High Volume of Applications

As of September 4, 5 PM, MHADA has received a staggering 52,942 applications for the lottery. Additionally, more than 37,347 applicants have already made the payment for the Earnest Money Deposit (EMD), a critical step in the application process. This unprecedented response underscores the acute demand for affordable housing in Mumbai, one of India’s most populous and rapidly growing cities.

Extended Deadline

The decision to extend the application deadline from September 4 to September 19 reflects the enormous interest in the lottery and aims to provide additional opportunities for potential applicants to participate. The extension allows more individuals to apply, further enhancing the chances for Mumbai residents to secure affordable housing.

Details of the Lottery

MHADA’s lottery includes 2,030 homes distributed across various categories and locations in Mumbai. Notably, the authority has reduced the prices for 370 of the more expensive units in an effort to make the housing more accessible to a broader segment of the population. This strategic move is expected to attract even more applicants and increase the lottery’s overall appeal.

Application and Payment Process

To participate in the lottery, applicants must submit their applications along with the EMD payment, which acts as a security deposit. The substantial number of applications and payments received so far highlights the strong demand for these homes and the critical need for affordable housing solutions in the city.

Impact on Mumbai’s Housing Market

The response to this lottery reflects the ongoing challenges in Mumbai’s housing market, where demand for affordable homes continues to outstrip supply. The high volume of applications is a testament to the need for more affordable housing options in the city, as residents grapple with rising property prices and limited availability.

Next Steps

Following the extended deadline, MHADA will continue to process the applications and finalize the lottery draw. Successful applicants will be allocated homes based on the lottery’s results, with the authority aiming to facilitate a transparent and equitable distribution process.

Broader Context

The lottery is part of MHADA’s ongoing efforts to address the housing crisis in Mumbai by providing affordable housing options to residents. The authority’s initiatives are critical in supporting the city’s growth and ensuring that its inhabitants have access to quality housing.

Also Read: MHADA Reduces Prices for Homes in Mumbai Lottery

Conclusion

MHADA’s housing lottery has garnered substantial interest, reflecting the significant demand for affordable housing in Mumbai. With the deadline extension and the reduction in prices for certain units, the lottery aims to accommodate more applicants and provide vital housing opportunities for the city’s residents.

The post MHADA Receives Over 50,000 Applications for 2030 Homes in Mumbai Lottery; Deadline Extended appeared first on Square Feat India.

Objective of the Bonds

The proposed bonds are intended to fund a variety of infrastructure initiatives that are crucial for enhancing the urban landscape of Mumbai and its surrounding areas. These projects include the construction of new roads, expansion of the metro rail network, and the development of integrated transportation hubs, all of which are pivotal for managing the city’s rapid growth and improving public services.

Government Guarantee

The request for a government guarantee underscores the MMRDA’s commitment to securing the necessary funding for these high-priority projects. By seeking this guarantee, the MMRDA aims to ensure investor confidence and secure favorable terms for the bond issuance. A government-backed guarantee would provide the financial security needed to attract a wide range of investors, facilitating the swift mobilization of capital required for the infrastructure developments.

Infrastructure Projects

The funds raised through these bonds will be directed towards several key projects, including:

• Metro Rail Expansion: Extending existing metro lines and adding new routes to improve connectivity across the MMR.
• Road Development: Upgrading major roadways and constructing new roads to alleviate traffic congestion and enhance urban mobility.
• Integrated Transportation Hubs: Developing multi-modal transportation hubs to streamline transit services and improve efficiency.

These projects are expected to significantly enhance the quality of urban infrastructure, support economic growth, and improve the overall quality of life for residents of Mumbai and the broader metropolitan area.

Impact on Mumbai’s Development

The successful issuance of these bonds would mark a substantial step forward in the MMRDA’s ongoing efforts to modernize Mumbai’s infrastructure. The projects funded by these bonds are anticipated to address some of the pressing challenges faced by the city, including traffic congestion, inadequate public transport options, and urban sprawl.

Also Read: MMRDA gives 13,000 homes for quarantine purposes

Next Steps

The Maharashtra government’s response to the MMRDA’s request will be closely watched, as it will determine the timeline and execution of the proposed infrastructure projects. If the guarantee is granted, the MMRDA will proceed with the bond issuance process, setting the stage for a series of transformative developments across the region.

