Dull Diwali for real estate: Few festive treats for home buyers

In another dull festive season the number of residential units launched is expected to fall by 20% over last year’s tallyof 73,034. Few developers are unveiling new projects. Some like Sunteck Realty, which is looking to roll out apartments in Mumbai’s central and western suburbs, are awaiting RERA approvals.

Godrej Properties and Oberoi Realty told FE they’re staying with the properties already in the market and have nothing new this time. Others such as the Runwal group are merely offering new phases in existing locations.

Experts say transactions in the ready-to-move-in segment, where developers are offering good deals, could see traction. “Many Grade A developers are offering flexible payment options which are more back-ended,” Samir Jasuja, founder and CEO, Prop Equity, said.

Tata Housing, for instance, is asking customers to pay a flat interest rate of 3.99% for one year while it will bear the rest. A buyer can pick up a home in any of ten projects across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Kochi, Delhi NCR and Kasauli. He can choose between a ready- to- move- in place or an under-construction unit.
Sanjay Dutt, MD&CEO, Tata Realty & Infrastructure said customers are looking at benefits which reduce their down payment.

“They are also scouting for festive offers with big discounts,”Dutt said.

The Wadhwa Group is asking customers to pay just 10% of the value of an apartment for ready-to-move-in projects in central and western suburbs; the developer will service the EMI for a year thereafter. The builder is offering buyers a move to a 2-3 bedroom on a higher floor at no extra charge; these are under-construction projects and the booking amount is just 10% with no payment to be made till June 2021.

Runwal is offering a collection of offers across projects in Mumbai which include zero GST, zero stamp duty, zero for a floor rise and easy payment plans. Every booking at its 115 acre township Runwal Gardens in the northern central suburbs of Dombivli, will be accompanied by a gift. For its Olivia project in central suburbs of Powai, the Nahar Group is asking for a booking amount of just 10%; the rest can be paid on possession.

M3M, an NCR-based developer, has a unique proposition whereby a customer can exchange his stalled property for one of its offerings either a ready-to-move-in unit or one under construction. The ‘Port Your Property’ campaign allows the customer to adjust the amount already invested in a stuck project against the cost of the new purchase. The caveat is that the customer would need to additionally invest 3.5 times the value of the earlier property.

Anarock Property Consultants believes the top seven cities could report a 35% jump in housing sales in Q3FY21 over over the July-September quarter. Prop Equity data shows launches between June and August numbered 35,000 units compared with a typical 60,000 units per quarter.