Puravankara Launches its First Theme Based Integrated Lifestyle District in Pune

Puravankara Projects has forayed back into the Western Region with a proposed development of 30 acres in Mundhwa, Pune.

Purva Silversands, the first phase of development across 20 acres is being launched as a unique Integrated Lifestyle District with a design theme that the city of Pune has hitherto not seen before, the company said in a statement.

Purva Silversands is set on the Mula-Mutha river promenade, right across the business district of Kharadi. The proposed new bridge connecting Kharadi and Mundhwa will help de-congest the traffic and shorten the travel time to Purva Silversands in Mundhwa. The 15km elevated corridor 2 of the Pune Metro Phase 1, will also lead Mundhwa to easy connectivity with the key nodes of the city.

Ravi Puravankara, Chairman, Puravankara Projects Ltd. said: "Our foray back into the Western Region is a 'Home Coming' for us. We aspire to make a difference in the western cities with our unique theme-based projects that offer a lifestyle living. Our first project Purva Silversands is planned in the city of Pune, which is ranked amongst the 50 fastest growing urban cities in the world. A thriving job market, high rental growth and the Government's thrust on improving infrastructure makes Pune a very promising market, with an immense need for high quality homes."

Ashish Puravankara, Managing Director, Puravankara Projects Ltd commented, "Our intelligent designs focuses on spacious well-crafted apartments set in an Integrated Lifestyle District. Situated in eastern Pune, Mundhwa has been strategically chosen for this project as it is emerging as a prime residential location for the business district of Kharadi. Mundhwa has a judicial mix of residential, business, leisure and support services. Upcoming infrastructural developments have given the required impetus, for real estate in this region to flourish."

This unique property offers a variety of lifestyle residential apartments - 1, 2, 3, 4 BHK apartments, penthouses, garden apartments, along with a cafés, restaurants and boutique shopping overlooking the river promenade amidst lush landscapes.

Purva Silversands is an iconic residential development with the best-in-class facilities, providing a resort type lifestyle to homebuyers in Pune. The project has been designed to bring the beach to their doorsteps, with a promise to experience 'Life like it's a holiday'.

Fine luxurious homes around a sprawling manmade lagoon with a wave pool, snorkelling pool, koi pond, hammocks, palm trees combined with cafes, restaurants and boutique shopping make Purva Silversands a unique lifestyle destination, and one of the most attractive investment opportunities in the region.

MCHI's property fair begins from Oct 2

MUMBAI: Over 150 developers from Maharashtra and also from other states will display more than 1,500 properties at a four-day property fair slated to begin on October 2 at the MMRDA Grounds in Bandra Kurla Complex.

Organised by the Maharashtra Chamber of Housing Industry (MCHI), the property fair, besides showcasing projects in Mumbai and its metropolitan region, also will have pavilions displaying properties in Pune, Ahmedabad, Nashik, Baroda, Bangalore, Goa, Kochi and Chennai.

Over 22 banks and financial institutions such as ICICI Bank, State Bank, Bank of Baroda, Bank of India, LIC Housing Finance, Axis Bank and HDFC are participating in the property mega fair.

All the properties to be displayed in the expo will have requisite approvals, besides having clear titles and commencement certificates, said Bandish Ajmera, Chairman, MCHI-CREDAI Exhibition Committee.

Projects of Peninsula Group, Tata Housing, Indiabulls, Jaypee Group and Adani Group will be available for property buyers to choose from at the expo, organisers said.

Separate stalls will be there to highlight properties in central suburbs and extended areas and the island city.

MCHI- CREDAI has also developed a ‘virtual property expo’ in which all projects will be displayed online.

NRI investments in realty to go up by 35% this year: ASSOCHAM

Indian property developers are anticipating a 35% increase in enquiries from NRI-based purchasers as compared to last year with Bengaluru emerging as a top destination for NRIs to park their money in real estate, reveals the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) latest study.

The ASSOCHAM conducted a random survey of nearly 850 real estate developers in Delhi-NCR, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahemdabad, Pune, Dehradun, Chennai etc. The survey reveals that interest for buying property by NRIs have increased by over 30-35% over the last year. “NRIs feel confident about the new government of India and waiting for an investment-friendly market in various fields”, adds the paper. 

D S Rawat

As per the ASSOCHAM recent findings, Bangalore is the most favourite property investment destination for NRIs followed by Ahemdabad (2nd), Pune (3rd), Chennai (4th), Goa (5th), Delhi (6th) and Dehradun (7th).

The majority of real estate developers said the NRI traffic is coming primarily from the UAE, U.S., Singapore, Australia, UK, Canada and South Africa. This year, the demand is more for the high-end property and commercial buildings.

