The Rs 955 crore - sourced through private equity deal and internal accruals - includes Rs 100 crore deposited by the firm as earnest money with the Noida authority. BPTP had recently raised $160 million (about Rs 640 crore) through stake sale in its four SEZs. BPTP managing director Kabul Chawla said a private equity investment in the parent company was in the pipeline to raise funds to pay for the balance of the first instalment.

Mr Chawla said the 95-acre Noida project was on track. “It will be one of the best commercial and retail locations in the country. We are trying to replicate the best business and shopping destinations of the world such as Canary Wharf of London, More London and Roppongi Hills, Tokyo,” he said. The company plans to build 45 office buildings, 2 million sq ft of retail space and two hotels with a combined capacity of 550 rooms at its Noida site. The total cost of construction for the project will be around Rs 3,500-4,000 crore. A total of 15 lakh sq ft of office space and a hotel will be built in the first phase, likely to be completed in three years. Seventy of the total 95 acre of the project will be used for roads and greenery.

The company has hired UK’s leading architectural firm Foster + Partners for the project. It has also roped in Atkins Intelligence for traffic management, dosAdos for landscape and Burohappold for services and utility in the project.

At present, prices in Gurgaon, Noida, Pune and Bangalore are between Rs3,500 and Rs7,500 per sq. ft. In South Mumbai, the limited scope for new supply will either see prices remaining flat or increasing by about 5%. This is however less than the 5-15% increase in prices the region has seen in the last 12 months.

Some areas in Mumbai’s suburbs and Delhi could see a 10% correction in prices. “If demand is hit and if the expected supply does come up, we will see a reasonable correction in micro markets in some cities,” Abhishek Gupta, Head, Research, Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj, a real estate consultancy firm said.

Cities such as Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata are expected to see a 5-15% increase in prices in the residential segment because of the low or moderate levels of prices in the region. Tier II or smaller cities such as Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Indore, Jaipur, Mangalore, Mysore and Raipur are also expected to see prices increase by 5-15%. However, this is less than the 10-25% price increase the cities witnessed in the last one year.

The study ranks Chennai and Kolkata as the most attractive markets in the residential segment and Gurgaon and Pune as the most unattractive markets. Real estate prices in India have risen each year for the past five years as tax benefits for home ownership and rising wages helped more people buy homes. That, coupled with a rising stock market created wealth that went into property. However, rising interest rates and a decline in the stock market this year and dearer credit is slamming the brakes on this growth.

Retail rentals are also expected to see a correction in certain cities over the next one year. Lack of supply has driven rentals to a level where retailers find it hard to operate profitably. “With retail sector margins in the 3-5% region and rentals as high as 15-20% of sales in certain geographies, a rent correction is imminent,” the report says.

Retail rentals in South Mumbai, Mumbai’s suburbs, Delhi and Gurgaon are expected to see up to a 15% decline as retailers find it difficult to operate profitably because of the very high prices. Retail rentals in these cities are currently at Rs70-400 per sq. ft.

“A lot of developers jumped into the retail business without understanding the market well,” Gupta said, adding, “they later realised that a mall needs to have good parking, mall management and other things that go into making a good mall. Some mall have 40-50% vacancy rates, maybe because developers started selling to investors without realizing that big retail brands prefer a single controller of malls.”

Strong demand and low rentals in cities such as Hyderabad, Chennai and Kolkata are expected to push up retail rentals in these cities by as much as 15%. Retail rentals in smaller cities are also expected to grow 5-20% over the next one year. Office rentals are expected to remain stable or rise across markets over the next 12 months. Rentals in South Mumbai, Mumbai’s suburbs, Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Pune are expected to see up to a 15% increase. A few areas in Bangalore could see a 10% correction as infrastructure problems have caused information technology and related services demand to shift away.

