Track2Realty Exclusive: The real estate market has often been defined in terms of being either the buyers’ market or the sellers’ market. In most of the major markets across the country the bull phase of the economy led to the sellers’ market with demand outstripping the supply.
Track2Realty: Internationally, a building that reaches or exceeds the height of 150 metres is considered a skyscraper. Until recently, Mumbai was the only Indian city with high-rise buildings. The financial capital continues to see the highest demand for skyscrapers, as the only option to grow there is vertically. It now seems that in the coming decade, Maximum City will receive an even more cohesive skyline, with a host of projects in the race to touch the sky being constructed. The demand for high-rise buildings is certainly growing, and other cities are catching up.
Track2Realty: Approximately 8 million sq. ft. of office space was leased across eight major cities during the quarter. Bengaluru, Chennai and Pune topped the chart in the total office market absorption.
Track2Realty: The biggest announcement for the real estate sector proposed by the newly elected Government in its Union Budget 2014–15 was the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) being directed to introduce Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts in India.
Track2Realty: The expanding retail footprint of global brands in India has been a major growth driver of retail real estate in the country. In an effort to map and analyze the spread of international retailers, CBRE undertook a research study of more than 300 prominent global retailers—Expanding Horizons of Global Retailers in India—to identify operating trends, expansion strategies, and extent of penetration across leading cities.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Till very recently, unlike several other industries, real estate used to take a back seat in times of a sluggish market or when there was some controversy around. Any negative market sentiment or slowdown more often than not led to newspapers’ property supplements growing thinner and vacant hoardings in and around city becoming common. Prima facie it was seen to be a sales driven exercise where real estate companies’ approach has been to advertise for selling their product and not creating a brand icon. But that seems to be only half the truth in today’s context as the sector is doling out more money for advertising despite slowdown.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Critics who had till very recently criticised the projection of Noida as a corporate city on the grounds that the city lacks commercial activity and an international airport may soon have reasons enough to eat their own words. Scaling up from just being an affordable destination the seemingly poor cousin of Delhi-NCR is today giving its superior peer markets a tough competition in its march to emerge as a landmark corporate hub.
Track2Realty Exclusive: One of the most ardent desires of an individual is to own a house with location and comfort being the determining factors in most of the cases. However, to get access to shopping facilities or entertainment hubs or medical care or even to commute to workplace remains a sheer imagination almost beyond fulfilment in India.
Track2Realty: Following the slow market conditions of the last couple of quarters, Mumbai’s office market saw a slight spurt in market sentiments in the second quarter of 2014. The city’s overall real estate market is anticipated to fare better in the third quarter over the second quarter of the year.
Track2Realty Exclusive: It has often been argued that Indian realty needs to adopt best practices and improve brand image as the sector defends its rough ride on the learning curves. If adopting Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), retaining employees, inculcating brand loyalty and earning buyers’ trust are some of the best practices that can address the perception issues of Indian real estate, then the sector has to walk a long road ahead.