The company plans to increase its team strength in the Gulf to 500 and is targeting a Gross Transaction Value of $600 mn. from its international business in 2019. It also plans to set up operations in Saudi Arabia in this calendar year.
There is a public perception that what has transformed this once non-descript city into thriving metro city is the gulf money since a large number of Kochi residents are working in the gulf region. However, Kochi property market is not being driven by gulf money alone; this could be only a reality in the luxury segment.
Backward integration definitely helps and my reason for backward integration is that I have total control over quality. I come from that industry where I had been into contracting for the last 40 years. Real estate for me is only for the last 20 years. I have since beginning worked on very high-end contracts, including design. So, I have the knowledge coming from the grassroot level of contracts. Eventually I thought I should do real estate also while doing contracts outside.
The International Real Estate and Investment Show (IREIS, a B2C sales and networking platform where spot sales are permitted, the 10th edition is bringing leading local and foreign real estate developers under one roof will reflect the attractiveness of UAE‟s real estate sector and will attract investors from various parts of the world.
The UAE residents from Syria, Yemen, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman, India and Pakistan have increased demand for Caribbean citizenship to 51%, especially to St. Kits & Navis, Dominica, Grenada, Antigua & Barbuda and St. Lucia – the highest in the world – according a report released by AAA Associates, a Dubai-based immigration consultancy.
Analysts active in Navi Mumbai firmly believe that this NRI has got more than one upcoming node in Navi Mumbai where he can invest. Interestingly, the upcoming nodes have been more holistically planned and promise to have better infrastructure.
It is more of bad news than good news for the developers as far as their efforts to entice the NRIs is concerned. The good news is that the outlook of the expat Indians towards the Indian real estate is changing; the recent policy reforms have made them more optimistic about the property market back home. But the bad news is that they are yet not ready to commit for property purchase in India.
In terms of price point luxury properties in Dubai are more attractive than any such option in Mumbai and Bangalore. Moreover, the kind of rental returns that are there in the gulf city is no match to any Indian city. Add to it tax-free returns and attractive capital appreciation and your cost & benefit analysis is heavily loaded in favour of benefits. Last, but not the list, is the quality of life in Dubai
Nearly two third, as many as 64 per cent, categorically say they would wait for the market to have more clarity and transparency before making final their investment decision. The general mood among the NRIs is to play it safe now than be sorry with a wrong investment choice.
Market dynamics are changing and we are aware that urban population is rising, more so in India. There is massive shortfall in infrastructure and urban housing. Due to climatic change and rising environmental concerns, more resilient buildings which are environment friendly will be required. There is also a perceptible change in the way people live, work and play. People are living longer; households are getting smaller; there is increased mobility; and of course technology is transforming the way people think demand the kind of homes they want and carry on with their lifestyle. Keeping all these in mind, we have taken new initiatives at Sobha to stay ahead of the curve.