Lalit Srivastava, chief executive officer, TIDA, says that the SDZ is located between the Yamuna and GT Road. It will have much bigger sectors compared to what places in Noida-Greater Noida can boast of. The Taj Expressway Zone (TEZ) will be developed in three phases. In phase one 35,000 hectare will be developed, which will stretch up to Jewar. Large projects that can not be accommodated in Noida or Greater Noida will come up here. There could, for instance, be an educational project. But, it will have to be large in area, say 1000 acres. This zone will include residential, industrial, institutional and commercial area.

A number of such zones will come up all along the Taj Expressway right up to Agra. The new TEZ authority comprises district Gautam Budh Nagar, Mahamaya Nagar (Hathras), Matura, Aligarh and Agra. From Gautam Budh Nagar to Agra, the TIDA area is spread over 1 lakh hectare. In TIDA there will be 22 zones. According to a survey, by 2011, Noida-Greater Noida will have 3,000 hectare of residential set-up, while industrial set-up will be spread over 26,000 hectare. Land use break of 2011 states there will be 3 thousands hectare of land use for residential, institutional, commercial, transportation and SEZs. We have already started calling in infrastructure experts and have drawn up a master plan for the area to which all constructions in the area will now have to confirm, says Lalit Srivasta. According to the Master Plan of Taj Express Zone, the mode of development will priority based.

Out of 35000 hectare, 35-40% of the area will be developed for main activities like industry, IT-institutions, ware housing, transportation, sports and assorted other industries services. While the remaining area, except the green area, will be developed for support activity like industrial, commercial and residential. According to P K Agarwal, deputy chief executive officer, TIDA, the acquisition of land for the Taj Expressway is being completed on a war footing. All the land is likely to be handed over for construction by mid-January. Work on the special development zone is likely to begin after the allotment. The Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) officials are also manning it, in addition to their duties. There are plans to take long-term loans from both GNIDA and Noida.

With the Cabinet approval of new airport in Greater Noida, lands rates in Jewar (the airport site) have shot-up by ten times. GNIDA has earmarked 3500 hectare for an airport (Taj International Aviation Hub). As the market rates were hiked considerably in the last one year, government hiked the circle rates considerably to check evasion of stamp duty.

For land acquisition, compensation will be distributed according to district magistrate’ circle rates. Circle rates outside town area for agriculture land is already sky rocketing. Rates jumped from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 25 lakh, and from Rs 10 lakh to Rs 18 lakh. For Jewar town-area, the hike is from Rs 18 lakh to Rs 56 lakh. This has resulted in an increase in revenue collection. Rakesh Yadav, of Antriksh Housing and Construction, says that before the announcement of the airport project a year ago, agricultural land rates were between Rs 20,000 and Rs 40,000. Today, the rates range between Rs 4 lakh and Rs 8 lakh.

TIDA is all set to develop a new township as special development zone (SDZ), along the Taj Expressway In TIDA there will be 22 zones, which will come up all along the Expressway till Agra According to a survey, by year 2011, Noida-Greater Noida will have 3,000 hectare of residential set-up, while industrial set-up will be spread over 26,000 hectare.

Major residential developments coming up given the kind of positive picture being projected by real estate in Greater Noida, the country’s most prestigious names have launched huge residential projects in the city. Unitech has entered the market with two higher-end residential projects Unitech Grande and Unitech Cascades. Eldeco has also been developing a residential township spread over 18 acres, while Omaxe is also not lagging behind. The group is in fact targeting Non Resident Indians (NRIs) with its NRI City project, though their second project, Palm Greens, is also an upbeat one and comes under the luxury housing segment. Currently, there is not much sale of residential properties, but the long-term picture looks promising.

Greater Noida will have an international airport and this has enhanced its real estate attractiveness. About 26.5 million sq ft of housing supply is projected to come up by 2009-10. Unitechs 100-acre township, Uniworld City, is expected to make a deep impact on the market scenario here. The residential capital rates are in the range of Rs 1,800-Rs 2,800 psf.

