Dozen private firms evince interest in buying BKC plot

86,828sqmt plot in Bandra Kurla Complex may fetch MMRDA `315cr

Close to a dozen private companies have come forward to purchase Transferable Development Rights (TDR) from the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). Officials believe this is a good sign for the organisation that will soon close tenders for the sale of one of its biggest plots in Bandra Kurla Complex.

“On Tuesday, our bidding for the sale of 86,828.12sqmt of TDR was closed and on Wednesday, technical bids were opened, with around a dozen bids being received,” a senior MMRDA official told dna.

If the entire lot of 86,828.12 sqmt of TDR is sold out, the MMRDA will fetch a minimum of Rs315 crore as the reserve price has been kept at Rs36,350/m.

Interestingly, a couple of weeks ago, the bidders or developers had asked MMRDA to reduce the reserve price by around Rs4,000/mt, which the MMRDA refused outright.

Last week, during the pre-bid meeting for the sale of the plot at Bandra Kurla Complex, 12 developers had turned up to buy the plot. Therefore, MMRDA officials are hopeful of getting a desirable price for the 12,486sqmt of land, on which 50,000sqmt of commercial construction is permitted. The reserve price for the entire plot is Rs1,479 crore.

The previous attempt to sell the TDR was made in January, wherein the MMRDA had come out with 30,000sqmt of TDR for sale with an expectation to earn a minimum of Rs154 crore. But it did not receive enough response from the realty market to sell the entire 30,000sqmt.

Credit :  Ateeq Shaikh , dnaindia.net

Regulator for housing may be year away

Mumbaikars awaiting the setting-up of the housing regulatory authority may have to wait another year. One month after Parliament approved the Housing Regulatory Bill, the Centre is yet to issue a gazette notification. The notification is issued to inform citizens of the day when the Act comes into force. Unless it is done, the Act cannot be implemented.

MUMBAI: Mumbaikars awaiting the setting-up of the housing regulatory authority may have to wait another year. One month after Parliament approved the Housing Regulatory Bill, the Centre is yet to issue a gazette notification. The notification is issued to inform citizens of the day when the Act comes into force. Unless it is done, the Act cannot be implemented.

"The passing of the Bill was taken up very rigorously but thereafter there has been no movement to get it approved," said a source. "With the Centre passing its own Act, the state Act has been repealed. Further rules need to be framed to implement the Act which itself may take a year."

The state government, said sources, was keen to appoint former bureaucrat Gautam Chatterjee as the chief of the housing regulatory authority given his expertise in these matters.


Credit : http://realty.economictimes.indiatimes.com/ 

BMC action against illegal bldg cosmetic

Civic body again refrains from demolishing Hasan House

Once again, civic officials from B ward have taken cosmetic action against an illegal building with the address 111, Zakaria Masjid Street, also called Hasan House. The officials came, struck a few blows with hammers on the building, had lunch and left, in an exact repeat of the ‘action’ that B ward officials had taken in the first week of February. Of course, they must have taken a few photographs to be placed on record while submitting the report to municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta.

While dna has been writing about illegal structures coming up in the guise of old structures being 100% repaired, the residents of the area have lodged several more complaints about work on other such illegal buildings being carried out across the ward.

dna had reported on April 10 how Hasan House was ready and its developer is planning to give possession of flats once the building gets a power connection. However, on April 11, municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta ordered additional municipal commissioner Pallavi Darade to visit the illegal structure and submit an action-taken report within a week.

Darade visited the structure and officials were instructed to take action. But unfortunately, no such action was taken. What happened instead was an orchestrated drama wherein six-eight labourers went up to the 10th floor of the building at 12.45pm and hammered on the walls for 30 minutes, even as officials from the building and factory department waited in a vehicle a little distance away from the building.

dna had first reported on December 2, 2015, about five illegal structures constructed in the area during the Diwali holidays. Local politicians, elected representatives and developers work hand-in-glove and civic officials have turned a blind eye to these structures.

