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Thursday, August 30, 2012

India Property Expo Bangkok begins from Sept 12


Indian real estate and property exhibition ‘Times India Property Expo 2012’ will be organized in Bangkok, Thailand from September 12. 

A well-recognized exhibition dedicated to property industry, the India Property Expo Bangkok will offer an opportunity to the home buyers in Bangkok to buy their dream homes at reasonable cost. Attendees will be able to develop an insight in the current market. professionals who are involved in this business will share their ideas on adoption of modern strategies helpful in generating housing demand for the sustainable growth and development of the real estate industry.

Organised by Times of India, a leading national daily of India, the attendees of the Property Expo Bangkok will be real estate agents, legal advisers, property developers and managers, financial institutions, insurance agents, stock brokers, individuals looking for property investment opportunities abroad, all those who are looking for the real estate opportunities in different countries and all professionals related to the real estate sector. The attendees of this event will be able to meet experts from the field and will get to learn everything about property investing, holiday home ownership, timeshares and many more.

The two-day expo will be held at Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre.

Monday, August 27, 2012

L&T wins Rs 749 crore offshore contract from ONGC

MUMBAI: Larsen and Toubro has secured an offshore contract valued at Rs 749 crore from the Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) for total 'EPCI' - Engineering Procurement Construction a Installation of four wellhead platforms.

The contract was won against international competitive bidding. The project, spread over the Mukta, Bassein and Mumbai High South fields is part of ONGC's strategy to develop marginal fields to meet India's rising energy demands. L&T is scheduled to complete the project by April, 2014. In addition to conventional wellhead facilities, one of the platforms, viz., the 8-127, will also have process gas compression facility.

LaT has been serving the upstream hydrocarbon sector since early the '9Os, This contract reiterates the long term association of ONGC with LEI:T in the development of offshore fields in India. The Company's offshore track record includes successful completion of several challenging projects for domestic and International clients.

L&T provides complete 'EPCI' solutions for the offshore oil a gas industry combining customized engineering a procurement, fast-track project management and world class fabrication a sea installation capabilities.

Larsen & Toubro is a USD 12.8 billion technology engineering, construction, manufacturing and financial services conglomerate, with global operations. It is one of the largest and most respected companies in India's private sector. A strong, customer-focused approach and the constant quest for top-class quality have enabled L&T to attain and sustain leadership in its major lines of business over seven decades.

Sunday, August 26, 2012

How to determine construction quality of your home?

Most builders claim that their projects are of 'quality construction', without actually providing enough details to justify such claims. Kishor Pate, CMD - Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd & Hon. Secretary - CREDAI (Maharashtra) outlines some key guidelines that property buyers can and should follow while evaluating their options.


Today, one of the factors one looks for while buying a home is quality construction. A home buyer wants to ensure that the home will:
Kishore Pate, CMD, Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd
  • Be safe and sound for its inhabitants
  • Remain inhabitable for a maximum possible amount of years
  • Not develop problems over time
  • Not entail huge repair and maintenance costs
  • Have good resale value if one decides to sell it
These are aspects which are next to impossible to judge when a residential project is new or only a couple of years old. Naturally, most property developers will ensure that everything looks ship-shape on the surface even if they do not necessarily follow quality construction norms. Even on the resale market, we will find that the current owners of a resale flat will undertake cosmetic touch-ups to make their home look as new and unflawed as possible.

Banks do only a cursory check on a project's overall construction quality while evaluating a home loan proposal. It has become a common marketing practice for developers to claim that their projects are of high-grade construction. Those who do so without justification are aware that most home buyers are not equipped to make a value judgement on such claims.

Home buyers often select properties on the basis of location advantages such as availability of public transport, shopping and hospitals. In larger cities like Mumbai and Delhi NCR, plots in such locations are quickly snapped up by developers because they know that the location itself will sell their projects. Because of this, they will often develop these projects at the lowest possible cost because their greatest expense lies in the purchase of the plot.

The situation is not as severe in smaller cities like Pune. Commuting distances are smaller, which means that home owners manage to reach workplaces, shopping outlets, healthcare facilities and places for family entertainment faster. This is one of the primary reasons why land costs - and therefore finished property costs - in smaller cities are more rational. However, many developers try to cut costs wherever possible, so there is still a high incidence of inferior construction going on in cities like Pune.

How To judge construction quality

To begin with, a developer's brand is a fairly good indicator. Brand value has different meanings in different cities. For instance, the most reputed developer brands in a city like Mumbai also have the biggest price tags. Quality construction in their projects is assured, but so are ruinous property costs. In Pune, a developer's brand evolves more on a reputation for consistently high quality in offered amenities and construction. Such a reputation spreads quickly by word of mouth and becomes a benchmark for overall value and quality.