Releasing the paper, D S Rawat, Secretary General ASSOCHAM said, “With the revival in global economy especially in the United States and Europe people are more optimistic and looking for property to invest in. The both small and big developers are focusing the NRI base in the US, UK and Asia Pacific Region this year.

As per the findings, the share of NRI sales are currently at approximately 18% and are likely to increase by 30-35% in the coming year, adds the ASSOCHAM paper.

To tap a large section of the cash-rich NRIs living overseas, developers are not just conducting 

property shows, exhibitions and opening overseas representative offices. They are also expanding their existing distribution chains and entering into strategic partnerships to encourage investors from this cash-rich segment also, adds the ASSOCHAM paper.

ASSOCHAM findings:

According to ASSOCHAM survey, Bangalore tops in terms of investment from Non Resident Indians (NRIs) who are considering settling down in India in coming years. The major factors that drive NRIs to invest in Bangalore’s property market is the booming IT sector. It has the largest concentration of leading IT and ITeS companies. According to an estimate, there are 2,200 IT companies, over 664 MNCs, 183 biotechnology companies, and 248 BPOs operating in Bangalore.

Growing number of IT/ITES companies in Bangalore provide lucrative job opportunities to NRIs who are considering settling in India. Moreover, exponential growth in infrastructure and real estate sector also contributes positively towards influencing NRIs to invest in the property market. 

The demand has also shifted from mid-segment housing to luxury housing in Bangalore, adds the paper.

Ahemdabad (32%) has continued to be the most stable market in terms of demand and absorption of both residential and commercial spaces.  NRI’s consider Ahemdabad as a safe place to invest in, with lenient government regulations regarding property investments by Non Resident Indians.

Pune takes the 3rd place with 30.5%, whereas Chennai at 28% per cent assumes 4th position and Goa is at 5th position with 23% and Delhi with only 21% NRIs interested in investing in the capital city for property purchase, reveals the survey.

In Delhi, there has been a 21% rise in enquiries this year as opposed to last year from this segment and the majority of the queries have been for the residential segment. Catering to the growing demand among high-end segment, Delhi has also emerged the promising markets for real estate.

Branded luxury homes for India's super-rich

In India, the concept of branded luxury homes is only two or three years old. Growth of this segment could be pegged at roughly 5-6% per annum, owing to the fact that it is a very exclusive niche category with a restricted number of buyers, says Anuj Puri, Chairman & Country Head, Jones Lang LaSalle India. 

The basic premise behind branded residences is that the developers of such projects tie up with international luxury hospitality or lifestyle brands to create unique and highly differentiated offerings. As in all new business segments, there was no specific pre-existing demand for such homes - the mind-set of the target audience first needs to be primed to create demand, as supply will only follow demand. This process is happening with a fair degree of success in cities like Mumbai, Pune and Delhi NCR. 

Branded luxury homes bring various advantages beyond a designer label and location with them. They boast of professionally designed interiors and exteriors, highly evolved, centralized facilities management and various additional features like concierge services, high-grade electronic surveillance and security and valet parking. These factors have high appeal value, especially to buyers who have seen such homes abroad and aspire to live at such levels.

Branded luxury homes are targeted at that segment of India’s super-rich that prefer the conveniences and status value of luxury homes designed, marketed and often managed by international hospitality or signature designer brands. 

Developers of branded luxury homes are generally happy to provide personal customization to their buyers as long as these customizations do not detract from the overall project specifications, aesthetics and integrity.

The overall share of luxury homes in the Indian real estate domain would not exceed 6-7%, depending on how 'luxury' is defined in various markets. In industry terms, we define 'luxury' housing as homes costing Rs. 4-5 crore, while homes with ticket-sizes of around Rs. 1-1.5 crore fall in the premium or high-end segment.

The branded residences segment is not without challenges. These would include a limited buyer segment, finding the needed land parcels within high-prestige locations, providing the required infrastructure to adequately supplement the overall luxury experience - and, of course, getting the right brands to come on board in the first place. The latter factor is by no means without challenges, since international designer labels – by their very nature - have very high brand standards which a proposed project must demonstrably be able to live up to. 

The fate of branded residences as a property investment segment still hangs in the balance. From the churn point of view, selling mid-income housing is easier than high-end or luxury homes since a larger base of the population falls in the mid-income category. The sale velocity is higher and the sales cycle is also shorter, with mid-income housing projects usually being sold with 3-4 months of their launch. 

In comparison, high-end apartments and luxury homes often take more than six months to sell. As already mentioned, the bulk of demand for residential properties in India lies in the budget / mid-income category and comes from buyers who can avail of ready bank funding. 