Hasan House, an 11-storey load-bearing structure, was constructed in just one month. B ward officials were reluctant to demolish the structure and delayed action, even after it was scheduled on the list and the police had promised protection to the officials.

Assistant commissioner of B ward, Srinivas Kilaje, and an engineer from the building and factory department, Vishal Mhaiskar, were two of the officials responsible for taking action against the unscrupulous developers, but they dragged their feet on the issue.

The officials merely shot off a notice and never took any action. When dna did a follow-up story, the officials assured that action would be taken, but never fulfilled this promise. Almost three months later, in February, a symbolic demolition was undertaken. This was an eyewash as the civic staff hammered on the walls for a few minutes and stopped it after the developer’s men approached them.

Such buildings have no completion certificates or occupation certificates, and yet have access to civic amenities like water, sewerage and electricity.

Credit : http://epaper.dnaindia.com/

Simplex Infra, JKumar, NCC to develop Mumbai's Metro-7 corridor

Simplex Infrastructure, JKumar Infraprojects and NCC have won the contracts for different packages of the 16.5 km Andheri (East) to Dahisar (East) Metro-7 corridor.

MUMBAI: Simplex Infrastructure, JKumar Infraprojects and NCC have won the contracts for different packages of the 16.5 km Andheri (East) to Dahisar (East) Metro-7 corridor.

"The Executive Committee of the Authority, headed by Maharashtra Chief Secretary Swadheen Kshatriya, accorded approval to appointment of the contractors to design and construct an elevated viaduct and 16 stations in three packages," Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) said in a statement today.

Simplex Infrastructure has been awarded the contract to design and construct the first package consisting of an elevated viaduct and five elevated stations including Andheri (East), Shankarwadi, JVLR Junction, Mahanand and new Ashok Nagar.

The agency has selected JKumar Infraprojects to design and construct the second package consisting of an elevated viaduct and six elevated stations - Aarey, Dindoshi, Pathan Wadi, Pushpa Park, Bandongri and Mahindra & Mahindra.

NCC has bagged the contract to design and construct the third package consisting of an elevated viaduct and five elevated stations including Magathane, Devipada, National Park, Ovaripada and Dahisar(E).

Metropolitan Commissioner UPS Madan had earlier said the preparatory work for the Rs 6,208 crore project will begin soon after the awarding of the contract, but the actual civil work will commence after monsoon.

"These winning bidders will design and construct the entire corridor and all 16 stations within a period of 30 months," MMRDA said.

Credit : http://realty.economictimes.indiatimes.com/

Mumbai's first cop housing scheme to come up on private land

MUMBAI: The city's first police housing scheme will come up on private land, in a no-development zone which has been converted into a residential zone for the purpose.

The government has permitted the conversion as "most land in its vicinity has already been developed". Urban development department (UDD) officials said the plot was near the Infinity IT Park and civic reservoir in Malad, beyond which is the Sanjay Gandhi National Park. The scheme is subject to the draft notification of the eco-sensitive zone around the National Park issued in January.

The over 20-acre (80,934 sq metre) plot is owned by construction firm D B Realty, and its development is being allowed under Section 33(3) (b) of the Development Control Regulations (DCR), which means a developer can sell 80% of the construction as a sale component.

UDD officials said the total floor space index (FSI) that will be allowed is 3.8, which means the developer can construct 33.1 lakh sq ft. Of this, an FSI of 1 will be for police housing and the remainder can be sold by the developer in the open market, for which the incentive FSI is 0.8. The developer gets the base FSI of 1 and can also use the transfer of development rights, so the total FSI is 3.8. Each police tenement is to be 40 sq m (430.55 sq ft).

In a notification early this month, the UDD said the home department will be the authority for the land development and will ensure that the police housing component is strictly implemented at the earliest.