Broader Implications

This move aligns with broader urban development strategies aimed at fostering sustainable growth and enhancing the efficiency of public services in rapidly expanding metropolitan areas. By securing the necessary funding through government-backed bonds, the MMRDA is positioning itself to drive significant advancements in infrastructure, ultimately benefiting the region’s residents and supporting its long-term growth.

The post MMRDA Seeks Maharashtra Government Guarantee for ₹14,000 Crore Infrastructure Bonds appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

Out of the 63 building in Mumbai University Kalina campus 38 building’s are in without an Occupancy Certificate (OC) from the MCGM. This information was provided to RTI Activist Anil Galgali by the Mumbai University. The buildings in the Kalina campus were constructed between 1975 to 2017.

RTI Activist Anil Galgali had sought information from the Mumbai University about the OC of buildings in the Kalina campus. The Infrastructure Planning, execution and planning department of Mumbai University informed Anil Galgali that, maximum buildings do not have an OC. 

Mumbai University informed Anil Galgali that, a total of 63 buildings are in this campus. Of these 63 buildings 38 buildings do not have OC’s, and only 24 buildings have obtained an OC and 1 building has Part OC.

The buildings which have an OC are Ranade Bhavan, Tilak Bhavan, Work Shop,  WRIC Guest House, SP Ladies Hostel, New Class IV Qtrs, MJ Phule House, Dnyaneshwar Bhavan, Eurasian Studies, Staff Qtrs A,B,C,D,E,F, CD Deshmukh Bhavan, Dr.Babasaheb Ambedkar Bhavan, Press Godown, Abul Kalam Building, Phirozshah Mehta Bhavan, Anna Bhau Sathe Bhavan, Animal House, Glass House, Vice Chancellor Bungalow. Cultural Centre have Partly OC.

The buildings without OC include, ICSSR Hostel, Reader’s Quarters 12 A, 12B, 12 C, Students Canteen, Old Lecture Hall Complex, JN Library, JP Naik Bhavan, WRIC Administrative Building, Health Centre, Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil Boy’s Hostel, MDK Ladies Hostel, Garware Institute Old, New Garware Institute, Work Shop Garware, Staff Quartes G, Pandita Ramabai Ladies Hostel, Alkesh Dinesh Modi Gallery, Marathi Bhavan, IDOL Building, Zandu Institute, Annex Building, Life Science Building, Exam Canteen, Sports Complex, Shikshak Bhavan, Post Office, Servant Qtrs, New Lecture Complex, Sanskrit Bhavan, School Of Language, Rajiv Gandhi Centre, IT Park, Shankarrao Chavan Teachers Training Academy, UMDAE Hostel, UMDAE Faculty Building, Nano Science & Nano Tech Centre, Old Class IV Qtrs.

In a letter addressed to Governor Bhagat Singh koshyari, CM Uddhav Thackeray and Education Minister Uday Samant, Anil Galgali has demanded that, an enquiry should be held.

Mumbai University’s official statement read as follows, “Mumbai university intends to get the occupancy certificate from the corporation soon for the 4 new buildings which are currently being completed. For the remaining 38 old buildings follow ups are being carried out with BMC officials. Meetings also have been held from time to time in this regards and errors are being rectified as suggested by the officials of BMC.”

Also Read: Godrej buys Rs 16 Crore TDR for RK Studios project

The post 38 buildings in Mumbai University’s Kalina campus do not have an OC appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

A tenant who failed to vacate the flat even after termination of the leave and license agreement was asked to pay Rs 10 lakh as damages to the landlord.

This order was passed by the Court of COMPETENT AUTHORITY RENT CONTROL ACT, KONKAN DIVISION AT MUMBAI on November 17, 2021.

An application was filed under Section 24 of the Maharashtra Rent Control Act, 1999, (the Act) to recover the vacant and peaceful possession of Flat located in Bandra (West), Mumbai-400 050 and damages.

The contention of landlord (applicant) was that in around November 2018 the tenant (respondents) approached the applicant and requested to permit them to use and occupy the landlord’s premises on leave and license basis for residential purpose of their family for a period of three years.