Because their reputation for quality construction is their primary ambassador in a very competitive market, branded builders employ only trusted contractors and ensure proper quality control throughout the construction process.

In other words, a builder's brand status in a city like Pune is a reasonably good guideline to follow. This holds true in new constructions by such a builder as well as resale properties in his projects. The most important hallmark of quality construction is that it endures.

There are various ways in which a home buyer can check on the general quality of construction:

Foundation

Patched cracks in a building's exterior can be an indicator that the project has a faulty foundation. Other signs to look for are small cracks in walls of a flat, creaking or sticking doors and windows and improperly aligned or uneven floor, bathroom and kitchen tiles.

Design

A quality construction project is designed in such a way that the weight of the overall structure is evenly and scientifically distributed. Also, a developer focused on quality will not spare costs when it comes to providing detailed finishing and intricate detailing, both in the building’s common areas and within the residential units themselves.

Fixtures

Developers who pride themselves for quality construction do not allow their contractors to use cheap taps, window frames, door handles, electrical outlets and fittings. Likewise, common facilities such as lifts will be by established manufacturing brands and will be under a maintenance contract by a reputed facilities management agency. Any evidence of obscure, unfamiliar brands should be viewed with suspicion.

Paint

Cheap paint on walls and doors is easy to detect. Good paint on walls and wooden surfaces not only enhances their visual appeal but also prolongs the life of these surfaces. If one finds that cheap paint has been used, this is evidence that the developer does not feel that investing in good paint makes sense because the surfaces themselves are not made to last.

Concrete quality

The quality of the concrete used in a building depends on what grade of concrete has been used, what the concrete/sand ratio is and whether the concrete was allowed to cure for a sufficient amount of time. One rule of thumb is that it should not be too easy to drive a nail into the walls.

Open areas and landscaping

Though it may not be immediately obvious, the presence of sufficient open areas and landscaping has a symbiotic significance with relation to construction quality. The availability of open areas implies that the builder has not made filling every available square foot with sellable construction, and that he intends to provide a wholesome and pleasing experience to his customers. Similarly, aesthetically done landscaping indicates that the buildings in a project are built to last and deliver value for the longest possible time.

The true value of quality construction

The average life-span of a project that has been built on quality construction parameters is around 80 years. After this period, a project will usually come up for reconstruction. It should be remembered that the true investment value of a residential unit such as a flat does not actually lie in the flat itself, but in the flat owner's share of the land that the building occupies.

In other words, it is the undivided land portion of the investment that one has made in a flat that amounts to the actual value of one's investment. However, in real estate market terms, the longevity of a building is very much linked to how much it will fetch on the resale market, or how long an investor can derive rental income from it. From the point of view of personal use of a flat for occupancy, quality construction ensures that the owner will incur much lower maintenance and repair costs and enjoy its security and comfort for much longer.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

XRBIA Developers engages huge audience through social media

With a one of its kind marketing campaign Xrbia Developers Pvt.Ltd., decided to mark their entry on the social media frontier.

This social media campaign was an extension of their existing advertising campaign which promoted XRBIA as a unique & idyllic country, with its own communities, culture & occupations, Studio High suggested them to choose the President of Xrbia.

What made this campaign unique is, for the first time a real estate player in India realized the strength of social media and was ready to face the masses.

With Pranab Mukherjee recently being elected as the new President of India it was the ideal time to hit the market with a campaign ‘Be The Next President’ where the participant had to answer why should he/she be the President of Xrbia.

Holding the activity for 15 days, the campaign was a grand success. Luring the audience on the 1BHK prize the Facebook page gained heavy interactions, the numbers increased from 27,500 to 64,225. Twitter gained a huge number of followers. Over 3,500 entries were received of which 400 entries were shortlisted to be placed on www.presidentofxrbia.com. Daily contests on Facebook & Twitter helped, to keep the audience in the loop. The website received 870,000 visitors within 15 days and the YouTube video gained 19,332 Views from just a mere 6 views. The campaign generated traffic of 60k per day to the website. The Republic of Xrbia steered up some interest from over 35 countries visiting which resulted in an array of entries.

The campaign was launched on 1st August 2012, with the entries open till 12th August. After going through a robust round of competitive entries the jury picked the President of Xrbia, Mr. Sunil Galve on 15th of August with him claiming to use the apartment to support the education of the underprivileged.

The break through campaign conceptualized by StudioHigh promises to create a long term wow factor that will create cognizance for XRBIA as a brand.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Orbit Group gets GRIHA pre-certification for two Mumbai projects

Surmount Energy, a Green Building Consultancy Service provider, has helped Orbit Group to achieve GRIHA pre-certification from the Association for Development and Research for Sustainable Habitats (ADaRSH) for two of its most prominent projects in Mumbai, the Orbit Terrace and Orbit Grand.

