YEAR ENDER: Expectations of real estate industry from 2013

Most industry experts have indicated that problems such as rising cost of input materials, and labour, and high interest rates will further put the industry under stress. This coupled with huge genuine demand will further push property prices in the coming year

Vastu tips on property investment during Christmas, New Year

Christmas is the time when everyone is busy preparing for bagful of gains in the New Year. While children plan to receive new toys and gifts from their dear Santa, grownups look busy in planning to make their new year more and more gainful. And accordingly look for best investment options to multiply their gains. With ever rising demand, real estate offers a lucrative investment option.

New circle rates of properties in Delhi go into force

Delhi/NCR
The new circle rates — the minimum valuation at which properties have to be registered with the government — came into effect in Delhi on 5th December, which is likely to push up property prices in the city. The rates in Category A colonies have been hiked by 200 per cent, category B by 50 per cent while in remaining coloneis the rates will go up by 22 per cent.
As per the government order, Rs 6.45 lakh per square metre has been fixed as new circle rate for category A colonies like Greater Kailash, Defence Colony, Gulmohar Park, Panchsheel Enclave, Anandlok, Green Park, Golf Links and Hauz Khas. This means nobody would be allowed to buy land and immovable properties in these colonies for less than Rs 6.45 lakh per square metre. The existing circle rate in category A colonies is Rs 2.15 lakh.
The rates in Category B neighbourhoods like Andrews Ganj, Kalkaji, Munirka Vihar and Nehru Enclave have been increased and fixed at Rs 2,04,600 per square metre as against the current rate of Rs 1,36,400 per square metre. The circle rates were last hiked in October last year by upto 250 per cent.

Real estate value - from sprint to marathon

Large volumes of residential properties were developed during the last year

In mid-2010, India’s investment grade real estate that was under construction joined the 100-billion-dollar club. Currently, the value of the investment-grade real estate under construction in India is estimated to be $ 173.9 billion (nearly 35% more than Vietnam’s nominal GDP) as against the $ 160.1 billion figure in the second quarter of 2011 and $ 101.3 billion in second quarter in 2010. Following a steep rise of 58% year-on-year during the second quarter of 2011, the past 15 months have seen the value of these projects grow by a mere 8.6%. Rising input costs in recent quarters and lacklustre macro-economic sentiments have led to relatively fewer new construction launches in the sector when compared to 2010. Between then and now, the country’s real estate market has traversed from a great deal of positivity to uncertainty. With 2012 nearly through, it is hard to deny that it has been a forgettable year for the Indian realty market.

The market value of the commercial (office and retail) real estate under construction is $ 41.6 billion. The commercial office space that is under development contributes to approximately 78% of the estimated market value of the commercial sector. The nominal decrease in supply, which was offset by a marginal rise in capital values, caused the share of the market value of commercial assets under construction to remain range bound to the figures estimated in 2010 and 2011.

 As the number of malls that were under development dropped and the size of malls increased, compared to the second quarter of 2011, the market value of retail assets under construction remained unaltered during the third quarter of 2012.

 The tier I cities - Mumbai, NCR-Delhi and Bangalore - contribute approximately 67% to the market value of the commercial office space under construction, while tier II cities - Chennai, Pune, Hyderabad and Kolkata - contribute about 17%. Other investment-grade developments in tier III cities contribute about 16% to today’s pan-India market value.

 With infrastructure developments and relatively lower real estate costs, the share of the market value of tier III cities grew from 9% in the second quarter of 2010 to 16% presently. While tier I cities have contributed about 58% of the commercial retail space that is under development, tier II and tier III cities supplied approximately 27% and 15%, respectively.

 Due to the increased construction activity and rapid recovery of property prices since their trough levels in mid-2009, the contribution of the residential sector has grown. The market value of residential real estate under construction increased from 66% in the second quarter of 2010 to 76% in the third quarter of 2012, touching $ 132.3 billion - nearly double the levels seen in 2Q10.

 While NCR-Delhi has the largest volume of residential properties currently being developed, Mumbai contributes a larger share to the market value. Aided by its self-liquidating nature and the high demand for housing in India, the resilient residential sector has been the focus of developers and investors.

