge on this season to make their inventories as attractive as possible to give a lift up to the demand. This season is therefore looked as an opportunity that can endow the buyers with offers and value added services.
Moreover, what can be vouchsafed is the fact that the whole eco system of real estate in the State of Maharashtra is taking a tectonic shift. There has been an increased focus on the builder and buyer mutual trust.
As part of the government’s initiative also, the Maharashtra Housing Regulation and Development Bill passed by the state assembly will pave the way for the establishment of the country’s first regulator for the housing sector. The Bill aims to bring about transparency in the real estate sector and empower homebuyers. Hence, these factors are collectively acting as catalyst and making this festive season positive as compared to earlier years.
