Track2Realty-Agencies: The Income Tax (I-T) department has raided on 45 premises of Indore-based 10 real estate firms on Saturday, Sep 22. A team of 300 officials conducted the operations and recovered Rs 2 crore in cash and sealed 15 lockers of nine realtors. The raids are expected to continue on Sunday as well.
Realty sector has welcomed the the RBI’s decision of slashing the CRR rates by 25 basis points to 4.50% with a guarded optimism. The statement from the Prime Minister’s Economic Advisory Council (PMEAC) that the RBI move to infuse liquidity in the system is “more potent” than a cut in interest rate and it will help banks expand credit portfolio seems to have few takers in the sector.
The Finance Ministry will meet chief executives of leading banks today, Sep 17, to discuss credit flow to the real estate and housing sectors. According to sources D K Mittal, Secretary of Financial Services, will chair the meeting of bankers, which will take stock of credit flow to the sensitive sectors.
Jones Lang LaSalle has a new report, Redefining Retail Investment, to coincide with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) 2012 Retail Real Estate World Summit, taking place in Shanghai this week.
India witnessed increased transaction activity and retailer expansion in H1, 2012. Leading brands and retailers pursued expansion plans aggressively, increasing their presence across key retail hubs. In all the seven cities presented in the review, the retail real estate market appears to be promising with an increase in retailer enquiries. These are the findings of CBRE’s latest report titled “India Retail Market view.”
According to the latest RICS India Commercial Property Survey, sentiment in the Indian real estate market has been adversely affected in the second quarter, as the economic picture in the country continues to remain bleak with the declining value of the rupee and growth forecasts being revised lower, along with a deteriorating global climate.
Over the last year, there has been an unequivocal crystallization of Indian cities that continue to attract serious investment into real estate. This is directly correlated to the economic dynamics now working in the country. If India is to achieve even a conservative GDP growth of 6% per year, it emerges that only three cities – Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore – have the potential to deliver. The reason for this is that close to 2/3rd of the overall development of office space in the country is now taking place in Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore.
Once seen as very powerful economic tool for catalyzing the growth process during restructure and liberalization of economy, Special Economic Zones (SEZs) in India could not replicate the Chinese success story, as assumed. Track2Realty takes a look on the future of SEZs in India as realtors make a beeline to exit or extend the tax haven, and the Government groping for fresh ideas.
Integrated townships can reduce the burden on infrastructure and provide a fulfilling lifestyle for buyers, at a much reduced cost all round. Gulam Zia, National Director – Research & Advisory Services, Knight Frank India points out, “Of late, the planning authorities and Government bodies have realised the importance of integrated townships and are giving special concessions for creation of such townships.
What goes into the strategic planning of an integrated township to make it a case study in flagship project? One such integrated township in Mumbai is Kohinoor City at Kurla Vidyavihar. Atul Modak, Head of Kohinoor City says, “What we considered was the need to provide plenty of recreational space and all ultra-modern amenities. It truly had to be a ‘city’ where all their needs and luxuries could be met.