Though buyers of ultra-luxury housing such as branded residences are not dependent on such considerations by virtue of their existing networth, it also means that the pace at which the branded luxury housing segment will grow depends on the pace at which India's macro-economic environment is able to produce such individuals. 

Magarpatta Belt Becomes Pune's Investment Hotbed

Situated on the eastern side of Pune, Magarpatta is close to the Kharadi EON IT Park, Kalyani Nagar, Koregaon Park, Fatimanagar and the Hadapsar Industrial Estate. Crossing North Main Road towards Koregaon Park annexe approaching Mundhwa Road is the point of the most talked-about new D.P. road that will connect Koregaon Park to Magarpatta.

This road, from the northwest region of Magarpatta City and touching the Botanical Gardens, will virtually make the Koregaon Park area one of its closest neighbourhood locations from Magarpatta. This connecting route from Magarpatta to Koregaon Park will fuel the development of residential projects, as it provides a vast improvement in commuting towards the CBD (Central Business District).

The entire Magarpatta and Amanora belt is lined with beautiful housing complexes, state-of-art projects, commercial developments and an array of shopping outlets, giving a glimpse of one of Pune’s most hip-and-happening areas. The rate of development in and around the Magarpatta belt in terms of residential, retail and commercial real estate has been significant over the past two years. 

The ready infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, offices and IT hubs and the array of available entertainment options at Amanora Town Centre andMagarpatta complement the growth of residential property buying in and around the area, says Pravin Mahurkar, Head (Pune) - Residential Services, Jones Lang LaSalle India.

From the standpoint of residential development, the area at present comprises of major developers offering quality and affordable housing options. End users and investors in the budget housing right up to the super luxury and premium housing segments have a tempting bouquet of options. The tentative price range in the area begins at Rs. 4500/sq.ft and goes up to a whopping Rs. 14000/sq.ft.

The presence of some premium developers who are creating customized luxurious residential projects has changed the entire lifestyle housing ethos in the Magarpatta belt. Big players such as Panchshil, Marvel Realtors, Kumar Properties and VTP Group (Urban Homes) are well established in this area. Projects such as One North and Yo! Pune by Panchshil and Diva and Ritz by Marvel, Amanora Town and Magarpatta City are just a few currently present there.

There are numerous upcoming developments such as Urban Balance by VTP Group (Urban Homes), Privie Sienna by Kumar Properties, Bounty and Arco by Marvel Realtors and Ela by Vascon. The housing development along other parameters will have a great impact due to the connectivity from Koregaon Park to Magarpatta. It will not only ease commuting and save time but also benefit the overall development of Hadapsar and the adjoining areas.

No more mala-mall for India

Over 55% of the malls in Delhi-NCR region are vacant partly due to economic slowdown, poor designing, lack of robust revenue generation model and located in unattracted location, reveals the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) recent survey.

As per ASSOCHAM estimates, the total rate of vacancy in malls in Delhi-NCR is 55%, while in Mumbai it is 52% followed by Ahmedabad (51%), Chennai (50%), Hyderabad (48%), Bangalore (45%) etc. The position in the nearby town of these locations is much disturbing. 

ASSOCHAM conducted a random survey of all the shopping malls in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune, Dehradun, Chennai etc between October and December 2012. The survey found that many upcoming malls have significantly been delayed and withdrawn due to lukewarm response from retailers. They will also face manifold hike in construction cost.

Commenting on the malls scenario, ASSOHAM Secretary General D S Rawat said that vacancy levels are due to poor location, poor design and poor parking facilities while some are operating at 60% occupancy others are struggling at less than 20% occupancy. The occupiers are finding difficult to manage economically.

The survey also highlighted some of the challenges the industry is facing, which include inadequate infrastructure, unavailability of retail space, multiple taxes, lack of clarity in policies and shortage of experts in areas such as supply chain and store management. Now, they are shifting from lease/rentals models to revenue sharing models and this is encouraging large number of branding showrooms to open shops in malls.

“Biggest shopping mall can feel like a pretty lonely place, majority of retailers said that they are holding back on new store openings and focusing on existing stores,” adds the survey. 

The sharpest decline in mall rental values are also recorded high in Delhi-NCR by 60%, while Mumbai also dropped by 58% in rentals followed by Ahmedabad (55%), Chennai (54%), Hyderabad (52%), Bangalore (49%), Kolkata (45%), Pune (42%) and Dehradun (40%), points the ASSOCHAM survey.

Nearly 82% of the retailers said that they are shutting down some of stores in areas where rentals are too high, and with the slowdown in consumption complicating things further, point out the survey.