Accordingly, on December 1, 2018 the leave and license agreement was executed. The period of leave and license agreement was commencing from December 1, 2018 and ending on November 30, 2021. The license fee was fixed at the rate of Rs 1 lakh per month. The lock in period was of one year, which expired on November 30, 2019.

It was the contention of the landlord (applicant) that the tenant (respondents) were irregular and delayed in making payment of license fee from the month of January, 2019 . Only repeated follow-up and making several requests would the license fee be paid.

The landlord further claimed that, the tenant (respondents) breached and violated the terms and conditions of the leave and license agreement. Therefore, he served termination notice dated March 10, 2020 upon the tenant and called upon to handover the vacant and peaceful possession of the premises.

The premises was to be vacated on April 15, 2020. Due to the situation of Covid-19 pandemic, the landlord granted additional time to vacate the premises on humanity grounds. The tenant in this period were paying the license fee belatedly.

The landlord further contended that after unlock 1.0 movements were permitted by the State, from June 1, 2020 yet the tenant did not act upon the opportunity that was available. The landlord claimed that despite request the tenant (respondents) failed to handover the vacant and peaceful possession of the application premises. So, the applicant is entitled for license fee from June 1, 2020 with damages on wards till the handover the vacant and peaceful possession of the premises.

The tenant (respondents) appeared and filed an application for leave to defend, which came to be rejected.

The Competent Authority noted the following points after hearing both the parties.

• Considering the nature of proceeding it is summary under chapter VIII of the Act for the speedy disposal of controversy in between licensor and licensee in respect of specific premises given for specific period.
• In continuing to this the Competent Authority is to see whether leave and license agreement executed or not. It is to be noted that the attraction of Section 24 the Act, it is to be establish the relationship as licensor and licensee, execution of agreement, period of expiry and ownership as held by Hon’ble Bombay High Court in case of Dinkar Deshmukh Vs. Vasantdada Sugar Institute, Pune reported in 1997 (1) Mh. L J 188. In this regard the applicant relied upon leave and license agreement dated December 1, 2018. The applicant filed verified copy of leave and license agreement on record. On perusal of leave and license agreement it appears that applicant is the licensor and the respondents are licensees. The period of leave and license agreement is yet to be expired.
• It is a contention of applicant that the respondents were breach the terms and conditions of the leave and license agreement, therefore the applicant issued termination notice dated March 10, 2020 and terminated leave and license agreement. The said termination is admitted by the respondents. Therefore, the applicant rightly terminated leave and license agreement as per terms and conditions of the leave and license agreement. The respondents paid Rs 5,00,000/- as interest free security deposit. Hence, the applicant proved all the necessary ingredients of the Section 24 of the Act.
• In continuation to this as per Section 55(1) of the Act any agreement for leave and license shall be in writing and shall be registered under the Registration Act,1908. In the case in hand the leave and license agreement is registered with Joint Sub Registrar, Andheri-3, Mumbai.
• Apart from this, as per explanation-b to Section 24 of the Act the agreement in writing shall be conclusive evidence of facts stated therein. Therefore, in view of the verdict of the Hon’ble High Court in case of Amit Dalal Vs. Rajesh Doctor reported in 2010(7) Mh.L J 1 the necessary order needs to be passed by the Competent Authority on expiry of the period of license. In the case in hand the respondents failed to vacate the application premises after termination of leave and license agreement. Therefore, the applicant is entitled for possession of application premises.
• As per Sub Section 1 & 2 of Section 24 of the Act the licensor got the right to evict the licensee from the premises on expiry of the period of license failure to vacate the premises by licensee along with damages. The Hon’ble High Court in the case of Geeta N. Shivdasani Vs. Niraj T. Sharma & ors., reported in 2009(4) All MR 821 held that “once it is established that Agreement of Leave and License is in writing, the courts cannot took into intention of parties and if period of the License has expired, the Competent Authority is statutorily obliged to pass an order of Eviction on an application made to it under the provisions of Rent Control Act, 1999 and on failure to vacate, the licensee shall be liable to pay double rate of license fees.” The ratio laid down in the case cited supra does squarely apply to the facts of the instant case. In the instant case also, there is written and registered leave and license agreement. The period of leave and license agreement is expired by termination.
• In this regard the averments made in application reveal that after termination of leave and license agreement the respondents were in possession upon the application premises. However, the respondents did not vacate the application premises after termination of leave and license agreement. But during the pendency of present application, on October 31, 2020 the respondents handed over the vacant and peaceful possession of the application premises to the applicant. This fact is admitted by the applicant and filed pursis at Exh.25 contending that she has received the possession of the application premises on October 31, 2020.
• On above discussion as per Sub-Section 2 to Section 24 of the Act on expiry period of license the continuous possession on the part of respondents or licensee become illegal and liable to pay the damages at the double rate of fixed license fee. In the present case after termination of leave and license agreement i.e. from June 1, 2020 to till October 31, 2020 (though the period of termination notice expired on April 15, 2020, but the applicant claimed damages from the month of June,2020) the possession of the premises with held by the respondents become illegal and for that needs to be imposed damages as per the statutory provision upon the respondents /licensees.