Under its housing policy for the police, the state will set up 33,000 tenements on private land and so introduced the new DCR. It directed that the developer must maintain a 10-metre buffer zone on land adjoining the forest. The developer will have to develop an 18-metre wide road.

Credit : http://realty.economictimes.indiatimes.com/

Maharashtra government in quandary over housing act

The Maharashtra government had earlier referred both the state and central housing regulatory acts to its legal department for a decision on which of these two should be followed in Maharashtra. The state government itself, though, is of the opinion that the Maharashtra Housing (Regulation and Development) Act, 2012 — which is more pro-consumer and stringent on developers — should be followed over the central act.

"We are confused after the Centre recently approved its own act, and hence we decided to seek legal opinion before finalising things. We have been asked by the Centre to repeal the state act so that the central act can be enforced. But if we check both the central and state acts point by point, the state act is more powerful and adds more teeth to the consumer's cause," said a senior government official requesting anonymity.

He added that the Maharashtra Housing Regulatory Act is ready for implementation at a moment's notice. "We had also prepared the guidelines. If there is clarity that the state act should be followed, we will intimate the central housing department about our decision," the official said.

Ravindra Waikar, Maharshtra's housing minister, said that there are many provisions in the central act that have nothing to do with the state's housing industry. "Mumbai is a dynamic city which has its own individual issues, and the central act does not include various issues that pertain to Mumbai and Maharashtra. Therefore, we are primarily of the opinion that our state act should be retained. Many developers take buyers on a ride, so we have to protect the interests of the buyers and consumers over that of the developers," Waikar said.

Amin Patel, a Congress MLA and member of the joint select committee that has prepared the state bill, said that in the central act, there is no provision of deemed conveyance, which involves transferring the title of a plot of land or building. This has been made in the state act. "Conveyance is the major issue in Mumbai. There are many cases of developers who have developed a building, but are yet to make the conveyance even after 30 years of the project's completion. Without the conveyance, the redevelopment of these buildings will not take place. Therefore, we had included the provision of deemed conveyance so that many residents could benefit and redevelop their dilapidated buildings," Patel said.

Patel further said that there are 45,000 housing societies in Maharashtra that are still awaiting ownership of the title from the developers. "If we repeal the state act, then the developers will take advantage and throw out the existing residents from these buildings to make way for redevelopment. The central government act seems to be soft towards developers," Patel added. He said that chief minister Devendra Fadnavis should write to the Centre asking for the state housing act to be implemented in Maharshtra.


Credt : http://www.dnaindia.com

Kalpataru launches ‘Project Immensa’ in Thane

Premium and luxury real estate developer Kalpataru Limited has announced the launch of Project Immensa, a premium residential development comprising over 1250 apartments, situated within Kalpataru’s master planned township development on Kolshet Road in Thane.

Project Immensa will comprise eight towers offering 1BHK, 2BHK, 3BHK and 3BHK Duplex home options.

Project Immensa incorporates several innovative, first in class design features which finely balance exclusivity and privacy, with functionality and efficient use of space.

The floor layout is such that there are minimum shared walls between any two apartments. Not only does this enhance privacy, but also provides good cross ventilation, increased sunlight, and enhanced sense of space. The placement of walls, doors and windows in the apartment are done in a manner that enables efficient furniture layout without space wastage, enabling maximum functionality.

Project Immensa will offer residents class-leading leisure, sports and community living facilities.

Project Immensa features a 6000 square feet super fitness zone comprising gymnasium, yoga room cum dance studio, spinning room and kick boxing arena. That apart, two indoor badminton courts, a lap swimming pool for professional swimmers in addition to a pleasure pool, kids pool, and open air jacuzzi, a multi-sport astroturfed area, podium level community recreation areas, choice of party venues including party zone on rooftop, party lawns and clubhouse with multiple party halls and indoor games room, and a large landscaped garden, together spread across over 35,000 square feet offer residents ample fitness and recreation options to choose from.

