
Better eco system needed to check delays
Track2Realty view on project delays The lack of regulations is…
Track2Realty view on project delays The lack of regulations is…
Gaurav Kapoor booked a flat in one of the newly launched projects of Delhi-NCR in early 2007. He was promised the flat would be ready for possession within three years with a grace period of six months. To play safe Gaurav even opted for a construction linked payment plan to the developer but six years have gone and he is yet to get his flat and every time he has approached the developer, various reasons for delay have been cited from macro economic conditions to funding woes and approval delays on part of the government agencies.
From being the governance wild child to maturing into a market influencer, India’s real-estate sector has transformed in the past decade, with a paradigm shift from family owned businesses to corporates along with a few companies listing on stock exchanges. The change began with the government opening doors to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in 2005 and then welcoming the next wave of stability as corporate houses brought image restoration for the sector. Led by corporate entities, realty companies soon adopted corporate governance wherein transparency began to trickle down into the system as a norm slowly.
“How long can a sector survive which is borrowing at 48 per cent from private lenders to serve the interest of previous debt raised at much lower rate,” asks a banker. His concern is not without valid reasons. Developers experimented with all funding options but still many of them are now being forced to seek other sources of funding which not only comes at a significantly higher cost but also where the source of fund is unregulated.
When Roshan Abbas, a property broker operating out of Mira Road of Western Suburb, claimed that the region would be the catalyst of housing revival in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), many thought this to be claims of a broker glorifying his catchment area. Some of the critics even dismissed it as another marketing stunt on the eve of the festive season of Navratra.
Track2Realty Investment Magnet Report 2015 tries to decode the alphabets of India’s housing market. The editorial team has not invented these alphabetic connotations and everyone in the sector is well aware of the alphabetic practices as well, yet we simplify it for the average investors and homebuyers who often forget the basics that make their fortunes vary. Familiarity with the given A to Z is often the difference between a skilled homebuyer and a novice.
Affordable housing, though a widely-used term in India, actually means different things to different sets of demographics. The definition of ‘affordable’ is heavily influenced by the socio-economic variables that drive a certain city or location.
The concerns about soaring rentals and unaffordable housing in Mumbai notwithstanding, the surprising fact is that residential property prices across Mumbai city and its suburbs increased only by 7% in 2014, and by a negligible 0.3% in 2013.
Track2Realty Exclusive: The time of transition for the Indian real estate and construction sector has finally arrived. Since last few years, a number of regulations pertaining to the real estate market were put on hold. A number of them are now at the draft stage waiting for Parliament’s approvals.
Track2Realty: The economic growth rates in Asia are likely to lead the world—creating demand for built spaces, triggering business expansion, and inducing businesses to occupy retail premises and office properties.