Orbit, one of the most prominent and respected brand in the Indian Real Estate Industry had chosen Surmount Energy to provide Green Consultancy Services towards achieving it GRIHA certification requirements.

Balbir Khera, CEO of Surmount Energy, says, “We are glad that as a part of Orbit Group’s Green initiatives, and delighted to have worked jointly with them to achieve their objectives of the GRIHA pre-certifications successfully.  Both Orbit Terrace and Orbit Grand are premium properties located at most coveted areas of Mumbai and it is a matter of pride for us that Orbit has chosen Surmount as its partner in this work”.

GRIHA is a green building evaluation system that has been conceived by TERI and developed jointly with the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India. In accordance with the Office Memorandum by Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF), government of India, Association for Development and Research for Sustainable Habitats (ADaRSH) has proposed a procedure that will enable fast track environmental clearance through GRIHA pre-certification. ADaRSH promotes GRIHA (Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment) as a design & evaluation tool for Green Buildings and Habitats.

Surmount Energy is a leader in Green Building Consultancy Services; Automation Solutions for Home, Township and Offices; and CCTV & Surveillance Systems. Its services and solutions currently serve 2.2 million sq. meters of space in India across 100s of new and existing buildings. The automation solutions offered under the BuildTrack™ brand are designed to meet the safety, security, comfort or convenience needs in a broad range of residential, commercial or retail situations. Visit www.SurmountEnergy.com to learn more about our solutions.

DLF builds India's largest mall in Gurgaon


NEW DELHI: India's leading developer DLF is set to build India's largest mega mall, a 4-million square feet promenade in Gurgaon, that's being touted as the country's answer to the huge malls that are coming up in China.

India's largest real estate builder will invest Rs 2,000 crore on the project, which compares with the world's largest 7-million sq ft New South China mall in Dongguan and is bigger than the 1.5-million sq ft Great India Place mall in Noida - currently the largest mall in India, a senior official at DLF said.

The mall was originally planned in 2005 to be completed by 2007 when it would have been the largest in the world, but it was put on the back burner as demand waned. Since then quite a few big malls with 6-7 million sq ft area have come up in China.

Economic Times quoting the official having said earlier that construction work at the site will begin as soon as DLF's 1.8 million sq ft mall in Noida is operational in the next 10-12 months.

The builder is relying on the fact that the mall's opening in 2015-16 will coincide with the entry of a number of new retailers and brands into the country with the opening up of foreign direct investment in single and multi-brand retail.

"By then, the rapid metro for Gurgaon and DLF's new 16-lane road would also be operational, feeding traffic into the new mall," said the official. A station on the new rapid metro will be integrated with the mall to bring in footfalls. The mall is being planned as a large retail district with a combination of open and indoor spaces.

The Indian retail environment is currently facing challenges, with an oversupply of retail spaces but a lack of quality malls across cities. The overall absorption of retail space in India fell 57% in the first half of 2012 due to non-availability of quality malls, according to property advisory firm, Jones Lang LaSalle India.

Earlier this year, the government allowed 100% FDI in single brand retail but with a few riders like mandatory sourcing of 30% from Indian SMEs. It had also tried to open up FDI in multi-brand retailing but had faced stiff opposition from small retailers who fear their businesses will be impacted if foreign multi-brand retailers like Wal-Mart, Tesco and Carrefour are allowed to set up shop here.

Amarprakash offers Chennai’s first island apartment

Amarprakash Developers Pvt. Ltd., Tamil Nadu’s leading property developers, has recently launched their most prestigious township project `Palm Riviera’ , the first island apartments in Chennai. 

Comprising of 1312 apartments in a total area of 16-acre at vantage location of Chrompet, the Rs. 700 crore project with Adyar river in the background includes the types: River view apartments, Penthouses, Island apartments and Floating apartments, in 14 blocks. 

Living in the Island: Palm Riviera
The project is just one km away from 400 ft Outer Ring Road, a bypass connecting Vandalur-Ennore port via four national highways and blessed with airport, railway station, and bus stand facilities in the proximity.

Commenting on the new project launch, Sudhir Kumar Surana, Chairman, Amarprakash Developers Pvt. Ltd. said, “The launch of Palm Riviera will provide home buyers the lavishing beauty of Venice with complete luxury. At Palm Riviera, the customers will get all the world class best facilities with no inclination to step out of this beautiful world.” 