Nationally, the vacant rates of shopping malls are 55% and will likely rise to 70% by 2015, according to the ASSOCHM analysis. More than 90 percent of shopping in India is still done at unorganised one-off shops, adds the survey.

Sunil Kumar Dhaiya, Co-Chairperson of ASSOCHAM Real Estate committee also specialising in malls said that the real estate prices and construction costs are rising but the retail business is not growing enough to absorb this. There are just not enough footfalls.

Retail rents are down 60-65% from peaks in 2010 and that's especially painful for developers, when servicing loans is expensive at 12-13 percent interest," said Rawat.

Nearly 76% of the shop owner’s said that increasing rents will not work because at the end of the day it has to be affordable for retailers to do business and the fate of the retail realty segment is intertwined with the retail industry.

The retail sector is forecast to grow rapidly, but mall rentals and valuations are not rising in of most markets, added Rawat.

According to the ASSOCHAM estimates, rental values of malls remained stagnant across Delhi-NCR, Ahemdabad, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and Kolkata in the October-December 2012 quarter. However, certain micro markets in Ludhiana, Indore witnessed a growth over the quarter in the range of 10-15%.

There are approximately 1,200 shopping malls in India, the growth in the retail sector has driven a mall building boom across the country, with the total number of malls expected to increase to 1,500 by 2015 from 1,200 in 2012," added the ASSOCHAM report.

The malaise of high vacant malls can be seen in micro markets, such as Ghaziabad, Noida and Gurgaon, where retail has not picked up. Clubbing this with the fact that spending was really low, the demand for malls is likely to remain dull for the coming next 2013, commented Rawat.

The survey adds demand for mall space across most micro markets remained slow because of lack of fresh supply, conservative approaches from retailers and overall slowdown in consumer demand. Slowdown in retail demand in many micro markets has led to rental values either remaining stable or correcting marginally in the range of 10 to 15% over the previous quarter.

Construction Industry needs 12 million skilled workforce: CREDAI

In an effort to provide more skilled workforce to the construction industry, CREDAI, the apex body of organised real estate developers in India, along with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) has launched Skill Development Programme.

Speaking at the ‘Constro 2012’ seminar in Pune recently, CREDAI’s national president, Lalit Kumar Jain said, “The construction industry is the second largest industry contributing to the nation’s GDP. In the coming years this industry will require more than 1.25 crore of skilled labour. It is important to produce at least 25 thousand skilled labour every year.”

Getting a skilled labour is an uphill task in construction industry. To overcome this issue, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) along with CREDAI Pune Metro has initiated a unique program called Kushal. The main objective of “Kushal” is to impart practical skills to un-skilled & semi-skilled laborers.

CREDAI (Pune) vice-president Rohit Gera said training will be offered to construction workers in six trades - shuttering carpentry, bar-bending, masonry, plumbing, painting and tiling. “The USP of the programme lies in providing learning opportunities to poor construction workers on the job and on the site free of cost. Workers learn while they earn,” he said.

“Giving training of international standards to unskilled labours is an intricate task in itself. Focusing more on practical knowledge rather than only technical information is done by Kushal. To take our nation on a growth path, Kushal is doing a commendable work, said Shekhar Reddy, Director-NSDC and Vice President of CREDAI India.

On the evaluation pattern Gera said, “The labourer’s performance is evaluated daily by the trainer present on-site full time. Also, intermediate evaluation and final evaluation comprising an oral test and a pictorial test will be done. On completion of the programme, the laborers are awarded certification by Builders Association of India.

“The Kushal project aims at imparting training without disturbing on-site work. It consists of 80 per cent on-site training and 20 per cent classroom-based training. The most measurable outcome of the programme for the trainees is considerable wage rise, leading to better living conditions,” said Gera.

The course content has been professionally developed by experts, said CREDAI officials.

FICCI's take on skilled labour issue

For the construction sector, the New Year brought grim news. Already burdened with a shortage of unskilled labour across the country, the industry is now further hit by a serious shortfall of skilled workers.

Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) and Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) have both warned that the sector is severely starved of proper staff.

By 2020, the construction industry will need 5 million civil engineers, architects and planners but the country is expected to produce fewer than 1 million of these professionals, says Rics.

"The industry has seen a massive increase in the last few years, especially the real estate segment due to the swelling housing needs," said Pooja Gianchandani, the director of skills development at Ficci. "Whether it is the ambitious low-cost housing schemes and programmes of the government or the demand for modern homes, each of these require a pool of specialised and trained manpower that cuts across professionals like engineers, architects, designers and so on."