Greater Noida The Planning Marvel and an emerging Dream Township. The Total Notified Area: 36,000 hectares Already urbanized in Phase I: 5,000 hectares Urbanizable area: 12,000 hectares (by 2011) City planned for a population of: 0.7 million (by 2011) & 1.2 million (by 2021) Industry led development: 3000 hectares (to be developed by 2011) Strategic Location within NCR * Well linked to domestic & international markets via: * Delhi Railway Station 45 min International Airport 1 hour * ISBT 30 min Connected to Delhi, Noida by 8-lane Expressway Impeccably planned, Greenfield city in India Wide roads of 130m, open spaces, lush roadside and central verge grass and tree plantations Basic infrastructure provisioned ahead of demand: Proposed International Airport, Aviation Hub, Railway Station in PPP Corridor earmarked for future expansion of Metro Abundant sweet, potable water supply 24×7 100% area served by sewer line State-of-the art telecom linkages a wired city Modern outlook in urban management.

The Authority - One stop shop for all approvals Leveraging the expertise of specialized service providers for reducing overall costs through technology and higher efficiency Well-defined, quantitative service standards Strict penalties for violation of rules and regulations E governance in routine operations First city in North India to privatize power distribution since 1994 Excellent social infrastructure Well planed schools, colleges and hospitals, along with shopping malls is buzz word Land allotted to 10 hospitals; Kailash Hospital is operational.

Emerging knowledge hub College Education: 150 allotments have been made for higher secondary schools, engineering colleges, medical colleges, management institutes, vocational institutes (14 engineering, 8 management colleges, Sharda Group institutions, 2 medical colleges, one homoeopathy college). School Education: Public and international schools - DPS, Ryan International, Somerville, Oxford, Kendriya Vidyalaya; excellent preparatory and kindergarten schools Green Areas: 25% of Master Plan area reserved for greenery.

Organized flowing green belts continuous lung space ornamental avenues - to control development, improve aesthetics and environment 3000 acres Reserve Forest Area within the city limits Night Safari project similar to one in Singapore planned on 150 acres proposed Bird Sanctuary and World Nature Garden Minimal Pollution - Best urban environment in North India High-quality soft infrastructure, private security arrangements in residential sectors Adequate parking space Fashionable shopping areas in the vicinity.

Hotels, restaurants Country’s first India Exposition Mart for export of handicrafts spread over 55 acres Banking and postal services already operational Social Infrastructure as a magnet to attract business and population Premier units in operation (Automotive): Honda Siel Cars, Escorts, Yamaha, New Holland Tractors, Auto Ancillaries IT/ Electronics: Moser Baer, L G Electronics Others Pepsi: Vectra Honda Power.

Transportation needed for state-of-the art bus service to link Noida, Greater Noida and Delhi and also within Noida/G Noida Over the last 14 months, residential-plot developments in Greater Noida have appreciated by 80-120% and the price hike in group housing projects over the last eight months is approximately 30-40%. For instance, take the case of Omaxe’s construction of 80-acre NRI City, where prices of houses have appreciated four times in the last two years.

Omaxe’s chairman and MD, Rohtas Goel, said that in this time period prices have shot up from Rs 7,000 per square yard to Rs 26,000 per square yard. A staunch believer in planned cities, the Greater Noida Industrial Development Authority (GNIDA) releases plots under various schemes only from time to time. The circle rate for plotted development is approximately Rs 7,000 per square meter, while the market value is in the range of Rs 19,000-20,000 per square meter. A premium of Rs 12,000 to Rs 13,000 attracts huge response from the investors and end-users.

Putting this in perspective, Gurgaons connectivity with the National Capital is still poor; yet, DLF Phase I and Phase II still command a market rate of Rs 60,000 to Rs 70,000 per square meter, almost thrice the rates prevailing in Greater Noida. Current market prices in Sector 34, 39 and 40 of Noida are approximately Rs 50,000 to Rs 60,000 per square meter, 2.5 times the rates in Greater Noida. However, Greater Noida is growing at a fast pace. Market rates of residential plots were at Rs 8,000-9,500 per square meter in February 2005, Rs 13,000-14,500 per square meter in April 2005 and Rs 19,000-24,000 in January 2006.

