Ever since I got into the hitherto-untouched & challenging business of brand rating of Indian real estate developers, I only get the reactions in extreme, depending upon whether the developer has been rated high or low. After all, every builder is a God’s gift to the world of brand, as per his own make-belief metrics.
The Indian real estate developers are going over-board in capturing the fantasy of the rich Indians who are also expat professionals. But they seem to have gone completely off target when understanding the long-term housing needs of these Non Resident Indians (NRIs).
Full adoption of blockchain technology in Indian real estate may appear a remote possibility, however, low transparency provides an incentive for adoption of blockchain rather than an obstacle; and we see several near-term applications for the technology.
Nearly all the developers in the Indian real estate are chasing the Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) but very few have succeeded in attracting the investment of expat Indians. Reason: They have tried to hard sell the properties without actually understanding what these fellow Indians living abroad want.
A friendly budget is always on the wish list of everyone. Across the industries the stakeholders, including the consumers, have more or less the same expectations with the Finance Minister to call it a friendly budget. But in the context of the Indian real estate a friendly budget for the sector does not necessarily mean a homebuyer friendly budget.
The more liberalized FDI regime now further attracting global capital flow to Indian real estate sector. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) system will also have a major impact especially in sell to build model in Real Estate. And the Benami Property Act will surely curb the parking of black money in real estate.
One of the most significant trends the Indian real estate sector saw in 2017, was the infrastructure status given to affordable housing. The government’s vision of achieving Housing for All by 2022 appears a lot more achievable, with steps taken like effectively revising the qualifying criteria.
The Indian real estate market is not a single homogenous entity. There are seven major metro markets, each behaving differently, with different supply and demand dynamics. There are many different verticals within real estate – residential, commercial, retail, hospitality – and within those there are segments focused on different customer bases. With so many permutations, there is no ‘one size fits all’ answer. The urban southern markets in commercial office sector, has seen consecutive years of positive sentiment, take up and consequently rental growth.
How relevant is the introduction of REITs when it comes to providing a new opportunity to get funds for the Indian real estate industry? Consider first, that India’s real estate has struggled to reduce debt, given that interest rates are among the highest in Asia. And, also consider that REITs will provide investors an opportunity to buy into India’s real estate market – these two aspects are just the basics.
JC Sharma has been witness to the emergence of Bangalore as the ‘Destination Indian Realty’. He feels it is not just the business potential of the city that makes it an investment magnet. Rather, there are real estate related catalytic factors, like the developers’ focus on end-users, innovation with the product and adoption of advanced technology that makes Bangalore numero uno of Indian real estate.