The Order

As per Explanation-b of Section 24 of the Act, an agreement of license in writing shall be conclusive evidence of the fact stated therein. Accordingly, the applicant has complied the mandatory requirements of the Section 24 of the Act, so also brought on record the continues possession after termination leave and license agreement i.e. form June 1, 2020 to till October 31, 2020 so as to claim damages. The respondents have handed over the possession of the application premises on 31.10.2020. Therefore, as per Sub Section 2 of Section 24 of the Act, the applicant is entitled for license fee at the double rate for a period of 01.06.2020 to 31.10.2020 i.e. 1,00,000 X 2 = 2,00,000/- per month i.e. 2,00,000 X 5 = 10,00,000/- from the tenant.

In view of the discussions noted above, the competent authority was of the view that the landlord (applicant) shall be entitled for damages from the tenant (respondents). In such circumstances, I am of the considered view that the application filed by the applicant deserves to be allowed.

The tenant were directed to pay a double license fee a sum of Rs.10,00,000/- for the period of June 1, 2020 to October 31, 2020 to the landlord (applicant) within 30 days. The landlord is also at liberty to appropriate the security deposit, if any.

Advocate Speaks

Prakkash Rohira, advocate for the applicant shared with SquarefeatIndia that ” It had become a common contention of people seeking non payment of Rent and License Fees due to Covid-19. People tend to litigate with the Flat owners once in possession, and stop paying rents, which is unfair to the Owners, specially the ones who are Senior Citizens. The Respondents presented several instances to evade and delay payment, which when brought before the court, was evident. The Judgement of the Hon’ble Court is appreciated.” 

Also Read: Pay 50% rent till September, new offer from landlords

The post Tenant fails to Vacate Flat on Time Now to pay Rs 10 lac to Landlord appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

Post demonetization, Indian housing sales have outstripped new supply, reveals ANAROCK Research. Confusion and uncertainty immediately after demonetization notwithstanding, the negative impact has receded after a major market derailment within the first year of its announcement.

Anuj Puri, Chairman – ANAROCK Group, says, “A notable impact of the triple whammy of DeMo, RERA, and GST was a significant deceleration in new property launches. ANAROCK data shows that in the pre-DeMo period between 2013 till Q3 2016, the top 7 cities saw approx. 16.15 lakh new units launched while the post-DeMo period (Q4 2016-Q3 2021) saw 9.04 lakh units launched in the top 7 cities – a drop of nearly 44% between the two periods.”

“In the pre-DeMo period, new supply outstripped housing sales – whereas, in the post-DeMo period, housing sales overtook new supply in the top 7 cities”, says Puri. “In the pre-DeMo period (2013-Q3 2016), the top 7 cities saw approx. 16.15 lakh units launched while housing sales in this period stood at approx. 11.78 lakh units. After DeMo, between Q4 2016 and Q3 2021, these cities saw cumulative new launches of approx. 9.04 lakh units and housing sales clocked in at approx. 10.37 lakh units.”

With major lessons learned and a huge market realignment following this period of upheaval, the ongoing trend of sales exceeding supply will continue as developers keep a sharp eye on the demand-supply gap. 

‘What does not kill us makes us stronger’

In his book ‘Twilight of the Idols’, the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s words – ‘what does not kill us makes us stronger’ aptly sum up the long-term effects of demonetization on the real estate sector. The housing market has emerged stronger, with speculative buying and selling now done away with and end-users firmly in the driver’s seat. Even luxury housing, which took a major hit after DeMo, has seen a significant resurgence after the COVID-19 pandemic caused latent demand to surface strongly.