Celebrated architect, Hans Brouwer of HB Design, Singapore, credited with projects such as Commerzbank headquarters, Frankfurt, and Century Tower, Tokyo is the design architect, while, Aedas Pte. Ltd., Singapore, which has been the architect to iconic projects such as the new World Trade Centre, Jakarta, the 82 storey Ocean Heights Residential Towers in Dubai is the masterplan architect.

Parag Munot, Managing Director, Kalpataru Limited, said “We are excited to launch Project Immensa, which will be a benchmark project in Thane. It reaffirms our commitment to Thane and our firm belief in the city’s huge growth potential, particularly of the Kolshet area, which will witness significant value unlocking in the near future. We have over the past three decades developed several landmark residential and commercial projects in Thane. Our projects such as Tarangan, and Siddachal are landmarks that host vibrant communities, and Kalpataru promoted Korum Mall is a thriving shopping hub and community centre of choice for citizens from Thane and beyond”.

How to Make a Down Payment Possible, for buying your own Home.

Does the prospect of a big down payment make home ownership seem impossible? It’s not as out of reach as you might think. Here are five tips to help you climb the down payment mountain.

Every month you pay the rent, you’re probably thinking, “I wish this money was going into my future.” For a lot of would-be first-time home buyers, it’s the down payment which makes home ownership seem impossible. Climbing the “down payment mountain” isn’t impossible. Like any major challenge, it’s all a matter of breaking your big, hairy, audacious goal down into practical steps.

Here are some tips to conquer saving for a down payment:

Find out where your money goes. You can’t start saving if you don’t know where you’re spending. For a month or two, track each expenditure, no matter how small. Get an objective picture of where you’re spending the cash.

Get specific about how much you need to save.Even if you’re not 100% sure what your down payment needs to be yet, it’s good to start doing a little math to figure out how much you need to save. Pick a dollar amount and a timeline to hit that dollar amount. For example, a `20,00000 down payment in two years comes to `83,000 per month. Sound unrealistic? Either scale down your home desires to something smaller or scale up your timeline. If you can wait three years, that monthly savings goal drops to ` 55,000/month.

Determine the big moves you can make. If you’re in a three bedroom apartment and can stomach the idea of scaling down to a one bedroom, how much would you save in rent? What about going from two cars down to one? If you can make it work, these sacrifices will have a huge impact on your savings goals.

Setup a separate savings account. Don’t let your dream home money mingle with your regular checking or savings account. Establish a high-yield savings account with a credit union or money market account to protect and build your stash. It’s important to have a separate account with a “hands off” attitude.

Mind the risky investment schemes. Once you have a little momentum, you might be tempted to take some of that cash and invest it in order to make it grow faster. Be very prudent about this, as investing in stocks, startups, or high-yield funds can easily decimate your savings. Be conservative. 

Of course, it’s important to know how much home you want to buy when you’re saving up for your down payment. I’m happy to give you an idea what homes are selling for in your area. Feel free to get in touch any time for booking your Dream Home!

3 Things Buyers Forget to Check During a Home Search

Think you’ve found the perfect home? Think again. There are three little details which can turn an ideal house into the world’s most annoying location.

Before you make your offer, take into account these three small, but surprisingly important details:

#1: “Let me call you back on my landline.”

Does your future dream home have cell reception? Check your signal when you’re on the property and see if it has dead spots, poor/limited data connections, or flat out “NO SERVICE” messages. This is especially important if you telecommute or had planned on skipping a landline entirely. While you can try and live on VoIP connections, WiFi, and other options, the hassle of a hole in cell coverage can wear on you.

#2: “Wow, the commute is longer than I thought.”

It’s a sunny Saturday afternoon, and for kicks you decide to see how long the drive is from your potential dream home to your office. Doesn’t seem too bad, does it? Now try it during rush hour on a Monday (in bad weather if you can swing it). You might be surprised how school zones, backed-up interstate ramps, new construction, and peak transit schedules extend that commute. This goes for urban commutes too, so even if you don’t drive to work you’ll want to evaluate the commute in real-world conditions.