New launches spurred residential market in Chennai

Chennai
The good economic density, progress in infrastructure development and growing influence of IT/ITeS has enhanced sales in the Chennai realty market. The Chennai property market showed a remarkable improvement seeing an average appreciation of 10-12 per cent in the residential sector across the city during past June-Nov 2012 period.
According to K Raju of Kumar Enterprises, “The Chennai realty segment witnessed location-wise appreciation in values. There was a fragmented demand-supply across locations and henceforth value appreciations.” Areas such as Thoraipakkam, Sriperumbudur, Medavakkam and Kelambakam noted an escalation of up to 20 per cent in residential property values in past six months and is still appreciating, he adds.
“The new projects being launched in past one year is the key factor leading to elevated inventory level in realty markets,” says Harish Gopal of Vinayak Properties. The new segment offering variety of deals to the end users and in wide range of price brackets to choose from has created buzz in the property market. With options of investing in a luxury apartment to a sea-facing villa has fetched NRI’s, HNI’s and buyers and investors from different parts of the country, he adds.
“Chennai’s supply of new residential units has tripled in Jul-Sep 2012 quarter as compared to the previous quarter.” Maximum new supply has been witnessed in Chromepet, Thirumallaivoil and Egmore in the mid‐segment price range of Rs 50 lakh onwards.
The new segment witnessed more number of transactions compared to the resale segment. “New residential units are equipped with all the basic and luxury features which are missing in resale market and therefore it is more preferred,” says Gopal. The average capital values of newly launched apartments vary from Rs 3,200-4,500 per sq ft depending on location and other facilities.
Better infrastructure, availability of land parcel for development and relatively lower land prices as compared to Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune and Gurgaon makes Chennai an attractive destination for investment.

Comprehensive infra plan needed in Chennai suburbs

Chennai
The suburbs will have to wait a while before they catch up with the city when it comes to having reasonably priced civic amenities, say urban planners.
”Now, residential projects are coming up in the Outer Ring Road project areas,” says K P Subramanian, former professor at Anna University’s urban engineering department. Projects have been announced before the land acquisition was complete, he adds. “Most of these areas, including Oragadam and Sriperumbudur, don’t have water supply, sewerage system or health and recreation facilities. Here, housing projects come before development of social infrastructure as all you need is a road connection to your plot for permission to build mini-townships,” says M G Devasahayam, a trustee of SUSTAIN, an NGO in urban development.
The problem is compounded by the fact that development control rules meant for the city are being applied in suburbs. According to a CMDA official, a highrise is allowed if the approach road is of a certain width, the logic being that wider roads in the city will have stormwater drains, underground sewerage and electricity lines.
Planning permissions inside the Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMA) are based on whether the builder gets ‘No Objection’ certificates from Metrowater, electricity boards, traffic and fire services. However, a promoter building a 27-storeyed complex beyond Uthandi, outside CMA limits, will approach the directorate of town and country planning and local authorities who don’t thoroughly scrutinise the applications, says the official.
According to former CMDA chief planner Anantharanjan Das, it will take time before the law and market catch up with the fast-paced development in and around Chennai. “In the 1930s and 40s, the electric railway line was the only way to reach places like Tambaram. Sensing the development potential, people moved to suburbs along the railway line and areas like Nanganallur were carved out,” says Das. In the early days, the suburbs didn’t have tarred roads or amenities. The next wave of migration was to ECR that primarily attracted people with enough means to own cars to ferry them back to the city from their farm houses.
The development of the IT Corridor again saw middle class families moving to the suburbs. “The accumulated development of last 30 years happened in the space of 10 years,” says Das, who along with his team prepared an infrastructure plan for the IT Corridor up to Siruseri in 2000. Now, projects are going beyond Melmaruvathur along NH45, Maraimalai Nagar and Chengalpet in Kancheepuram. It is a market economy where developers can’t be held responsible for providing social infrastructure. “The market will catch up with the pace. Koot Road that connects southern suburb Madipakkam with Medavakkam resembles a mini-T Nagar with its shops. The situation will improve the government acts,” he says. It is also up to the government, which collects `100 per sqft as infrastructure charge from builders, to prepare a development plan and implement it, he says.

