Track2Realty Exclusive: In realty business, brand is an additional value the consumer is prepared to pay compared with an ordinary product yet fulfilling the same purpose. If a brand is not able to offer the consumer better advantage that the competitors, it will turn into a commodity.
Track2Realty Exclusive: At a time when the critics of Mumbai real estate were busy with the conspiracy theory and prophets of doomsday were writing the obituary, with the report suggesting the city market sitting over 48 months of inventory lending credence to such conspiracy theory, there has been an under-current in the Mumbai property market where some of the smart developers were devising new strategies to beat the slowdown.
Track2Realty Exclusive: A brand is the idea or image of a specific product or service that consumers connect with, by identifying the name, logo, slogan, or design of the company. Branding, according to me, is a double edged sword which grants an advantage of building clientele, loyalty, trust etc but also burdens the shoulders with an added responsibility and obligation to defend the ‘Brand’ so far created persistently.
Track2Realty Exclusive: India’s urban population will soar from 340 million in 2008 to 590 million in 2030 as estimated. And this urban expansion will happen at a rapid speed.
Track2Realty Exclusive: An affordable housing project should be located within reasonable distances from workplaces and should be connected adequately through public transport.
Track2Realty Survey: Is a buyer ready to pay premium for the brand reputation of the developer? Majority of the brand conscious buyers’ say ‘NO’ unless the big brand has offering to match the high price and differentiate the product. In the high-end category, 40 per cent of the buyers are ready to pay a premium.
Track2Realty Exclusive: There are few developers who build integrated townships 100 km away in the outskirts of the city which is acceptable worldwide. For example, the city of Milton Keynes which is beautifully crafted township built 100 km far wide from the city of London.
Track2Realty Exclusive: There is no clear-cut definition of the term ‘affordable’, as it is a relative concept and could have several indirect meanings in different contexts. In India, private developers primarily target luxury, high-end and upper-mid housing segment, since it fetches a premium over low income housing. This leads to a sustained supply for this segment, increasing market competitiveness for developers.
Track2Realty Exclusive: As corrective steps we need to form a regularized official body to maintain consistency and transparency. There were only two cities in the world which were over populated and this has gone up to 29 cities with dense population in past one decade.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Catering to the rapidly urbanizing consumers and emerging economies will hit the demand pressure for natural and capital resources. In cities, one billion people will enter the global “consuming class” by 2025, with incomes high enough to become significant consumers of goods and services.