If the Indian real estate was gasping for breath since long, Cronavirus has further pushed it to the ventilator. Track2Realty in an online poll finds that the challenge is no more limited to the unsold inventory, liquidity crisis & buyers’ reluctance, but to keep the existing buyers stay afloat. Job losses and salary cut threatens to make foreclosure a reality now.
For generations, real estate leaders were cautious in changing their business models. But in recent years there has been a significant change. So far the numbers have been on the lower side, but Covid 19, has initiated companies to adopt digital solutions at an unprecedented pace. According to a survey, digitisation is taking precedence across the sector and more than 90 percent of the occupiers and developers are aiming to bring a technological shift in their business operations within the next five years.
Catering to India’s housing demand, SOBHA is the only Indian real estate company to make it to this prestigious list of growth drivers for the APAC region among other construction companies listed. The evaluation was based on companies having: revenue of at least $100,000 generated in 2015; revenue of at least $1m generated in 2018; being independent; headquartered in one of 11 territories in Asia-Pacific (Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, New Zealand, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines) and whose revenue growth between 2015 and 2018 was primarily organic.
It is pertinent to note here that there has been nothing posted on Hawelia Facebook page that could be defined as “Defamatory” by the Indian Penal Code (IPC). It seems builder does not believe in the IPC and wants to continue his fiefdom with HPC (Hawelia Penal Code). As per the law of the land, any comment/feedback/grievance could only be termed as defamation if it can’t be substantiated with the fact. Truth stands as biggest defence against the defamation. The chain mail between the builder and the home buyers of Hawelia Valenova Park could establish the fact that the buyers are not happy with the builder and the builder failed to even come forward to address the concerns.
Lockdown is not a new reality for the developers across India, and more particularly in the Delhi NCR region. The NGT construction ban, often for months together, has hampered the execution cycle of the business. However, the comprehensive lockdown due to Coronavirus could multiply the woes of the business with supply chain hurdles leading to cost escalation, labour migration and the job losses in the market leading to standstill sales and even foreclosures. However, Amit Modi, Director of ABA Corp who is also a known face of CREDAI in this part of world thinks otherwise. In an exclusive video conferencing with Ravi Sinha, he feels some of the input costs might come down to clear the material inventory in a competitive market.
The said project, Hawelia Valenova Park, that was launched in 2013 at Tech Zone IV of Noida Extension is yet to be worth habitation, even after seven years. The builder, on his part, claims otherwise, even though the GNIDA (Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority) has only given it a conditional TOC (Temporary Occupancy Certificate).
A large share of global buyers (NRIs & HNIs) don’t wish to invest in the Indian property market. 78% of them have their own reasons to look towards overseas property market. The recent banking woes have further dented their confidence to invest in India. They also feel that the property prices in India are way too higher, compared to the overall value proposition on offer.
Balvinder Kumar, member of the UP RERA is no stranger to the functioning of the real estate and the government agencies. As a former bureaucrat, he has seen it as an insider with many key positions, including his stint with the high profile Delhi Development Authority (DDA). In an exclusive interview with Ravi Sinha, he shares his roadmap for making RERA an ideal platform for due diligence as well.
2020 hardly promises to be the #BestYearEver for the Indian real estate, simply because the sector has historically been arrogant to read the writing on the wall. They continue to live with their fancy illusion that this is just another cyclic slowdown. The raw statistics of ever increasing migration to the cities and the housing demand make them predict for self-belief that sooner than later the market will yet again turn out to be sellers’ market.
According to the World Bank, India ranks at 63rd among 190 countries, and the ranking is anticipated to improve further in the coming years backed by progressive government policies. Meanwhile, the real estate sector has shown remarkable resilience despite the bearish phase of the economy. Below is a lowdown of how the real estate story unfolded in 2019: