MMR has been one of the major retail hubs in the country with most brands, big and small, eyeing to capture a piece of this vital market. The unrelenting demand for more retail space in the financial capital has prompted mall developers to boost their development pipeline. As per ANAROCK data, nearly 13.6 mn sq. ft. of new mall space is likely to come up in the entire MMR by 2022.
Various private equity players are reviewing the holdings of these institutions and we could see a very big portfolio sale transaction in this quarter involving DHFL. However, there is a lot of action in alternative sectors such as co-living and student housing with players such as Stanza Living, Hamstede and Oyo on a signing spree.
With spacious homes in a gated community, the project will have more than three acres of central greens, outdoor air pollution controllers, floral courts, parks, air purifying tree species, pocket amenity spaces under each tower, contemporary club house (around 24,000 sq. ft), swimming pool, gym, sports-facilities, recreation areas, cafeteria and shopping plaza to just name a few.
Multiple Challenges for HFCs Still in Play: The housing finance sector has been facing challenges, which have led to a contraction in spreads, a rise in funding cost and an increased spotlight on their asset-liability mismatches. Such mismatches have resulted in constrained financing from both market-based sources (CPs and NCDs) and banks for many players.
Rising transparency levels, progressive regulations, and a robust commercial real estate market in the country have made the segment a favorite among institutional investors, it says. Investors have allocated nearly USD 17 bn in the form of direct investments as well as through entity level investments from 2006 to 2019 in the office space.
Tech & IT-BPM sector accounted for the largest share at 38%. Flexible workspaces (co-working) has contributed close to 30% of office leasing. The demand for space was not only led for foreign players, but also home-grown operators who are rushing to capture a pie of this space. The absorption by flexi-operators will pick up pace in the wake of developers jumping onto the bandwagon.
The issue of stalled or delayed project is one of the major pain points of the Indian real estate sector currently. With buyers feeling the heat of delays, it is not surprising that some are now considering completing the projects themselves. This falls within the realm of possibility if the project in question has sufficient cash flows but is delayed for other reasons.
Affordable housing was given the much-coveted infrastructure status, and the very definition of affordable housing has been tweaked to accommodate more inventory under this key category. Moreover, the previously highly speculative markets of NCR and MMR have been tamed and are, in fact, leading the thrust of affordable housing today.
About 40% of all the new launches in 2018 were under the affordable segment. Cities such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and NCR witnessed maximum launches in the affordable segment that is below INR5 million. Mumbai on the other hand witnessed more launches in the mid segment housing, in the range of INR 5-10 million.
Cash-strapped builders have been hoping for all and any Government interventions which can help boost their sales volumes. This GST cut will provide such a boost, at least in the short-term as more fence-sitters who had been postponing their purchase decisions now have an additional incentive to take the plunge.