Impact on cash transactions in real estate

Predictably, the secondary sales or resale housing market proved far more vulnerable to demonetization than the primary market. This segment, along with luxury housing, historically drew the bulk of ‘cash components’. While the resale housing sector continues to reel from the aftereffects of DeMo, affordable and mid-segment housing demand in primary sales (sales by developers) increased.

Has the once-ubiquitous cash component been fully eradicated from Indian housing?

“Not completely,” says Puri. “However, unlike earlier, people no longer buy homes primarily to get rid of black money – they now buy them because they want to own homes. Most of the end-users now majorly driving housing sales expect their property transactions to be transparent and above-board. Nevertheless, black money is still finding its way into property transactions in smaller towns and peri-urban areas. Overall, the use of black money in Indian housing has reduced by at least 75-80%.”

One major driving factor behind this is that branded, listed players – who now attract a significant majority of housing demand to their projects – play by the book and avoid unaccounted monies in their transactions. After DeMo and the roll-out of RERA and GST, homebuyer demand gravitates towards branded products. Leading developers shifted their previous focus on luxury projects to the new demand for affordable and mid-segment housing.

This demand-supply equilibrium has helped keep the sales momentum going, especially when housing demand rose significantly during the pandemic. As per ANAROCK Research, of the total sales from April to December 2020, the top 8 listed realty players’ share in overall housing sales rose to 22% from the modest 6% in FY 2017. Even strong non-listed developers ramped up their sales share – from 11% in FY 2017 to 18% in the first three quarters of FY21.

Today, the housing sector’s rough ride due to demonetization has smoothened. Still, DeMo has changed the very fundamentals of why and how residential real estate is bought and sold in India. Today, housing sales happen because of actual demand, not as a means to launder black money.

This is a major evolutionary step that would have taken decades to bring about under any other circumstances.

Also Read: Bhushan Kumar Of T-Series Paid Rs 167 Crore For Juhu Bungalow

The post Black Money Deals Down 75-80% in Post DeMo era appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

This is a big decision and if implemented will hurt a lot of builders across the city of Mumbai.

But more than builders it will serve the interest of the tenants of redevelopment projects.

The housing minister of state Jitendra Awhad took to Twitter to explain a new proposal that the government is considering to take up soon.

The proposal is that if a builder fails to deliver the rehabilitation building meant for tenants on time then the builder will end up losing FSI that he was to use for the sale component.

In any redevelopment project, there are two aspects, firstly the rehab component and secondly the sale component.

Rehab component means where builders constructs a building for the tenants or slum dwellers on the land that was earlier occupied by them.

Builders as a compensation for constructing the rehab building for tenants gets FSI.

This FSI enables the builder to construct sale building via which he generates the cost of constructing the rehab building and also his own profit.

In many cases where builders cannot use the entire FSI it gets converted into TDR and is sold.

Thus FSI becomes a major component in the entire redevelopment of building process in the city od Mumbai.

If the proposal mooted by the housing minister makes it way and becomes a law builders defaulting in construction of rehab component on time they will end up losing their priced possession of FSI.

This will directly impact the profits and spoil the entire redevelopment game for builders.

It is a good move as they builder who will now consider a redevelopment project will see to it that he constructs the rehab component on time.

Real estate industry in Mumbai has seen several projects that are stuck, majority of them are redevelopment projects.

Tenants of these buildings suffer and many a times the builder stops even rent.

However, if this proposal sees the light of the day, then most likely the woos of lakhs of families dependent on redevelopment would come to an end.

Also Read: Nawab Malik’s son Buys Rs 9.95 Crore Flat in Bandra says flooding in Kurla reason for Shift

The post Builders not completing Rehab Component on Time may lose FSI of Sale building appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

On Monday, a round of meeting was held on at MHADA headquarters in Bandra.

This meeting was held by the Mumbai board team of MHADA and representatives of five top real estate players attended it.

This was pre-bid meeting that took place at the MHADA headquarters in Bandra’s Kalanagar.

According to sources top five realty players attended the meeting and have shown interest in the redevelopment of this huge land parcel.