80,000 people/sq km even in plush towers in Mumbai

  mumbai

That Mumbaikars are forced to live cheek-by-jowl was re-emphasized when the Census revealed the city packed more than 20,000 persons per square km. The experience of life in aamchi Mumbai might be worse when actual living or working space are factored in, pointed out a project undertaken by travelling urban think tank BMW Guggenheim Lab.
Shanghai-based architect Neville Mars of the Lab set out to study congestion and found that even plush highrises in Mumbai could have a stacked population index as high as 80,000 people per sq km. Slum pockets could be twice as congested with as many as two lakh people in the same space. The index was computed as a ratio of population density to FSI index of area clusters.
“This could mean that people have as little as 0.4 square metre per person in certain slums while those in highrises might enjoy as much as 57.5 square metre per person,” said Mars, adding that the disparity and spatial split of the city could no longer be ignored. He hoped the index would inform policymakers about the need to factor in the organic growth of slums in urban planning.
The findings have come at a pertinent time given that the civic corporation is in the process of drawing up a new development plan for Mumbai.
The index studied different typologies, including residential buildings and slums, industrial clusters, offices and mixed used areas (see box). They mapped the city through Google Earth and sliced neighbourhoods into a matrix of 500 metres by 500 metres, which were then analyzed for their average occupancy. Even middle-class housing colonies showed up a density of 40,000 persons per square kilometre. Workplaces aren’t any better off with offices and warehouses showing an SPI of 30,000 persons per square kilometre.
Saying the index was a new way of looking at urban dynamics, demographer D P Singh of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences said it once again underscored the need to decongest Mumbai. “Both the Census findings or the new index, which looks at population density in formal and informal settlements indicate that decongesting Mumbai is the need of the hour. That is the only way we can assure the mass of our citizens better living conditions in terms of housing, water and sanitation systems.”
Urban policy and governance expert Amita Bhide said the issue of congestion could be looked at through several dimensions. It could be looked at either in terms of private spaces, which include homes or offices and public spaces such as roads, parks, parking amenities and even burial and cremation grounds. “Somehow, slum redevelopment or luxury construction have brought a lot of attention to congestion in private spaces,” said Bhide, pointing out that the city would pay a tremendous price for ignoring its public spaces. “The city’s capacity to absorb or accommodate people is being tested to its limits,” she said, hitting at the crux of the issue.

Apartments for Rs 15 lakh in Mumbai’s Boisar area

Mumbai
If Rs 10-15 lakh is all you have to invest in real estate in and around Mumbai, Eastern part of Boisar is the best bet for you. East Boisar, a locality in Thane, offers residential projects that offer 1BHK units within this price range. The area for these varies from 520-625 sq ft.
Most of the projects in the locality offer only 1BHK units owing to the huge demand for the same. “The demand for smaller units is not being met adequately in Mumbai as builders do not find it profitable to construct the same. Moreover, most of the 1BHK units that are available in the city have an area as large as 700 sq ft. Whereas in East Boisar, due to easy availability of land parcels, developers are able to make profit even out of 1BHK units,” says Prashant Patel, Owner, Swaminarayan Properties. This is further pushing demand for 1BHK units in the locality.
Some of the developers who have projects offering 1BHK units include Gold Start Group, Vatsalya Developers, Prithvi Buildersl, Yashwant Builders, Mayuresh Developers, Parasmani Developers, K M Developers, Usha Breco Ltd etc.
The locality is witnessing demand from investors as well as end users. “While investors are from Mumbai, end users are from neighbouring localities such as Virar, Vasai, Airoli, Nallasopara, Dombivali etc. Demand for affordable housing has shifted to East Boisar owing to prevailing high property prices in these localities,” says Ajay Raj of Mahi Associates.
Apart from providing affordable options to end users the locality also offers capital appreciation on residential property. “The capital values of 1BHK units in the locality have increased by 20-25 per cent in the last 2 years,” adds Raj. An annual appreciation of around 10 per cent is expected on 1BHK making East Boisar a good investment destination for investors.
The demand in the locality is further set to increase once the railway link between Boisar and Virar becomes operational by end of 2013. All basic social and physical infrastructures are already in place. Thus if you are looking for a small residential unit in a limited budget, now you know where to go!

