GURUGRAM/NOIDA: Sandwiched between the impact of lockdown that enforced a price correction and a prevailing liquidity crunch, the real estate industry of NCR has put forward a wishlist to the Union finance ministry, pinning its hope on reforms and bailouts in the Budget on February 1.
Apart from infusion of liquidity, developers have made a demand that some reforms be introduced to cut down project cycles via introduction of single-window clearances and granting an industry status to real estate. Builders affiliated to Credai and Naredco have also demanded that the input credit regime be integrated in the GST regime for the residential sector with transferrable benefits to buyers, apart from reduction in stamp duty.
Amit Modi, Director of ABA Corp & president-elect of Credai (western UP), told TOI, “To seriously start the process of real estate sector revival, there is an urgent need for reforms in the Budget. The government should also address the demand for single-window clearance, enhancement of IT exemption limit on interest for home loans, and industry status to the sector.”
Manoj Gaur, CMD of Gaurs Group and chairman of Credai’s affordable housing committee, echoed similar sentiments. “The most important is the timely approval of projects, which could be achieved through single-window clearance that will help the sector deliver units within the stipulated time. We hope that the government addresses the liquidity issue and allocates funds for infrastructural development too.”
“The Union government should also think of reintroducing input tax credit in GST, bringing stamp duty and registration charges in the ambit of GST, and reducing stamp duty,” he added.
In Noida, Greater Noida and Ghaziabad, which unlike Gurgaon, have mostly end-user properties, sales have been driven through the lockdown period by hefty price corrections that have helped builders move inventory off the racks. While the lockdown crippled the completion timelines because of the exodus of construction workers, several projects have also been suffering from stifled cashflow.
“The NCR developers are hoping that the government will increase purchasing power of the common man, financial support from banks and financial institutions at reasonable interest rates and last-mile funding to help complete the ongoing projects,” said RK Arora, the president of Naredco and chairman of the Supertech Group.