In October MHADA had floated tender for redevelopment of this 6.2 million square feet land parcel.

While the names of the top realty players are known, but on request of not disclosing them, we are dropping hints.

One of the interested party that attended the meeting is a Construction giant, which also is redeveloping one of the three BDD chawls in Mumbai.

The other name is of a giant in many fields that ventured into real estate and was one of the frontrunners in the Dharavi Redevelopment.

The third realty player has long term connections with MHADA as it has been construction major projects and homes that MHADA puts in lottery.

The fourth one is a top realty player from Mumbai with projects spread across the city.

The names of the fifth interested party couldn’t be ascertained.

So which project are we talking about?

The project is Motilal Nagar, located in Goregaon west.

The project is meant to rehabilitate more than 5300 tenants, is one of the biggest redevelopment that MHADA aims to carry out

Details of the tender:
Executive engineer Mumbai housing and area development board a regional unit of MHADA through the process of e-tendering has invited digitally signed and unconditional online tender from eligible bidders for the work of redevelopment of Motilal Nagar I, II and III by MHADA through a construction come development contract along with work of development of DP designation/reservations/amenities etc and on-site/off-site related infrastructure activities on the basis of sharing of balance FSI (after reducing rehab component (rehab plus Slums plus DP designation/reservation/amenities etc. And on site/offsite related all infrastructures) to MHADA (Bid share criteria).

Project to be completed in 7 years:
Time limit for completion of construction of rehab component and Mhada share is 84 calendar months including monsoon period.

Area of the project:
The gross plot area is 5,79,243 sq mts,(62 lakh sq ft or 6.2 million sq ft) of which Motilal Nagar I is 3,51,556 sq mts, while Motilal Nagar II & III measures 2,27,687 sq mts.

Number of tenants:
The brief of rehabitation component includes rehab tenement approximately 3717 numbers and slum tenements approximately 1600 numbers plus DP designations/reservation/amenities (as per DP 2034 & MHADA layout approval).

FSI:
The permissible FSI is four and as applicable under DCPR 2034.

EMD:
Bid Security/EMD in the form of demand draft of Rs 50 Crore.

Bid Process:
The bidders have to submit their bids in single stage, to be envelops e-tendering process. The first E envelope technical bid shall be evaluated to ensure technical and financial qualification. Bidding company shall have experiences mention in the RFQ come RFP document the bidders shall have to produce original documents for verification the project will be awarded to the eligible bidder putting the highest percentage of bid share criteria.

Start date & End date:
The starting date of Downloading RFQ cum RFP document is October 28, 2021 at 11 am and the closing date is December 13, 2021 at 1 pm.

The last date to send queries is November 11, 2021 5 pm queries can be sent through email only.

The pre-bid meeting was held on November 15, 2021 at MHADA headquarters.

The physical submission of bid security in the form of original demand draft can be done on December 13, 2021 from 1 pm to 3 pm.

Date for bid opening:
The date and time of opening of the envelop one which is the technical bid is December 14, 2021 at 3 pm in the office of the executive engineer at MHADA headquarters.

Eligible bidders to be informed:
The e-envelop 2, which is the financial bids will be opened only of the eligible bidders of which date and time will be intimated to eligible bidders by email separately.

Tenants unhappy:
The tenant Assocuation of Motlilal Nagar are unhappy. Nilesh Prabhu of Motilal Nagar Vikas Samiti, said, “House owners have not been taken in confidence in entire process. We cooperated with MHADA on every issue but then they have ignored us completely.”

Officials Quiet:
Officials from MHADA who attended the pre-bid meeting have sealed their lips, they confirmed the meeting though. The officials claimed that disclosing the name right now wasn’t an option. However, after a few days the entire details will be put up on the website of MHADA.

Also Read: MHADA Floats Tender for Redevelopment of 6.2 Million Sq Ft Prime Land in Mumbai

The post Top 5 Realty Players Want to Redevelop This 6.2 Million Sq Ft Project in Mumbai appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

Very rarely a developer leaves a realty project that he began.

However, a total of 132 projects have seen builders changing.

There are two types under which in MahaRERA, a realty projects can witness a developer or a builder change.