GNIDA is also actively promoting the suburb to IT companies, which will only accelerate this suburbs growth rate. Wipro has purchased 42 acres from GNIDA, at a concessional rate of approximately Rs 800 per square meter, ten months ago. Real estate developers such as Unitech, Uppals and Ansals have also purchased approximately 75 acres each to develop IT Parks.

P N Mishra, executive director, Ansal API, says: As Greater Noida is going to be the future hub of IT sector; purchasing land for an IT Park in advance is a timely decision as rates are going to appreciate here, for sure. Money for retail projects in Greater Noida is also pouring in. Omaxe’s Connaught Place, with over one million square feet space, and with 70% of it leased out, is presently fetching Rs 200 per square foot as rental. Avneesh Kumar Singh, MD of SNG Developers Ltd, says: “After so many institutions and IT companies having their offices and residences in Greater Noida, retail is need of the hour. It is latent demand which is inherent due to so many organizations having their base here.”

Many prominent names in both domestic and international hospitality sector are set to initiate fivestar hotel projects in Greater Noida. The list includes Unitech, Carlson, ITC, Bharat Hotels, and NRI hotelier Sant Chatwals group. To be located in close proximity to the proposed international airport, these commercial establishments will enjoy an added advantage.

Some of the key advantages Just 35 min from Delhi via 8-lane expressway; 40 min from India Gate and 55 min from Indira Gandhi International Airport Pollution-free environment Privatised, reliable power distribution Underground electric cabling and drainage system 25% of total area under green cover 222-acre PGAstandard golf course 240-acres of Integrated Sports Complex 24×7 water supply and abundant sweet ground water.

FOCAL POINT The Greater Noida Authority is revamping the civic amenities and other infrastructural facilities of the city There are 40 sectors along the expressway that have been divided into four zones under the ‘Noida Masterplan 2021′ to ensure that there is balanced development amidst population explosion.

Director of Meriton Group, Avnish Agrawal, got the idea of constructing such a building when he went to the United States of America on a tour.

WonderWorks, a US-based real estate developer, already have two ‘inverted’ structures in Florida and Tennessee respectively. “These structures are amusement parks equipped with extreme experience zones like the disaster zone, the challenge zone, space, sound and light zones and laser tag zones, among others,” explained Agrawal.

Agrawal was so impressed with the building that he decided to build a similar structure for his project in India. He finally decided to use the concept to build a club house for a luxurious condominium project in Orange County, Indirapuram.

This, he said, will help in boosting the image of Indirapuram. “At present, Indirapuram is looked at as a mere junior cousin to Noida, despite the fact that the former is better connected to Delhi. In Orange County, the group is selling apartment’s worth up to Rs 1.25 crore, fitted with modern gadgets like Jacuzzis and cubical showers. Over 80 per cent of the 700 apartments have already been sold,” said Agrawal.

After the construction of the clubhouse, which will be housed in the inverted structure, Agrawal declared, Indirapuram will emerge as a destination in itself—a part of the itinerary of the tourist coming to visit NCR.

“Located only a few kilometers away from the Commonwealth Games site, Meriton club will soon become a landmark in Delhi and NCR. The club building is the first of its kind in India,” Agrawal said. The club will be named ‘Caracalla Club,’ after the first club built by ancient Romans. The name will be inscribed in lower part of the ‘inverted’ building.

The club will be the third ‘inverted’ building in the world. To give the impression that it has fallen from heaven, inverted pillars and some part of its walls and roof will be given a broken look outside. The interior, however, will not only look right side up but will also be stronger than many other clubhouses, Agrawal said.

The exclusive country club for Orange County residents will provide top quality facilities. The club will be equipped with the latest recreational facilities, such as relaxing spas and saunas, a fully modernized gym and a Jacuzzi. It will also have an elite bar as well as massage and yoga centers.