India sizes up vertical growth to meet rising demand

The world is not flat, at least not in the housing and real estate industry, which has grown nearly 32 per cent in the last decade. The urban population is expected to be around 600 million by 2030 in a century which would see the majority of the people living in cities. If urbanisation in the country is to grow as predicted, the pressure on housing sector, needless to say, would increase. In such a scenario, vertical growth holds the answer in terms of filling the huge gap in demand versus supply. Hafeez Contractor, architect and a pioneer of high-rises, says, “When you are looking at such a large population over a small area of land, vertical is the only way to go.”
Take Mumbai for instance. The city’s population is predicted to rise to 30 million in the next two years. How will Mumbai deal with such an increase? “The only answer is to increase the FSI (floor space index). Only then the city can earn enough to create the infrastructure that will be needed to sustain this vertical growth,” says Rajan Bandelkar, director of Raunak Group. He spoke at the 11th Convention on Sustainable Housing for Masses organised by NAREDCO in Delhi.
Several areas in central Mumbai like Lalbaug and Parel, which until a few years ago had housing settlements, are now dotted with skyscrapers, and a good number are near completion or under construction.
In Delhi too, there has been a spate of construction of high rises, structures as high as 300 mt. Supertech is building the first highest residential building of North India, North Eye, in Sector 74, Noida, which is 255mt tall. The company also has Supernova in Sector-94, Noida, which it claims is the highest mixed-use development in Northern India with a height of 300mt. Many high rises in Gurgaon as well as Delhi with towers as high as 50 floors are underway or in different stages of execution. Of course, new methods used in construction and technology like Jump Form and Mi-Van, which are eons ahead of the conventional construction method, are amplifying the vertical growth in the industry.
Given the country’s high population density, high-rises are more convenient, developers argue. But, are Indian cities equipped to handle vertical growth? “Encouraging vertical growth is very important to the country’s future. Many successful land-constrained global cities like Hong Kong and New York have prospered as vertically-dense cities,” says Sunil Mantri of Mantri Realty. Can Indian cities match up to global high rise standards? Time will tell!

Indians record an increase in property investments abroad

 

Buying villaments and luxury second or third homes is passé.  The nouveau riche Indian is now expanding his property investments abroad. The number of people scouting for `a good piece of property abroad’ have grown remarkably in the last few months. “Till last year I was hunting for high-end properties mainly in Dubai, UK, Canada and rarely in Switzerland. The slump in the European and US economy, has spurred Indians to target places like the French Riviera and Monte Carlo to make their property investments,’’ observes Dieter Carvallo, an agent who scouts for property for his select list of clientele.
By and large the people looking for property abroad have traditionally been a very niche crowd. It is a fairly new concept and most people outside this circle were not aware of the possibilities and investment rewards in buying property outside India. But, with the number of cash-rich Indians on the rise, all that has changed. What is making these investments more attractive is the pricing. “A property in Spain today proves to be far affordable than a premium apartment in places like Delhi and Mumbai,” remarks Suresh Rangarajan, CEO, Artha. “The economic downturn in U.S.A and mainland Europe  have led to a sharp decline in property prices there, where Indians today prefer to dock their money. Thus if a heritage home in Goa, which can be worth crores of rupees, is too expensive for you, an old villa or cottage with a sprawling garden in a serene village in France, Italy or Spain seems to be a better option. 
“Specific pockets in the  international property market offer themselves as a sound investment vehicle, irrespective of the overall economic situation – They are reasonably lucrative, stable and not volatile.
Thus it makes perfect opportunity for Indians to invest their money in these properties,” recounts Rangarajan. Indian investment abroad has reportedly doubled in the last couple of months. The key target customers are High-networth-individuals (worth about Rs.50 crore and above) in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Punjab and Maharashtra (mainly from Mumbai). ‘We alone are receiving at least 100 queries for Europe every week,’ remarked Carvallo.

Demand for budget housing soars in Chennai

 

Chennai’s developers are upbeat as demand for budget housing is reaching a new high.  If the recent project launches and instant absorption in specified time schedule is any indication, then property developers may have to focus more on vital factors like location, product mix and pricing in future projects to ensure quick exit route.
Akshaya’s launch of the much publicised project ‘TODAY’, on Old Mahabalipuram Road (IT Corridor) in Thaiyur, drew overwhelming response from investors across the city. Over 1 million sq ft area covering 1021 residential units had translated into a net revenue of Rs 360 crore at Rs 2850 per sqft and advance booking of Rs 21 crore in a matter of just three days. Out of 2134 units, over 50 per cent of the inventory was cobbled up. The current sale price is Rs 3,000 per sq ft for an extended day which is expected to be revised soon.  An investor can acquire 612 sq ft 2 BHK unit at Rs 17.44 lakh.
In yet another instance, Dugar Housing has launched 1 BHK – 3.5 BHK units in Ambattur at a price of Rs 3,450 per sq ft when competing products were quoted at Rs 4,500 – Rs 5,000 per sq ft in Ambattur.  Though the offer was extended for a limited period, 90 per cent of the units out of 160 apartments launched were sold out in a matter of days.  Here again product pricing ranges from Rs 25 lakh – Rs 80 lakh.   Location, pricing and amenities played a major role in driving the sales, according to industry sources.
On the villa front, it is again the product, location and pricing that tilted the balance in favour of the developer who conceived the idea  appropriately and understood the pulse of the market.  Casa Grande had launched villa projects in the price range of Rs 1.05 crore – Rs 1.6 crore.  Apart from the land area of 1500 sq ft in a strategic location like Sholinganallur junction and Thalambur main road, 4 BHK units were offered with 2325 sq ft built up area.   If the product and location are right, then irrespective of the pricing, the acceptance level would be instant, say market sources.
The recent launches and successful marketing had taught several lessons for the city’s developers to revise their future strategy while offering the product-mix.

