The year began with a bang for the real estate sector. It seemed as if the property prices would defy the law of gravity forever, as buyers didn't seem to mind paying a fortune to acquire huge houses with modern amenities. However, thanks to the economic slowdown, the picture has not been rosy since the second half of the year. According to real estate experts, the scene is going to change and 2009 is going to be a better year. And, according to them, action is going to be in the affordable housing segment.

"Higher interest rates, inflation, large house sizes and economic slowdown have spoiled the mood in the real estate sector since the second half of the year. However, November-December period has been better one for the sector," says J S Augustine, executive director, Joy Reality. "There is considerable amount of pick-up in affordable housing segment. All the new projects which have come up with affordable budgets and convenient location have seen good demand."

However, real estate pundits believe that it will take a while before the segment bounces back. "The recent interest rate concessions on low cost housing have fuelled hopes of further sops. But, most people are still waiting for property prices and interest rates to come down further," says a real estate expert.

According to real estate analysts, prices of property have already come down by 20-25% in smaller cities, and there have been price corrections in certain pockets in metros too. "Developrs are reducing prices in their individual capacity already. People who have acquired land at lower prices have already cut their prices and getting good response from prospective buyers. But, developers who have bought the land at higher price would find it difficult to cut prices," says Augustine.

"The number of queris has increased considerably in recent times. I am hopeful that if interest rates continue to fall further, things would improve dramatically in the next three months," says Dharmesh Jain, managing director, Nirmal Group.

Real estate players are also hopeful that the recent interest rate concession for houses below Rs 20 lakh could spur demand for second homes or weekend homes in the outskirts of major cities. "Once customers become convinced that the property prices and interest rates are in line with their budgets, they would start looking at this option. However, it is not likely to happen immediately," says a senior banker.

According to Augustine, the sops could actually prompt players to look at even first house in a far-off location. "For example, a place like Mumbai is well connected by train. People won't mind buying a place if it is within their budget and the location is convenient," he says. However, big-ticket purchases-such as luxury apartments and farmhouses-seem a bit remote. "At the moment, there is not much query about these cases. People seem to be postponing their decisions because they are worried about their career prospects," says the banker. "Once things start looking up, especially in the financial sector, it is quite possible that people would show more interest," he adds.

Courtesy:- TOI dtd:- 01-01-2009

In order to ease the difficulties being faced by the housing & MSME Sectors due to the current global conditions, Allahabad Bank, one of the leading nationalised banks of the country, has offered a bouquet of relief measures to new housing loan & MSME borrowers in line with the special package announced by Reserve Bank of India and Indian Banks' Association

Courtesy: - ET dtd: - 29th Dec. 2008

Office space take-up in the country's IT capital was robust in 2008 with 10.4 million sq ft occupied during the year, marginally higher than the absorption levels of the prvious year, according to a report. Absorption recorded in Bangalore this year is the highest among seven metros and accounts for 28% of the overall absorption across seven metros.

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Industry body CII has called for an increase in supply of land at affordable prices to make housing available for all. According to CII, cost and availability of land are major bottlenecks in making housing affordable. Measures such as increasing municipal limits of existing cities, providing infrastructure status to integrated township development and relaxation in the floor space index (FSI) policy would boost demand in the market and create employment in the sector.

"High interest rates have impacted affordability and dampened the overall demand in the sector, making housing a distant dream for the common man. The 5% subsidy approved by the Cabinet for economically weaker sections (EWS) and lower income group (LIG) is a move in the right direction," CII director general Chandrajit Banerjee said.

A statement issued by the chamber said the peripheries of various cities, where land is cheaper, could be developed by providing easy accessibility and simplifying the process of conversion of agricultural land to residential or commercial.

Other measures recommended by the association include allocating specific land in the master plan for economically weaker sections of the community, waiving off or substantially reducing the stamp duty for EWS and promotion of appropriate low-cost housing technologies. CII said that with the increase in population and urbanisation, there is going to be shortage of about 26.5 million dwelling units by 2011 and any fillip to the housing segment will spur economic activities, stimulate demand and generate employment.

                                                                                Courtesy: - ET dtd: - 29th Dec. 2008

Unitech is planning to set up two special economic zones for automobiles and apparel sectors in Haryana and will soon approach the government for approval. "We are planning to apply for two product specific SEZs after a couple of months. One is for auto and another is for apparel," Chairman Ramesh Chandra said. Unitech would apply for the approval with the commerce ministry within the next six months, he added. Asked if the company had identified the land for these two planned SEZs, Chandra said: "Yes. We already have about 70% of the land. It is in Haryana." He, however, declined to comment on the sizes of the two SEZs. Presently, Unitech has seven notified SEZ projects in Kolkata, Gurgaon, Noida, Greater Noida, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh.

                                                                                     Courtesy: - ET dtd: - 29th Dec. 2008

Star Infinity is a stunning new authorised commercial office development, offering gamut of facilities for running your business of any size or kind. The building offers a highly contemporary identity and specification, both internally and externally.

Star Inifinity complex enjoys a highly prominent location on Delhi-Ghaziabad border at Seemant Vihar, Kaushambi. It is situated on the national highway and there is excellent connectivity through road from all sides - Ghaziabad, Noida & Delhi. The building is a great owner-user or investor opportunity. Office within the complex is an outstanding opportunity for lease up and yield enhancement.

The Star Infinity building is entered via a spacious and impressive reception foyer, from where a stairwell and 2-lifts with 13 passengers capacity serve each of the upper floors. The accommodation would be finished to a high specification throughout ensuring a highly efficient and attractive working environment.