The twin cities offer an entire range of property-options to choose from. The development of Greater Noida Phase-II, spread over 55,000 hectares (which includes 1890 villages), will further lead to an expansion of these cities. The said phase would have 41% area earmarked for greenery, 12% for recreational facilities, 13% for residential, 2.5% commercial, 3.9% institutional and 18.9% devoted for the airport. Also, after completion, the 1483 km long Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor will mark a watershed in connectivity.

This Indo-Japanese project is expected to be completed by 2012. Apart from this, a mega rail-corridor will start from Boraki near Dadri. Foreseeing a surge in demand for office space, many real estate developers have launched various residential and commercial projects at Noida and Greater Noida.

Will this mark the beginning of a shift of the development-axis of builders from Gurgaon to these twin cities? “Every township has its pros and cons. Every township grows and reaches its peak of development and there is stagnation at the top. Gurgaon is passing through stagnation phase.

It grew and grew and left proper planning far behind. Gurgaon boomed in record time. Offices and commercial space came up overnight without any planning or proper infrastructure. Everything was done in a haphazard manner.

Therefore, it’s paying the price for it now,” says M S Aggarwal, managing director, MSX Developers Pvt Ltd. “Moreover , commercial lease rentals in Noida and Greater Noida are at least 40% lower than those in Gurgaon,” he adds.

The UP chief minister’s push for a second international airport at Greater Noida may come as a shot in the arm for realty players. Real estate analysts expect capital value of existing residential, commercial, retail and hospitality projects in Noida and Greater Noida to appreciate in the short term.

The capital price of residential property in greater Noida varies from Rs 23,000 to Rs 28,000 per sq meter, while rentals vary from Rs 2,500 to Rs 8,000 per month. In the relatively posh localities like Alpha, Beta and Gamma, a 3BHK built in area of 200 sq m is priced at Rs 27,000 per sq meter. The 8-lane Expressway connecting Noida-Greater Noida to Agra promises to put the twin cities’ real estate on fast track.

Special economic zones (SEZs), hotels, and commercial and residential complexes coming up on the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway offer great scope for strong and sustained growth for all real estate segments. There are 40 sectors along the expressway that have been divided into four zones under the ‘Noida Master plan 2021′ to ensure balanced development amidst population explosion.

Out of the total length of the expressway which is around 23 kms, three kilometres of the expressway fall under Greater Noida and the rest in Noida. The 321 hectares of Greater Noida land, which is within one km of the expressway, has been a major source of attraction for realtors, IT companies and educational institutions among others.

The authorities have also planned development projects on each side of the expressway in phases to give a boost to ITITeS sectors. The impact of all these developments is clearly discernible, as there is an increasing demand for land by IT companies, triggering real estate boom in these satellite townships.

The authority has set a reserve price of 77,000 rupees ($1,919) a square meter (10.76 square feet) and will open the qualification bids on April 24. The plots for the five-star hotels have an area of 24,000 square meters, it said.

Demand for houses, offices and hotels in India is growing as economic growth and rising salaries boost the spending power of individuals and companies. Towns around New Delhi, including Noida, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Faridabad, are expanding as buyers move there to take advantage of lower prices.

Developer BPTP Ltd. earlier this month won a bid for 95 acres of land for offices and shops at Noida for 50.1 billion rupees. BPTP offered to pay 130,207 rupees a square meter, compared with a reserve price of 77,000 rupees a square meter. Developers such as DLF Ltd. and Unitech Ltd., India’s two biggest real-estate companies, have announced plans to build hotels along with houses, shops and malls. DLF plans about 75 hotels in India in five years.

The company would construct an area of 3 Lacs sq ft in the project named; Omaxe Twin Towers, which would be one of the tallest buildings in the NCR region.

The 19 floor residential tower will have all the modern facilities and would be completed within 30 months, the company said in a statement.

Speaking on the occasion, Rohtas Goel, CMD, Omaxe said the Twin Towers is one of those projects which will house comfort for all, right from luxury to easy connectivity, gifting all inhabitants a luxurious gateway to living style.