The township will encompass 2 to 4 BHK flats, with built-up space in the range 900 sq ft to 2000 sq ft. It will feature wide range of club house amenities and lifestyle facilities, unique with extremely high standards to serve everyone in the family including the toddlers and elderly members. Some of the highlights of the project are Art School, Golf Putting, CBSE School, Battery Car for elders to move around, Kids Zone, Women’s Club, Evening Bazaar and Multiplex. All these come at an exclusive launch offer of Rs. 3599 per sq ft onwards. Apartments come at a price of above Rs. 35 lakh to Rs. 90 lakh.

The project is an architectural model inspired by the Floating city of Venice. The Island apartments of Palm Riviera is a construction marvel set up amidst artificially created streams, springs and water bodies, allowing enjoyable bridge walks. The floating apartments is yet another amazement with suspended houses between two blocks. The community township is absolutely designed eco-zone and pollution-free with basement parking lot and five acres of green space for healthy and quality living. 


About Amarprakash Developers:

Amarprakash Developers Pvt. Ltd. was incorporated in 2004. Since its inception, in a short span, the company has executed many prestigious projects across the city. Its commitment to quality and customer satisfaction has driven its growth to remarkable heights. The projects include 'The Heritage' at Chrompet, Saffron Heights (Phase I) at Pallavaram, Saffron Heights (Phase II) at Pallavaram and Lilac at Rajakilpakkam among others. Currently, the projects on hand are Suncity and The Royal Castle.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Metro rail project comes calling to Gujarat


The Government of Gujarat has informed the Centre that they have taken an “In Principle” decision to adopt the framework of 50:50 joint ownership Special Purpose Vehicle of Government of Gujarat and Government of India for a metro rail project. 

However, in a written reply to a question in the lower house of Parliament today, Minister of Urban Development Kamal Nath said, “The Ministry of Urban Development is yet to receive a formal proposal along with the Detailed Project Report from the State Government for Metro Rail Project between Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar in Gujarat.”

Presently, the Metro Rail Projects are under execution in Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai and Kochi.

The Ministry of Railway has no direct role in funding and implementation of the project except for the approval of technical aspects like schedule of dimensions, track structure etc., the minister said in a statement.  

Implement Chawla panel recommendations on land acquisition: ASSOCHAM

As the land acquisition for industrial and public purposes remains a contentious issue, ASSOCHAM President Rajkumar N Dhoot has said that recommendations of the Ashok Chawla Committee on Natural Resources should be implemented to ensure transparency in maintaining land records and using part of notional gains by the land acquirer for public welfare.
 
Dhoot said land is a sensitive and sentimental issue for the farmers. On the other hand, for economic growth and removal of poverty, India has to go in for a planned urbanisation.  For this, land is a crucial requirement.  Some of the models adopted by the states like Haryana have been successful. There is no forceful acquisition of land but it is acquired with their consent.

Rajkumar N Dhoot
Farmers would agree for parting with their land if they too gain from the development process, he said.

In its report submitted to the government in May, 2011, the Chawla Committee had made some useful recommendations which, if implemented, can resolve several of the knotty problems confronting the whole issue of land acquisition.

“The bottomline should be: win/win situation for the acquirer as also the farmers who is parting with the land,” Dhoot said.

One of the most contentious issues relates to the quantum of compensation paid to the farmers. This arises out of a wide difference between the market price of land and the value which is shown in the government records, known as ‘Schedule of Rates’ (SoRs). The SoRs form the basis for giving compensation to farmers.

As per the committee’s recommendation, there should be regular updating of SoRs in line with the corresponding market rates. “Once the gap between the market rates and the SoRs is brought to a minimum, there would be less pressure for allotment of land at the so-called institutional rates.

The committee made an important recommendation regarding transparency in land data. The records should include the complete ownership details, areas allotted and possible land uses along with the actual status as regards utilization and encroachments . There should also be use of satellite images and Geographic Information   System (GIS) mapping for ensuring a transparent and efficient public land management. “This is one of the key takeaways from the Chawla Committee and should be implemented,” the ASSOCHAM President said.

Yet another recommendation of the panel was that the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) should be relaxed to ensure maximum FAR. This would allow the most optimum land use.
The ASSOCHAM would also stress upon implementing a suggestion that there should be a high level oversight organ for ensuring regular monitoring of all cases of land alienation by the Central Government organizations. There should also be a Central Depository of Land records. “This would ensure accountability and transparency in alienation of public land assets”.

So far as the national capital of Delhi is concerned, the Chawla panel suggested an immediate constitution of a regulary body. “We are all for implementation of this important suggestion. This would also bring transparency in the housing sector. The monitoring and oversight functions of the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), which functions under the administrative control of the Union Urban Development Ministry, should be taken over and given to the regulatory body.

“The DDA should only focus on building houses, especially for the weaker and middle segments of the population in the capital city, “the chamber said.