In many ways, the year 2015 was a defining one for the residential real estate segment in India. This was the period when the market began to evolve, along with customer expectations as well as market dynamics.
The IT/ITeS sector has clearly been driving corporate real estate in the country; and consequently, much of the development in this space is being propelled by IT and back-office demand for workspaces, as per CBRE’s India report – Real Estate & Workplace Strategies of Shared Services Occupiers.
Sobha Limited has launched its first commercial Project ‘Sobha City Mall’ at Puzhakkal in Thrissur, Kerala. Situated at the heart of ‘Sobha City’- the first and the largest integrated township in the State, ‘Sobha City Mall’ will offer best-in-class retail and entertainment experience for the customers.
Mahindra Lifespace Developers Limited (MLDL), the real estate and infrastructure development arm of the Mahindra Group, has launched Luminare Solaris, the next phase of its luxury residential project in Gurgaon, located at Sector 59, Golf Course Extension Road.
The FDI relaxation by the Government of India is being hailed as a game changer across the Indian real estate sector. The developers even point out that now since the government has relaxed foreign direct investment norms in the construction sector by removing two major conditions related to minimum built up area and capital requirement, it simply means that any project under construction, regardless of size, can have access to FDI. So, it is going to help the cause of affordable housing.
When a broker recently suggested Himanshu Kapadia that he should better invest in Ulwe, Dronagiri or Nerul of Navi Mumbai this engineer thought the greedy broker is selling the properties out of which he could make more brokerage. There was nothing common between these three locations and even in terms of price point of the residential properties the three given markets had a different profile.
When the Government of India was announcing relaxation with FDI norms a day ahead of Diwali, many analysts thought it to be a Diwali gift for 15 core sectors that could also prolong the festive spirit for the real estate sector.
Haryana Government would like to address it as pro-farmer move, the real estate sector would like to hail it as investment friendly and others within the built environment of real estate would like to call it a step that would bring to the market more supply and hence affordability.
Immediately after the earthquake in Delhi-NCR a builder sends a group WhatsApp message that says: Our project in Noida is NCR’s 1st and only earthquake resistant structure with seismic zone V compliance approved by IIT Bombay. Possession next month.” It does not go down well in the collective consciousness as an impression gains ground that the developers are evaluating the opportunity cost in times of a natural calamity. This message nevertheless raises more questions than it tries to answer that the given project is earthquake complaint.
Experts recommend certain safeguards a homebuyer should take to evade getting into dicey deals:
Reputation: The buyer should invariably consider the reputation of the builder and their development history and form a fair idea of the credibility of the developer both in terms of timely completion of work and the quality of their construction.