The first is where the homebuyers or allottees give their consent and the second is where via court orders the builders have been changed in a certain realty projects.

Projects that have seen a change in promoter via two third consent of homebuyers or allottees stands at 74.

These 74 realty projects are from 2017 till 2021 and includes big names too.

There are 58 projects which have seen a change in promoters due to other reasons, these includes Proprietorship change by succession to legal heirs, and As per the statutory orders / operation of law.

You can see the entire list here

Since MahaRERA, came into existence in 2017, the real estate industry which earlier use to be not so transparent suddenly had to open up.

There was a time when anyone could become a builder and many did become and started realty projects.

This caused a lot of strain on the homebuyers who would not be able to get their homes on time, as there was no body fo check whether the builder was fulfilling all his duties and was in a condition to construct a milti crore building or not.

Since, RERA act, the builder had to create an escrow account where the details have to be provided to MahaRERA.

The transparency has led many builders who had jumped into the realty sector with expertise abandon projects.

In Maharashtra there are a total of 132 realty projects which has see a promoter change.

Also Read: No Stamp Duty Discount Yet Oct Realty Sales Breaking Records

The post 132 Realty Projects Have Seen Their Builders Change appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

With increased new office completions, the main southern cities are witnessing a rise in their office vacancy levels despite high net absorption. As per latest ANAROCK data, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Chennai saw office vacancies increase by at least 4.2%, 3.9% and 2.78% respectively in H1 FY22 as against the same period in H1 FY21.

Pune and Kolkata were the only top cities to see office vacancies decline marginally in this period.

Office Vacancies in South Cities:

• Hyderabad has the highest vacancy levels at 15.20% in H1 FY22 as against 11.30% a year ago. As much as 4.5 mn sq. ft. new office space was added in the city in H1 FY22
• In Bengaluru, office vacancy levels increased to 10.75% in H1 FY22 against 6.55% in H1 FY21. The city witnessed maximum new office completions in the period – approx. 7.3 mn sq. ft.
• Chennai saw the lowest vacancy levels at 10.40% in H1 FY22 as compared to 7.62% in H1 FY21. The city witnessed new office addition of 1.15 mn sq. ft. area in first two quarters of the present fiscal year.

Prashant Thakur, Director & Head – Research, ANAROCK Group says, “Rising vacancies in the main southern cities can largely be attributed to increased new office space additions in the period. Altogether, the three cities saw new office space addition of 12.95 mn sq. ft. area in H1 FY22, accounting for nearly 58% share of the total new completions in top 7 cities (approx. 22.2 mn sq. ft.). However, despite this rise, the current office vacancy levels in the south cities are still lower than in other top cities like NCR, MMR and Kolkata.”

Demand-supply Dynamics

On analysing the top 7 cities’ growth percentage in both new office supply and net absorption in H1 FY22 against the same period year ago, it emerges that NCR has done remarkably well. The NCR office market remained robust and saw a 320% increase in net absorption in H1 FY22 against the previous year. As much as 2.1 mn sq. ft. of commercial space  was absorbed in the first two quarters of the ongoing financial year. It was second only to Bengaluru.

In terms of new office completions, NCR saw a close to 123% jump in H1 FY22 against the same period last year. As much as 3.9 mn sq. ft. area was added in the region in this period.

While Bengaluru witnessed the highest absorption of 3.2 mn sq. ft. in H1 FY22 among all the top 7 cities, it also saw a 6% reduction in net absorption as compared to H1 FY21. The net absorption in Hyderabad and Kolkata declined by 30% and 70% respectively in the same period.

Office Rentals

Average monthly rentals in the top 7 cities have remained steady at approx. INR 75/sq. ft. in H1 FY22 against the corresponding period in preceding fiscal year. Interestingly, IT/ITeS hubs like Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune saw a marginal rise of 3% each in average monthly office rentals in H1 FY22.

• In Bengaluru, avg. rentals increased to INR 79 per sq. ft. in H1 FY22 from INR 77 per sq. ft. in H1 FY21. Interestingly, when compared to the pre-pandemic period H1 FY20, the city saw a 7% jump in average monthly office rentals
• In Hyderabad, avg. rentals increased to INR 58 per sq. ft. in H1 FY22 from INR 56.5 per sq. ft. in H1 FY21 and INR 56 per sq. ft. pre-COVID-19 in H1 FY20.
• In Pune, the avg. monthly office rentals are INR 70 per sq. ft. as on H1 FY22. They stood at INR 68 per q. ft. in both H1 FY21 and H1 FY20
• In NCR and MMR, average rentals have largely maintained status quo at INR 77 per sq. ft. and INR 125 per sq. ft. respectively.

