Track2Realty Exclusive: In 2010 when Le Meridien Coimbatore, a Rs. 300 crore project of Appu Hotels, announced to open a nine-storeyed hotel with a total built-up area of seven lakh sq ft, spread across a 6.75 acre plot, there were not many takers. The critics either termed it as an over ambitious project or a venture that was ahead of time.
Track2Realty Exclusive: The demand for real estate has been consistent despite the impending slowdown. Every geographical regions shows its own trend because of different contributing factor, and in the developing areas demand has continued to show an upward trend considering the fact that these are affordable by the middle income groups.
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: The financial capital of India, Mumbai has always been reflective of the business confidence of the country. It is a market that shows the way forward for the investors in general and India Inc in particular, be it on the Sensex or the real estate market. It is hence assumed that if the confidence index in the city is low, it will have a percolating effect on the rest of the markets across the country.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Coming out of the shadow of Gurgaon-Manesar the once sleepy town in Bhiwadi is fast shedding the tag of affordable destination. What was initially conceptualised as an affordable residential market for those who could not afford high property prices in Gurgaon and for the industries that could settle in a moderately priced market has shaped up so very well that Bhiwadi today has emerged as a case study in how even the extension of a satellite town should be positioned.
Track2Realty: Despite more than 60% of global retailers already having a presence in India, the lack of quality retail space and legislative issues have been an impediment to the spread of organized retail in the country, according to CBRE’s report, Expanding Horizons of Global Retailers in India.
Track2Realty Exclusive: The east coast of Delhi-NCR has been on a roll and bucking all the trends of slowdown areas in and around, most importantly Ghaziabad, NH 24 stretch and Noida have done better than the national average in the last couple of years. To say that the property market in this part of the world has been more realistic having registered more property transactions would be stating the obvious.
Track2Realty Exclusive: With a vision to make India a housing surplus nation from being the housing shortage country, CREDAI has been campaigning to make the business environment congenial for growth. But the realty bill, in its current form and shape, stifles the honest developer and scares away new entrepreneurs from entering the sector.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Elections are part of a vibrant democracy. And like everyone else who is part of this democratic system, the developer community also pins hope on the upcoming elections. We are, in fact, watching all development with bated breath. We will keenly follow the five Assembly elections to be followed by the general elections of 2014 without any bias and in a totally unattached manner with no political affiliations whatsoever.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Omkar luxury projects are being developed rapidly at upmarket locations like Worli. Malad, Parel and BKC in Mumbai and designed to offer homes according to the niche lifestyle of the affluent clientele.