Commercial boom driving housing demand in Sholinganallur

Chennai
Any area witnessing price appreciation has one key growth driver pushing the rates in the region. Sholinganallur, a suburban residential hub of south east Chennai, has seen commercial development in the past. The already existing commercial segment catering to the strong workforce in the region is now driving housing demand in the vicinity.
In the last three months, the locality has witnessed approximately 12 per cent increase in average property values. It offers a mix of properties. However, multi-storey apartments are in maximum supply. The value of majority of apartment projects are between Rs 4,200 and Rs 5,000 per sq ft.
Previously the locality has seen development of large IT hubs and dedicated SEZs. As a result, strong residential demand has been witnessed from those looking to stay close to their workplace. Sholinganallur is now considered an IT hub having footprints of well-known IT companies such as TCS, Wipro, HCL, Infosys etc. With its well developed road infrastructure and its swift connectivity through ECR link road on the eastern side and Velachery Main Road on the western side, the area offers good social infrastructure to service its residents. The presence of schools, colleges, hospitals, super markets, restaurants and shopping malls adds value to the overall investment. On account of existing infrastructure realtors and developers expect property prices to witness an uptrend in the long-term.
“On the rental side, a 1,000 sq ft, 2BHK apartment fetches Rs 22,000 to Rs 25,000 per month. This kind of yield has attracted investors to buy properties in Shollinganallur,” said R Murugesan, CEO of Shriram Properties Ltd.
Maximum demand has been for 2 and 3 BHK configurations. Approximately 1 to 1.5 year back demand for 2 BHK apartments was relatively high in comparison to 3BHK says Sabarinath Sadasivam, Karvy Realty. He further added, in the past one year, there has been an increase in demand for 3BHK units with sizes ranging from 1200 to 1800 sq ft. Some developers are also building small, 450 sq ft apartments mainly for the economically weaker section (EWS) category as mandated by the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA).

Chennai developers begin construction at Tambaram

  chennai

Even as a battle rages between the residents of Sadanandapuram and the Tamil Nadu government over the proposed Tambaram Eastern Bypass Road, real estate developers have begun construction of apartments.
The project, which has been in the pipeline close to 10 years but with the announcement of a floor space index of 2.5, is a jackpot for real estate developers. Floor space index is the ratio of the built up area to the size of the plot. An FSI of 2.5 means builders can go up to 12 floors high, depending on the size of the plot. Construction of high-end schools and apartment complexes are underway, in the hope that the bypass road becomes a reality. The going rate for plots in the area is around Rs 2,900 per sq ft.
Tambaram, mooted as Chennai’s satellite town, is set to expand as the proposed Tambaram Eastern Bypass Road has attracted several real estate developers. “Real estate developers jump at any state proposal on building roads as most building development rules depend on the width of the road. We don’t mind waiting for the project to take shape,” said CEO and chairman of Akshaya Private Limited T Chitty Babu.
The road will bypass Tambaram and be used by commuters from Velachery, Thiruvanmiyur and Perungalathur to join the NH45. The first fourkm stretch will be formed by widening the existing Camp Road. The second phase will be a completely new road.
Though the road has not taken any shape on the ground, developers say it is worth investing in the area. “Government projects rarely get dropped. Even if a project gets delayed, the property is bound to give returns,” said Babu.
He said that Tambaram will be the next Velachery in about five years, given the rate of development. “Tambaram will become like Velachery that if public utilities like storm water drains, transport and electricity keep up with the demand,” he said.