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A drive down the main sector road in Gurgaon (Haryana) will lead you to an architectural marvel called "Parsvnath Exotica".

With a spectacular view of lush green golf course discover an inviting architecture with irresistible appeal.

Far away from bustling cacophony, here is a premium residential extravaganza offering a luxurious life style mellowed with an element of eternal trance.

A rare amalgamation of "Mega Life", fine landscaped greenery and skilled craftsmen, Exotica is all set to redefine your way of living.

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Parsvnath Exotica Located in Gurgaon, Sector 53, the project distance is only 20 minutes drive from the IGI airport. Exotica comprises of 3-6 bedroom fully AC apartments in an 18 towers complex. Spread across 28 acres of prime real estate, the project overlooks the DLF golf course thus offering a spectacular view.

High-end specifications like imported marble flooring, modular kitchen, piped gas supply coupled with lifestyle amenities such as swimming pool, gymnasium, squash, badminton & tennis courts are the premiums of this project.

The Exotica actualize the dream of living in lush green surroundings, it resembles a place that is serene yet captivating, majestically modern yet remotely silent, a perfect atmosphere to soothe your nerves and stimulate your mind. It is a premium residential development, offering a rare blend of a luxurious life style, good design and skilled craftsmanship.

If you fail to find your name in Tuesday's draw for allotment of 5,010 flats under the mega DDA scheme, don't lose heart. The housing agency is readying an even bigger project which will put a whopping 14,000 flats on offer across the city.

Having finally woken up to the acute housing shortage in the capital, DDA is in the process of constructing flats for all three income groups - high, middle and low - in places like Vasant Kunj, Dwarka, Rohini, Jasola, Narela and Pitampura. Sources said the upcoming DDA project will deliver around 3,150 flats for the high-income group, around 770 for middle-income group, 8,000 for low-income and 2,000 for economically weaker sections.

Approximately 3,600 of these flats will come up in Vasant Kunj and around 2,100 in Dwarka, a DDA official said. Close to 800 HIG and MIG apartments are also being constructed in localities like Pitampura, Mukherjee Nagar and Motia Khan.

The scheme, likely to be announced by 2010-end, will be another chance for people to own a house in the capital at rates cheaper than those offered by private builders.

Urban development minister S Jaipal Reddy has been pushing the government agency to build more flats to meet the huge demand-supply gap in housing in the capital and has also been urging private builders to focus on affordable housing.

At the recent economic editors conference, Reddy had argued that private builders should "give up their idea of fancy apartments" and instead cater to the huge middle-class demand for affordable housing.

"There is a silver lining to this slowdown. Prices of urban land, which had shot up, have come down. It is time for entrepreneurs to go for low-cost and middle-class housing projects," he had said.

DDA, often criticized for neglecting weaker sections, is constructing houses in Rohini and Jasola mostly for these groups. An official said the agency would deliver around 4,500 LIG apartments in Rohini, 1,400 in Vasant Kunj, 750 in Dwarka and around 2,900 flats for LIG and EWS category in Jasola, Kondli and Molarbandh.

Although these flats will be costlier than the earlier ones, the rates will be much less than what private builders and developers charge in the NCR, a DDA official said.

As the number of applications are likely to be more than the housing stock, the allottees would be selected through a draw of lots.

In the housing scheme launched by DDA in August, for which the draw will be held on Tuesday, around 5.12 lakh forms were submitted for about 5,010 ready-to-move flats in various localities. The scheme was launched after a gap of two years.

Courtesy:- TOI dtd:- 16th Dec. 2008

Buoyed by robust sales in mid-income housing, real estate giant DLF today said that it would invest Rs 15,000 crore over the next three years to develop various residential projects across the country in the range of Rs 15-40 lakh.

DLF, the country's biggest real estate developer, had last year announced its plan to enter into the mid-income housing segment, realising the huge untapped demand in this category. "We will be investing Rs 5,000 crore a year over the next three years on mid-income housing projects," DLF Home Developers Vice President A Harikesh said."Mid-income homes will be our focus area and will witness significant growth in the coming quarters," he added.

DLF's investment plans for affordable housing coincides with the announcement by public sector banks to boost the segment by cutting home-loan interest rates, putting caps of 9.25 per cent for Rs 5-20 lakh and 8.5 per cent for loans of up to Rs five lakh.

Harikesh said that internal accruals, advances against sales and capital raised through private equity would take care of the planned investment. DLF had raised Rs 1,675 crore as private equity in eight projects in November 2007.

DLF Home Developers, the wholly-owned subsidiary of DLF, would construct about 40,000 housing units in the mid-income category, sizes of which would vary between 1,000 square feet and 1,800 square feet, he added. The company has witnessed tremendous response for its mid-income housing projects and sold over 7,000 flats so far this year, despite slowdown in the housing demand for the last six months on account of high interest rate and capital value. DLF has launched mid-income housing projects in Bangalore, Gurgaon, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Kolkata and Pune. The company would launch similar projects in Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Ambala, Goa and Lucknow within the next six months. DLF Homes plans to launch such projects in all 31 cities where the company will have a presence by 2009-10, Harikesh said.

"The price would vary from city to city but majority of the units would be in the price range of Rs 2,000-3,000 per square feet," he said, adding that in the metros, the apartment prices would be higher compared to smaller cities because of high land costs.

Courtesy:- BS dtd:- 16th Dec. 2008