Track2Realty Exclusive: Some of the developers believe that being a responsible corporate entity CSR forms a very important aspect of their day to day functioning. For example, Kamal Khetan, CMD, Sunteck Realty says they have formed Sunteck Foundation that is a dedicated entity which under its umbrella supports various initiatives that lead to social betterment.
Track2Realty Exclusive: As the country faces problems over land acquisition, events around the issue have been tarnishing the image of India’s built environment. Across sectors — real estate, infrastructure and construction events have not been conducive enough to create a good environment for investments. In addition, fragmentation and irregularities within the market, instances of fly-by-night-operators duping the consumers, an absence of regulation over transactions and developers have given a bad name to the environment.
Track2Realty: Thapar Builders have launched their new residential project, Arthah, the first 26-storey residential complex in Vaishali at Ghaziabad. Arthah has been designed by architectural firm, Morphogenesis and it is close to the Vaishali Metro Station.
Track2Realty: Cushman and Wakefield has been appointed as exclusive marketing partners by Equinox Realty, the real estate arm of Essar Group, for Villas In The Sky range of apartments at Water’s Edge in Hebbal, Bangalore. These super premium homes christened ‘Villas In The Sky’ are luxury four bedroom apartments with study that come with exclusive features such as a private elevator, lap pool and Jacuzzi, raising the luxury quotient.
Track2Realty Exclusive: We have been through three key stages of evolution in facilities management in India and now stand at the cusp of the fourth, and most exciting, one. The first was prior to the growth years for India and existed from independence to around the mid-1990s.
Track2Realty Exclusive: A Delhi-based brand strategist says property exhibitions are more about BTL (Below the Line) brand positioning. Requesting anonymity, he maintains that footfalls are not necessarily translated into actual buying. Even the sales figure that developers so glorify out of the property fest is, more often than not, accumulative sales figure of the given period.
Track2Realty Exclusive: It is generally believed in the sector that CSR can not be a brand driver the way other branding efforts are being evaluated in terms of ROI. Diipesh Bhagtani, Executive Director, Jaycee Homes, says that CSR alone cannot be the catalyst for brand building; there is no case study as such. CSR is seen more as a responsibility towards the society rather than a business promotion activity.
Track2Realty Exclusive: The festivities around Navratra and Diwali are known to cheer up the sentiments of the property market. Reflection is always seen both in terms of upbeat mood of developers, as more launches are planned around this time, and the home buyers, as most of the bookings take place during this time.
Track2Realty: Less than 3 million sq.ft of office space entered India’s prime real estate market in the quarter ending September 2013—dropping by more than 75% q-o-q over last quarter’s 10 million sq.ft of fresh office space supply; and by nearly 50% over the same period last year.
Track2Realty Exclusive: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a new concept in the Indian real estate and companies are going through the learning curve. Some are adopting it with greater amount of conviction, while for others it is an emerging necessary evil.