It is easy to criticize the Indian real estate sector for its narrative, or the lack of it. But it takes some thorough understanding of the business, its ROI cycle, its historical legacies and multiple other factors to find method into the madness. We explore how the real estate can create its own effective narrative like some of the other matured industries.
The cost of doing business per square feet has always been challenging in the top 10 cities of India. The ever increasing migration for jobs in these cities have made the housing affordability even bigger challenge. Critics are not cynical when they question as to what extent and till when these cities will continue to be filled up like a soda bottle. Aren’t our metro cities on the verge of a population blast? Come 2021 and Track2Realty analysis believes the infamous Coronavirus in a strange way has shown the way forward.
With the vaccination drive in full swing, there is renewed optimism, and the country’s economic momentum seems to be picking up. In particular, the real estate sector is witnessing new interest from homebuyers as seen in Q1 FY22, spurred due to positive government policies, initiatives taken by the developers and pent-up consumer demands. This is a new phase of real estate growth, innovation, and investment, contributing towards making India the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
The economists and the real estate analysts are unanimous over the inevitability of the real estate recovery in India. What is nevertheless being debated is when will the sector revive to its normal course of business. What is even more important is to assess what would be the shape of the recovery. In classical economic definition, three of the commonly used recovery shapes are V, U & L shapes. V-Shaped is a strong recovery after the debacle, U-Shaped is a slower and long-drawn recovery, while an L-Shaped aftermath is where the previous peak is not recovered.
It was expected to be a future ready budget and the overtones in the power corridors were also self-congratulatory in advance. It finally turned out to be pretty ordinary budget for the real estate sector. The stakeholders are nevertheless looking for the silver lining here and there. The most critical stakeholder, the home buyer, is pretty disappointed with the Union Budget 2021-22.
In his budget wish list, Amit Modi, Director, ABA Corp & President (Elect), CREDAI Western UP, points out that the real estate sector in India has been through one of the most difficult periods last year due the pandemic effected slowdown in the economy. While there was an upward trajectory in the last quarter of year 2020, due to correction in prices, availability of affordable home loans and the general realization towards the importance of having an adequate shelter during the pandemic, but to seriously start the process of sector revival, there is an urgent and definitive need for reforms from the forthcoming Budget.
Beyond the pessimism & optimism and, to some extent, more than expected recovery post the Covid-19 lockdown, the fact remains that 2020 has been by and large the most unforgettable year for the economy in general and the real estate market in particular. The old timers in the business even maintain that this has been even worse year than the global economic collapse after the Lehman crisis in 2008.
Ever since the lockdown was imposed in March 2020 with Coronavirus scare at its peak, it seems the built environment of the Indian real estate is experiencing the Placebo Effect. The Placebo Effect is when an improvement is observed, despite an individual receiving a placebo as opposed to active medical treatment. In medical fraternity, it is estimated that 1 in 3 people experience the placebo effect. It seems every stakeholder, barring the home buyers, is experiencing the Placebo Effect in the property market.
For the media business also, the time has come to close this purpose gap — the distance between an organization’s stated aims and its lived behaviour. The longstanding view that the sole purpose of the media is to be the medium of information dissemination and thus maximize shareholder (read advertisers) value would quickly give way to a more balanced way of thinking. There is cut throat and hardly any differentiation in the content and message of an end number of media outlets today. Fortunately, that is our biggest strength with Track2Realty, whether it is in creating differentiation or minimising the purpose gap.
The habitual project delaying and absurd justifications of the builders in calling everything as Force Majeure has got another alibi – Corona. It has sparked a fresh debate within the built environment of the Indian real estate as to whether the Corona pandemic could be treated as Force Majeure in the sector.