Tokyo is the world’s hottest city for new retailer expansion, attracting 63 new retail brands, according to the latest report by global property advisor CBRE, How Global is the Business of Retail?. Space in core areas of Tokyo remain highly sought after despite the mixed signals in the economy and an increase in sales tax of 8% introduced in April 2014.
With nearly a hundred malls in the Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), it has become the default mall capital of India. No other city comes close to the number of operational malls that are found in Delhi-NCR.
The Indian subcontinent has always been prone to earthquakes. However, it is only the recent earthquakes in Nepal which have made home owners and prospective buyers wonder about the earthquake resistance factor in Indian real estate. Two quakes, a week apart, ripped the beautiful mountainous country to debris and several Indian states and cities felt the impact, as well. In some places, there were even incidents of damage to old structures and ill-planned buildings.
Omkar Realtors and Developers has launched one of its towers (Tower A) in its flagship ultra-luxurious residential development Omkar 1973 Worli. Tower A offers limited edition done-up boutique sky apartments priced at Rs 15 plus within the size range of 3000 – 4500 sq. ft.
Over the past decade, the Pune hotel sector has emerged a formidable competitor to other the hospitality markets in the country, growing from a negligible base of branded hotel rooms in 2005 into becoming one of India’s top five hotel markets in 2014. Over the course, it has weathered multiple storms ranging from significant supply increases to multiple bouts of economic uncertainty, both globally and regionally.
New recommendations on the Real Estate Regulatory Bill were made by the ministry and sent to PMO for approval, and the cabinet has now approved it. Next, it will be tabled in the Parliament for passing the bill and making it an Act. In essence, reduction of minimum balance to be maintained in the escrow account of a project has been reduced from 70% to 50%. This amount from the monies collected from the buyers must be placed in an escrow account within 15 days.
Following a particularly strong fourth quarter of 2014, the first quarter of 2015 reported comparatively slow activity on the office market front across leading cities. This apparent demand drop was largely because most corporate space occupiers were still strategizing their real estate plans for the year during the period, with fewer transaction decisions being implemented in the first quarter.
The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) has appointed Devina Ghildial as Managing Director – South Asia with effect from March 9th, 2015. In this role, Devina has been entrusted with leading the RICS in the South Asia region with a focus on growing the professional qualification, driving commercial growth, influencing policy, growing the training business and promoting professionalism and standards in the sector.
What needs to be done to ensure that Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) get to be the game changer? In India, we have seen ‘pious thought’ and ‘positive thinking’ not always being supplemented by positive action on part of the ‘powers that be’; be they regulatory authorities or the taxation authorities. Challenges which need to be addressed include different rates at which stamp duties are levied, for purchase and sale of assets across various states in India. Potential exists; making it a reality is the challenge.
CBRE’s Retail Hotspots in Asia Pacific 2014reports on international retailer activity occurring in the APAC region. Established as well as emerging retail markets in the region saw 464 new retail entrants in 2014—23% more than in 2013.