Realty values of Chennai-suburbs expected to rise

  chennai

Chennai’s real estate sector showed buoyancy and resilience in the past few months. “There has been a 20-25 per cent increase in the number of queries generated for residential investment, whereas a 12-15 per cent rise in the number of transactions in July-Sept 2012 quarter says,” Sree Kumar of Kumar Enterprise. Expanding sectors of IT, financial services, telecom and other allied services are the major economic drivers of the city’s real estate.
“Chennai is witness to huge housing demand but due to lack of social infrastructure in suburban areas, city-based properties continue to fetch more buyers. This trend is expected to change in the coming months as land prices in the city are becoming unaffordable,” added Kumar.
According to Harish Gopal of Vinayak Properties, “the city is witness to a growing commercial sector in the suburban areas such as Kelambakkam, Thaiyur, Oragadam, Karapakkam, Navalur, Kazhipattur and Thalambur. New automotive, manufacturing and semi-conductor sectors are expanding their businesses in these suburban locations resulting in job opportunities and development of physical and social infrastructure.”
The State government is also taking various initiatives in providing better connectivity to the upcoming suburban areas with the city centre and improving basic facilities of these areas. Land prices are inching high in view of the anticipated improvement in infrastructure by both public and private players and improved accessibility levels. “On an average the capital values of properties in the suburban areas noted an escalation of 5-12 per cent in the past quarter.”
Majority of the upcoming residential and commercial real estate supply is concentrated in the suburban areas owing to limited availability in the CBD regions, added Gopal. Social facilities like schools, malls, multiplexes, restaurants and supermarkets are in the proposed development plans to promote these upcoming locations.
Chennai real estate market is expected to undergo a change with large-scale migration to suburban locations. In the coming months the property prices of the suburban locations are estimated to appreciate. There will be more ready-to-move-in projects with lifestyle features attracting buyers and investors from southern region as well.

Luxury Housing Demand Inching a new High in Chennai

chennai
Rapid pace of urbanisation, influx of global lifestyle, surge in NRI demand and fast growing service industries nudging middle income groups into HNIs bracket are instrumental in driving the overall demand for luxury housing.  Around 200 luxury residential projects were launched between 2008 and third quarter of 2012 across India’s top seven cities.  Following the global financial crisis, the value of new luxury residential projects peaked at US $9.9 billion in 2010, according to Jones Lang LaSalle.  However, the value fell to US $4.7 billion year-to-date due to developers being more focused on completing existing projects.
Among the cities, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai had the greatest market share of these launches.  While Bangalore had 21 per cent of the share during the first three quarters of this year, Chennai had 20 per cent.  While Mumbai has been affected by global meltdown, Bangalore and Chennai markets are quite stable and growing significantly in the luxury housing domain, said NS Srinivasa Reddy, Assistant Vice-President, Research & REIS, Jones Lang LaSalle.
In Chennai, Akshaya Pvt Ltd. has recently launched an ultra-luxury smart home project and the tallest tower in the state built so far titled Abov on Kazhipattur road, OMR.  The project which drew encouraging response from the HNIs and with 133 meters height, comprising 38 floors, 31 homes and 32 swimming pools of 6700 sq ft, each floor will have a deck of 360o view and sea view.  Yet another city developer Real Value Promoters is planning to launch an ultra-luxury housing project in the city area. The unique project, involving an international architect, is now being given the final touches and will offer a wide range of ultra luxury products being imported from the European countries along with a plethora of amenities.
Green Tree Homes has launched an ultra-modern villa project inspired by Greek architecture with private elevators and swimming pools for each villa. One can customise his home to suit varied needs with over five types of floor plans to choose from, a home theatre, terrace garden, barbecue corner and a swimming pool on the ground floor.
With an increasing number of globetrotting Indians accustomed to leading varied lifestyle during their sojourn abroad, luxury housing is increasingly sought after by the affluent people and more developers may take the concept to a new high in the coming years, say industry sources.

