An airport has been catalyst to the development and urbanisation of any given city. More often than not, it proves to be the catalyst to the growth of the real estate market of the given city. After all, the housing market is heavily dependent on the commercial activity in the city and for the big ticket commercial activities to take place what the multinational companies and the big corporate houses need the most is an international airport.
To say that the year 2015 has not been very excisiting for the real estate market across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) would be stating the obvious. The slowdown in the macro-economy, wait & watch by the homebuyers in the property market, relatively higher cost of borrowing till late and fate of reforms oriented policies hanging in uncertainty all collectively dampenend the property market in India’s financial capital. Will the year 2016 be any different?
Several amendments to the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2015, suggested by the select committee of Rajya Sabha, have now been accepted by the Union Cabinet. This is a major step towards introducing the amended bill in the Rajya Sabha. The bill will bring in much-needed transparency and accountability in the real estate sector.
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.
Over 75 per cent of the total 3,540 live projects with total outstanding investments worth over Rs 14 lakh crore attracted by the real estate sector across India remained non-starter as of financial year 2014-15, noted a just-concluded study by apex industry body ASSOCHAM.
What needs to be done to ensure that Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) get to be the game changer? In India, we have seen ‘pious thought’ and ‘positive thinking’ not always being supplemented by positive action on part of the ‘powers that be’; be they regulatory authorities or the taxation authorities. Challenges which need to be addressed include different rates at which stamp duties are levied, for purchase and sale of assets across various states in India. Potential exists; making it a reality is the challenge.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Not that Hitender Tyagi of Noida was a prosperous landlord, yet he felt like the one with his small piece of 12 acre of agricultural land. Today this ailing farmer feels like a pauper who was forced to do away with his source of bread and butter as his land was forcibly acquired by the Noida Authority.
Track2Realty: As we move closer to the Union Budget 2015–16, India’s real estate sector is hoping for certain key expectations to get implemented. Following the Government’s announcements of building SMART Cities in the Budget last year, the industry seeks more clarity on the exact definition of one in the Indian context, fund allocations for, and city/Greenfield location identification of such development. The implementation of such ambitions would ultimately result in national wealth creation—to help our cities become sustainable and livable urban centers of growth.
Track2Realty Exclusive: In 2014, India elected a new Central Government with absolute majority after three decades. The absolute majority helped in the formation of the strong government capable of taking decisive steps without much opposition. Likewise, several pro-business reforms were introduced to propel the infrastructure growth and to infuse a positive sentiment for the future of the real estate sector including revitalising Special Economic Zones (SEZs), development of several industrial corridors, creation of 100 smart cities, relaxation in FDI norms in real estate, supporting affordable housing sector, introduction of REITs and InVITs etc
Track2Realty: Prabhat Ranjan, co-founder of Brick Eagle, a financial services platform for the affordable housing industry, has forayed into real estate development, incorporating a new venture Olympeo Infrastructure. The company has launched its first project Olympeo Riverside, an integrated township spread across 25 acres on the banks of Ulhas River, in the Neral-Karjat belt, an extended Mumbai suburb.