Gurgaon initially gained prominence as an outsourcing centre for major international companies that found it cheaper to locate their back-end operations in India due to the availability of high-quality but cost-effective employee resources. GE Capital initiated this trend and was the first multinational company to enter Gurgaon in 1997.
The Fitch Ratings 2011 outlook for the Indian real estate sector seems to contradict itself. While it says the realty market is stable in the year, it also warns of a negative bias. The negative forecast of Fitch Ratings is, however, based more on the sentiments than the emerging market reality.
In the immediate aftermath of the bribes for loan scam involving LIC Housing Finance, the Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee in conjunction with Dept of Financial Services asked for a complete monitoring of all the companies mentioned in the CBI case filed. All public sector banks, financial institutions and state owned insurance companies have been asked to examine their exposure to the 21 companies named by CBI in the housing loan scam, and give a subsequent compliance report.
Kumari Selja, Union Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation & Minister of Tourism, has categorically blamed the banks for not facilitating the affordable housing. Inaugurating the 10th National Convention of National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) at New Delhi the minister said the housing finance sector has witnessed a boom in the recent past due to favorable government policies.
8 out of every ten home buyers in the Indian cities are sulking with the unfair trade practices of the real estate developers. Only 20 per cent of the buyers said they received a defect-free home and timely possession. The low customer satisfaction index was as much evident with developers offering affordable housing as with luxury housing.
Emaar MGF today challenged a single judge’s dismissal of its plea for restraining Delhi Development Authority from encashing its bank guarantee worth Rs. 183 crore due to delay in completion of the Commonwealth Games village.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has urged the real estate sector to be sensitive to the purchasing power of the poor while pricing their housing units. Speaking at the 10th national convention of the Confederation of Real Estate developers” Association of India (CREDAI) in New Delhi on Dec 16, Mukherjee also called for greater integrity in development, construction and marketing or real estate business.
While the foreign direct investment flows (FDI) dependent Indian realty market is awaiting a good fortune, a World Bank report brings cheer to the industry. It says the FDI into developing countries including India is expected to recover over the next couple of years and is projected to increase by 17 per cent in 2010.
In the wake of Adarsh society controversy the Mumbai government has suddenly woken up to the reality that they don’t have authentic records of land ownership and maps of many plots in one of the costliest addresses in India, South Mumbai. The state’s urban development department has written to the city collector, telling him to prepare records of ownership of land in Backbay and Nariman Point areas in south Mumbai.
Capital market regulator the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has apprehensions over the feasibility of real estate investment trusts (REITs) in India. The regulator had issued draft guidelines for REITs a couple of years ago, but may drop its plan to introduce it now.