Homebuyers benefit from improved infrastructure in Chennai

Chennai
Infrastructure development drives the growth and development of a city at a macro level and a locality at a micro level. A strong and steadily growing infrastructure is the backbone for development and investment activities, which again paves the way for better economic and social development. Over the last few years, Chennai has witnessed an increased focus on infrastructure initiatives, like the modernisation of airport, ongoing metro work, widening of arterial roads, construction of flyovers and under passes to facilitate smoother flow of traffic.
Software professionals who take this route on a daily basis seem to be the biggest beneficiaries. “The traffic management in OMR has become better and travel has become much easier than what it was before. This has enabled an employee residing in a place like Koyambedu or Vadapalani cut down on his travel and reach office on time. Taking the OMR route has become convenient when it comes to commutation after a few illegal parking slots were removed along the stretch. People are now looking at housing options in the outskirts thanks to this connectivity. With the arterial roads of Medavakkam and Perumbakkam connecting the OMR soon to be widened, the ride will perhaps get better,” says Sudharshan Padmanabhan, a senior software programmer from Cognizant Technology on OMR.
Over the past few years, these corridors have become a haven for investors and real estate developers in the city. The police officials too understand the importance of traffic management along this stretch. “Chennai is among the largest real estate markets of the country. Locations like ECR and OMR are the growth corridors and will witness stronger demand and the prices are likely to increase. As such, a smooth and free flow of traffic along this corridor has become imperative. With the arrival of the metro rail, the GST road will become relatively decongested of traffic,” says a police official.
The widening of these arterial roads along the GST will ease congestion significantly. Along with a better flow of traffic, it will also give scope for residential and commercial development to grow further in these areas. Traffic management has always been a challenge on the OMR and ECR during peak hours. With encroachments and illegal parking, bottlenecks are created. However, we have ensured that more police personnel are deployed at the Tidel Park and the SRP Tools junction during peak hours to ensure smooth flow of traffic.
This will provide much better connectivity from OMR to the rest of the city,” says a senior police official. R V Shekar, Managing Director, Lancor Holdings says,”The connectivity and traffic management on the GST Road is remarkably well only till the airport.  Places like Guduvancherry, Potheri and Maraimalainagar are prominent places from the point of view of residential investment. It has been noticed that, over the years, a lot of individuals from the city have invested in this area because of its proximity to the GST road. However, the road beyond the airport is only around 200 meters wide and becomes congested during the peak hours, which is quite telling on the traffic scenario there and is far from comfortable.” Shekar is of the opinion that the road needs to be widened to provide a better infrastructure for customers commuting from Tambaram, Guduvancherry and other neighbouring suburbs. “
Along with this, good connectivity through roads and flyovers will make this part of the city an ideal choice for investment,” he says. Increased growth calls for increased investment on infrastructure as the capacity to absorb the growing needs of a city needs to be expanded. Roger Brantsma, General Manager, Hilton, Chennai, uses the SGT Road on a daily basis due to the proximity of the hotel to the area. “Infrastructural development is needed in the city to deal with the enormous growth. It is noticeable that the government is working towards achieving this. The construction of the new airport is in its final phase. There are flyovers and highways under development in and around the city. Then the metro rail project is underway, which will change the way this city commutes,” he says. Perhaps, the days ahead will require more proactive plans to put in place the missing blocks in the infrastructural space and an efficient traffic management.

Mumbai flat sells for 1.10 lakh per sq feet

Mumbai
The city’s property market may be in the dumps. But some residential buildings continue to command the astronomical Rs 1 lakh per sq ft price, as a recent deal shows.
A duplex 3,638 sq ft flat on the seventh and eight floors of the 28-storey sea-facing Samudra Mahal, a prime residential skyscraper at Worli, was sold for Rs 40 crore, or an astounding Rs 1.10 lakh a square foot, sources familiar with the deal told TOI on 6th December.
The flat’s owner, foreign bank Standard Chartered, sold the 4-BHK flat along with two car parks to a senior management executive of Citigroup. The deal is to be inked soon.
The country’s most expensive apartment deal was recorded in June this year, of a 28th floor 3,320 sq ft flat in Tahnee Heights, a residential skyscraper on Nepean Sea Road, which was sold for an eye-popping Rs 1.20 lakh a square foot, or Rs 39 crore.
A Stanchart spokesperson declined to comment on the deal. Despite repeated attempts, Citigroup Inc did not respond to TOI’s queries. With this deal, Samudra Mahal broke the record in property transactions it set two years ago when a duplex flat of 3,638 sq ft was sold at Rs 1.02 lakh a sq ft, or Rs 37 crore. The 19th and 20th floor duplex, which belonged to ABN Amro Bank, was picked up by Madhu Kapur, wife of the late Ashok Kapur, founder of Yes Bank.
Samudra Mahal is one of the most sought-after residential buildings in the city. The building has a swimming pool, a children’s play area and a small football field. Occupants of this building include the Scindias. Industrialist Nusli Wadia once owned a triplex spread over 8,000 sq ft here, which was sold four years ago in excess of Rs 31 crore.