 #3: “What do you mean we’re outside your delivery zone?”

The neighborhood was gentrifying. The home price was within your range. Now you find out that there’s no such thing as food delivery to your new address! Don’t assume that just because you’ve seen pizza delivery cars whipping through the ‘hood means they stop there. Restaurant delivery areas are often drawn like congressional districts, so if you can, check out what the local food delivery options are like ahead of time. Look up a few places, call them, and verify they deliver to your address. (Asking the average delivery time is a good idea, too.)

Markets can be super competitive, but remember that you’re planning on living in this new house for a considerable amount of time. (Most people would tell you at least 5 - 7 years.) Perhaps your priorities don’t include these three details, but they might to other buyers when you’re ready to sell. Time changes things, but ask yourself: Do you want to put up with the annoyances for two years? Even one?

Helpful Tips to Declutter Your Home!

Preparing your home to sell means presenting a home which is attractive to buyers. If you’re going to be living in the home while it’s on the market, and you’re choosing not to stage it, you absolutely must go through a decluttering process. It can feel overwhelming at first, but I assure you the process can be broken down into manageable steps which will help your home sell potentially faster and for a better price.

1. Take photos of what you’re up against. You might think things look pretty good until you see your home with the unflinching eye of the camera. Photograph every room from multiple angles and you’ll begin to see what buyers will see. Don’t forget to snap the closets, laundry rooms, and garage.

2. Plan a room-by-room attack. This doesn’t have to be done in a day, a weekend, or even a week. Depending on your timeline, tackle as much or as little as you can reasonably manage before burning out. If you try to do too much at one time, you’re likely to start making unfortunate compromises about what stays and what goes.

3. Use a checklist. When you assess a room, list what needs to be done and then the orderin which it makes the most sense to do it. Visualizing the process will prevent you from wasting time. For example: You may find that certain pieces of furniture can go, and if you haven’t planned for help moving them out, you can get stalled.

4. Be ruthless. You have clothes you haven’t worn in years, piles in the garage you’ve moved around, and shelves of unread or dispensable books. Start thinking of those “perfectly good” somethings you’ve been hanging onto as anchors dragging down your home’s appeal.­­

5. Stay motivated. Tell yourself: Less is more. Remind yourself: Every box that goes to Goodwill is a box you won’t have to lift, relocate, and unpack on moving day. This is an opportunity to refresh your life!

6. Pile it up. Sort things into “give away,” “throw away,” and “sell.” Some things can go to friends, others can go to charity. Keep in mind the real market value of items if you plan on selling them online (they’re probably worth less than you think). Some you can unload curbside, other items may be destined for freecycle.org, Craigslist.org, or a local junk pick-up service.

If you need someone who can see your home with a buyer’s eyes, don’t hesitate to invite me over. I’d be happy to provide you with a fresh perspective on your decluttering mission. Get in touch today!

Full Payment Home Purchase vs. Home Loan

Many of my clients (especially Baby Boomers who are downsizing or relocating) ask me if they should pay the full amount for their next house or finance it with a new loan. While the idea of owning a home free-and-clear is certainly appealing, I always present them with a series of questions to help them clarify the big picture.

Perhaps you or someone you know may benefit from these as well:

How much will you be left with after a full amount purchase? Maintaining a safety net of three to six months’ worth of living expenses can be a real comfort after you’ve done well on the sale of your home. How comfortable will you be if a full amount purchase brings you near zero?

Are you retiring soon? This goes to two issues: First, whether or not the absence of a loan will significantly improve your monthly position, keeping in mind you’ll still need to make insurance, tax payments, and maintenance. Second, if you’re thinking about applying for a loan. It can be a challenge to qualify for a loan after you’ve retired, so if you think you’ll need a loan, it may be better to get it in advance.

