Indian Property News on 'September, 2007'

DLF to Raise IPO in Next Quarter

DLF, India’s largest real estate company, is all set to raise $2 billion (about Rs 8,200 crore) in Singapore.

DLF Group’s property fund, DLF Assets Pvt. Ltd (DAL), will be listed as a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) in Singapore in October. The company has a portfolio of Special Economic Zones (SEZs) and IT Parks.

The company had sold some of its leased commercial properties to DAL. The latter has already made the payment of around Rs 2,400 crore to DLF against a total consideration of Rs 4,000 crore. The fund has plans to offer a considerable part of its equity to the public to raise the money to pay off DLF. Read More »

India’s Home Loan GDP Ratio Stagnates at Just 5%!!!

Despite Indian real estate undergoing a paradigm shift, India’s home loan GDP ratio stuck at just 5% as against 50% in the US and UK.

90% of home loan borrowers in India are first time buyers. Interest rates on home loan have sharply risen from 7% in 2003 to 12% in 2007, with its impact largely following across the board including genuine home buyers, industry watchers, builders, and bankers.

A borrower of Rs 10 lakh with loan tenure of 20 years would have to shell out an extra of Rs 3250 every month on his EMI and annual additional burden would be as high as Rs 39,000 and loans up to Rs 20 lakh form 80% of the total housing loan portfolio. Read More »

Delhi, Mumbai Top the Growth Chart

Ernst & Young, a global leader in professional services, has recently developed a rating methodology that estimates cities on their potential for economic, urban, and social development.

Of 48 Indian Cities rated by the firm, Delhi and Greater Mumbai have been ranked as the leading Indian cities as far as economic development is concerned.

Earlier, the city’s potential was determined using limited parameters like population and per capita income. Contrary to this, the new indices include prosperity, governance, business environment, and infrastructure and quality of life. All these parameters are covered by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission. Read More »

Locations Driving Property Market in NCR

Fast emerging as an important hub for information technologies and IT enabled services in India; the National Capital Region (NCR) has become an apple of eye of both builders and potential investors.

The NCR is built over a large area of 33,578 sq kms. States including Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and the National Capital Territory of Delhi fall under the NCR region. Ongoing commercial developments in NCR have given a string boost to the real estate market here. Also, limited supply of properties in Delhi served as a blessing in disguise for NCR real estate market. Read More »

Suncity to Invest Rs 10, 000 Cr in Realty Projects

Suncity Projects Ltd, a prominent name in Indian real estate, is planning to invest a whopping amount in between Rs 8,000 - Rs 10,000 crore over the next four to five years.

The company is looking forward to tie up with famous real estate conglomerates to expand horizons into hospitality sector, says Ajay Aggarwal, Director, Suncity Projects.  It may also opt for an initial public offering (IPO) by 2009-end. Read More »

Construction Cos Vs IT Sector : It’s a Talent Hunt

There is a major shortage of experienced manpower in real estate industry and engineering sector. People are largely diverting towards the IT industry which is believed to have formed 24% of the employment prospects in the first four months of 2007.

A high proliferation of attractive IT industries has made talent search an uphill climb for construction industry which are now offering high salary packages equivalent to IT industry to woo engineering talent.  Still, the demand–supply gap continues. This has forced the real estate companies to carry out a cross-border search. Experience workforce from Gulf and far East Asia are in high demand as they have a sound knowledge of mechanization, techniques, and speed. Read More »

How Govt. Should Plan ‘Housing For Urban Poor’

The government is thinking hard about the ways to accommodate urban poor, a goal which can bring a round of applause for politicians. Urban housing is struck in between the outdated policies and bureaucracy.

Considering housing for poor a prime responsibility, the government has largely focused its attention towards development of large number of houses and allotted them to the poor. Funds have been garnered for development of such units, with the remaining cost shared between a bank and the beneficiary. Read More »

AP Govt. Says ‘NO’ to Property Tax Hike

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy turned down the proposal of bringing a further hike in property tax to increase the revenue of local bodies.

The minister has also expressed his displeasure over the manner in which the municipalities and municipal corporations raised the property tax even after the dissent of the state government for the same.

Reddy has asked the municipal administration department to issue a fresh government order (GO) canceling the revision of property taxes for residential purpose after 2004. Read More »

AP to Develop Hyderabad-Vijayawada-Vizag industrial corridor

The Andhra Pradesh Government is considering developing Hyderabad-Vijaywada–Visakhapatnam Growth Corridor (HVVGC) to boost industrial growth in Hyderabad, Nalgonda, East Godavari, Vizag, Krishna, and Ranga Reddy.

The proposed project will also include three other districts – Guntur, Kammam, and Warangal. The state government has identified six area specific industrial centers stretching over 10,000 hectares to garner investments up to Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 crore, thereby generating a large plethora of job opportunities. Read More »

Rents in Nariman Point Leave Manhattan Behind

Indian firms are being bullish on to buy or rent office space in Mumbai, a factor which has fuelled the prices of commercial property in the city. Another factor pushing the average rentals in the commercial business district (CBD) areas is a sharp increase in value of rupee. The rentals are believed to be more than those in New York.

The average per sq ft cost in Nariman Point and Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) stands at 1.5 times higher than Manhattan. According to the market trend, the rentals in BKC will rise higher than the existing rates.

Rentals in Mumbai are going through the roof. Knight Frank finds it cheaper to lease 1 lakh sq ft of commercial space for $55 per sq ft per annum than to pay $90 for the same in Mumbai. Read More »