First Quarter of 2009- Best Time to Purchase a Home

January 5, 2009	(3 votes, average: 3 out of 5)  Loading ...
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Firstly, experts feel that residential prices are likely to stabilise from April onwards with fears of deflation looming large over the Indian economy. Moreover, the persistent decrease in the general price level of goods and services is likely to bring down interest rates to affordable levels, which will mean that the pendulum will shift from a buyers’ market to a sellers’ market, from April. With real estate developers expected to further cut prices over the next three months, experts feel that this is the best time to let their indecisiveness work to your advantage.

Says Anuj Puri, chairman and country head of Jones Lang Lasalle Meghraj, “2009 will open up opportunities for investment in real estate as property prices have corrected by around 15-20% in 2008. I expect a further correction of 10% over the next three months. Price stability should arrive by March 2009 and will not climb quickly. The first three months of the new year is going to witness a surge in residential sales.”

With the government trying to kickstart the slowing economy, many in the industry feel that now both the end user and the investor will return to the market. In fact, the investor behaviour too is likely to witness a change. What happened in 2008 will come as a learning and investors will do their due diligence on any investment plans in any area and go with the long-term investment horizon of three to five years.

Arvind Mahajan, executive director of KPMG India, believes that as a buyer if you have good negotiation skills and can avoid brokers, you might even avail an extra discount. “Owing to cash crunch, developers are under immense pressure and are looking for ways of funding their future projects. Prices have already dipped 15-20% and interest rates are also coming down. The amount of real estate inventory that we have now makes it undoubtedly a buyer’s market,” he says. The easing of external commercial borrowings (ECB) norms by the government in the new year has already come as a big boost for the realty sector.

Says Sachin Sandhir, MD & country head, Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) India; “Three months from now, prices will start stabilising. It is really just a matter of time until the market becomes positive again. With fears already looming large over the Indian economy slipping into deflation, interest rates are expected to come further down into an affordable zone. If you venture out now you will have a much easier time finding exactly what you want and there is a better chance of getting it at the price you want, too.” So there’s no time like now to move into top gear with your house hunt and seek out the best deals.

News Published Under:   Property Prices |

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