What’s your tax and income situation look like? For some people, the loan interest deduction on income taxes has a significant impact on their annual tax bill and overall cash flow picture. It’s always a good idea to consult with a financial professional before you “write off” the write off.

Might you need to help someone out in the near future? Sometimes having the liquidity to help family members or close friends in need is important. Are you planning to help someone else with a down payment on a home? Is it likely you’ll have to help a close friend or relative through a tough time? Having cash on hand can be a comfort. 

How important is “free and clear” to your mind? For some, there’s nothing that compares to the idea of owning a home free and clear. Sometimes the feeling of “no debt” simply can’t be overpowered by tax or liquidity benefits. It’s important to be honest with yourself, and if you’ve always dreamed of dodging a house payment, it could be the right emotional move.

For all of these reasons and more you’ll want to choose wisely before you go in for a full amount purchase of your next home. Naturally, if you need any help selling your current home or looking for the next one, I’d be happy to help:

Credit :  +Ramprasad Padhi 

Mumbai Properties

10 reasons that will fuel homebuying

Though the full implementation of Real Estate Regulation & Development Act 2016, may still be months away, yet RERA that  protects and empowers homebuyers, making the entire home buying process fair and transparent, aided by other key reforms, has already turned homebuyers’ sentiment and market perception positive. Here are 10 factors that will give the much needed boost to residential real estate.

1 More disposable income

Over the past two years, one major reason for homebuyers taking a back seat, has been the worsening job market, drop in disposable income and uncertainty over paying capacity  in view of high EMIs. But there are promising times ahead, especially with the hiring activity growing by 10 per cent last year and there were salary hikes of 10-12 per cent. According to MyHiringClub.com, this year’s outlook promises pay hikes in the range of 10-30 percent. The Seventh Pay Commission announced by the Centre is set to trigger a substantial hike in salaries, thereby pushing up disposable income. The salary hike of government employees will have a positive rub off on the pay packet of private sector employees. Although, the IT limit has not been hiked in this year’s budget, yet hike in HRA limit of standard deduction of Rs 24,000 p.a for not availing HRA, will also push up disposable income.

2 Softening of interest rates

High interest rates have also been proving to be a dampner for housing for quite some time. But from this year onwards, things are likely to change for better, with interest rates set to drop to single digit level. Lending rate cuts hold the key to the recovery of residential real estate. After the Finance Ministry cut the FY '17 fiscal deficit target by 40 bps to 3.5 per cent of GDP and with economy in deflationary mode, RBI may well announce 25- 50 bps rate cut in its April policy review. All this is expected to provide relief to prospective homebuyers by way of lower EMIs. Some developers have already come up with schemes like no EMi till possession, low EMIs for first few years and  zero per cent interest on loan to lessen the EMI burden of home loan seekers.

3 Three cheers for consumer protection

Lack of consumer protection and large-scale delivery defaults due to slowdown had badly hit the buyer sentiment. But  the passage of Real Estate Regulation & Development Bill 2016, aimed at empowering and protecting the real estate consumers through measures like escrow account for real estate projects and early resolution of disputes, while at the same time reining in the errant developers with stiff penalties, will restore the confidence of home buyers, thereby triggering home sales.

4 More liquidity for developers

The ongoing real estate slowdown, especially in the residential sector, got precipitated in the past with the severe liquidity crisis faced by the developers. However, with speedy reforms undertaken by the government, floundering funding environment is looking up. Due to relaxation in FDI norms over the past two years, the entire real estate stock is now accessible to foreign investors.This is already having a positive impact on the liquidity front, with substantial increase in  FDI in real estate. Even the PE investment touched Rs 14,974 crore last year, clocking a record growth of 33 per cent.

Industry players expect PE players notching up a bumper 2016, with more and larger deals. On the domestic front too, things are looking up with Kotak Realty Fund raising $ 250 million, Indiabulls Real Estate Fund raising Rs 500 crore and JLL India arm set to raise Rs 120 crore by April. The liquidity environment will further look up with RERA set to open the doors for cheaper bank funding. The abolition of Dividend Distribution Tax on REITs in 2016 budget will provide access to new source of funding.

5 Focus on execution to increase

The failure of real estate developers to execute projects on time, jeopardising the investment of homebuyers, was a prime reason for the slump in real estate market. But going forward, the increased capital inflow through PE and NBFCs will strengthen the execution capability of developers. Piramal has offered Rs 15,000 crore of open credit line to sekect builders. Moreover, large firms are entering the scene as development managers for stressed developers in return for a share of revenue and profits. RERA will further improve execution as it envisages strict deadlines for completion of projects and higher penalty for defaulters. Moreover, with RERA set to be implemented in states in the next few months, builders will rush to complete pending projects to avoid stringent provisions of the RERA Bill.

6 Deals, discounts and freebies

Because of the weak home sales due to recession, developers desperate to push up sales, have been offering attractive deals to prospective home buyers. These deals are in the form of discounts and freebies like cars, air conditioners, modular kitchens, besides waiving off registration, club and parking charges. They have also been offering newly launched  residential properties at reduced price. But all this could not boost the confidence of investors and home buyers  to invest. But in the present scenario, when these deals come with the financial protection through RERA, the trust deficit of buyers, will get bridged and they will get encouraged to invest in residential real estate.

7 Increasing affordability

The ongoing reforms coupled with budgetary policy initiatives like 100 per cent service tax exemption for affordable homes, additional yearly rebate of Rs 50,000 on housing loan interest for first-time homebuyers in the affordable segment have significantly contributed towards strengthening the affordability of home buyers. And going forward, the increased disposable income through salary hikes, together with lower interest rates, will strengthen the affordability for homebuyers.

8 Policy push to housing sector

In line with its aim of providing ‘Housing for All by 2022’, this reform- oriented government through its policy prescription, is giving a forward thrust to the housing sector. Already housing for weaker sections and slum redevelopment has been brought under CSR to give impetus to the supply of affordable housing. Promotion of affordable housing for EWS through credit-linked subsidy and promotion of housing for urban poor is also being given a push. The government has cleared a Rs 82,000 crore plan for rural housing under which three  crore homes are to be built by 2022. In order to boost rental demand for affordable housing, the budget has hiked the limit of deduction for rent paid under section 80GG of IT Act.

9 Fear of price rise

Residential property prices have stayed muted over the past 6-7 quarters because of weak sales and large unsold inventory. According to Credai prices have come down by 15-20 per cent during this slowdown period and there is no scope for further reduction in prices. But now this depressing scenario  is set to change with RERA providing consumer protection and boosting homebuyers’ sentiment, in turn providing much needed momentum to home sales. And as sales pick up and inventories go down, prices are bound to firm up. According to a latest Knight Frank report, ‘Residential Investment Advisory Report 2016’, about a dozen investment locations across six top cities of Mumbai Metropolitan Region, NCR, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune, will witness price appreciation over the next 5 years. RBI says that price increase is already happening in 10 major cities.

10 An attractive asset class

Due to prolonged slowdown in the sector resulting in depressed prices, the interest of end users and investors had dwindled during the past over two years. It got  partly shifted to financial assets. But now a number of recent developments have once again put real estate back on the radar of end-users and investors. The volatile stock market and lowering of interest rates has taken the sheen off the attractiveness of stocks, mutual funds or FDs. The revival of real estate market with commercial realty and now followed by residential realty ( particularly after RERA), has increased the attractiveness of the asset class, especially as the prices are on an upward swing. According to Stuart Roberts, CEO, Asia Pacific, Cushman & Wakefield, with a number of reform measures Indian real estate is on the radar of international investors.

Credit : Vinod Behl