The Rise of Coworking

In another notable trend, the demand for coworking spaces is on the rise. COVID-19 has clearly redefined the need for office spaces;  businesses are heavily focused on cost optimization to tackle unprecedented crises such as lockdowns in the future. The cost advantage of coworking spaces clearly outstrip the possible risk factors.

Recent data indicates that of the net office absorption of 10.76 mn sq. ft. in H1 FY22 across top 7 cities, the share of coworking has risen to 8%. In contrast, in H1 FY21, of net office absorption of 8.31 mn sq. ft., the share of coworking stood at 3%. Evidently, the pandemic has been a growth catalyst for the coworking sector, and this growth is likely to be manifold over the next 2-3 years.

• Office vacancies in Bengaluru, Hyderabad & Chennai rose the most among the top 7 cities – by 4.2%, 3.9% & 2.78% respectively in H1 FY22 vs same period in FY2021; in contrast, Pune & Kolkata saw vacancy levels reduce
• Increased new office completions largely responsible for higher vacancies in southern cities; these 3 cities saw new office addition of 12.95 mn sq. ft. area in H1 FY22, accounting for 58% share of total new completions in the top 7 cities
• NCR office market remained robust with >300% growth in net office absorption & 123% growth in new office completions in H1 FY22 against last year
• Office rentals in IT/ITeS hubs of Bengaluru, Pune & Hyderabad increased 3% each in H1 FY22 vs a year ago; other cities maintained status-quo
• Of net office absorption of 10.76 mn sq. ft. in H1 FY22 across top 7 cities, share of coworking rose to 8% from a 3% share last year

Also Read: Real Estate 5 years After Demonetization

The post South Cities’ Office Vacancies Rise in H1 FY22 Despite High Net Absorption appeared first on Square Feat India.

By Varun Singh

On a positive note, due to demonetization, the pouring of unaccounted capital into the real estate sector has become virtually impossible. The future growth in the sector will be based on much more credible and sustainable principles than ever before. In the post-RERA era, all the property transactions today are already taking place on the basis of transparent cheque payments and legal online payment gateways.

From a consumer’s perspective, due to demonetization, the influx of liquidity in the system has ensured attractive home loan rates which are at their lowest in almost a decade. Owing to the ongoing transformation, developers have also been offering attractive rates and payment plans to draw potential buyers.

The real estate industry share their views on demonetization on its 5th Anniversary: 

Pritam Chivukula, Co-Founder & Director, Tridhaatu Realty, and Hon. Secretary, CREDAI MCHI
“It has been five years since the government took a stringent step by announcing demonetization while encouraging to adopt digital transactions over cash transactions. An important goal of demonetization was to reduce the use of cash in transactions and inspire people to pay using non-cash modes. The real estate industry has welcomed this move towards the positive side since it helped the sector to increase the direct tax collections. This has brought a large number of evaders in the tax net. It has indirectly made things more systematic, accountable and transparent. Overall, the move has declined cash transactions, increased the bank deposits and financial savings has seen an uptick too.”

Kaushal Agarwal, Chairman, The Guardians Real Estate Advisory
“Even though the sudden and initial impact of demonetization over the economy was severe and real estate was the worst hit sector. However, today I feel that it was a much-calculated move by the government to streamline the economy and bring transparency in key sectors. It has helped the sector to consolidate the market, it brought a level playing field for the organised and transparent entities. It has prevented the inflow of black money and nearly wiped-out the unorganised players. More importantly, it has paved the path for corporate and listed companies to expand and grow, which in other cases was tilted in favour of local and unorganised players.

Demonetization has also increased the awareness about digital payments and online transactions amongst the home buyers. This has drastically helped the sector to eradicate the age-old menace of illicit transactions and dubious sales. In a nutshell, Demonetization along with RERA has made the sector more organized, transparent, and robust which appears to me as the stepping stones towards attaining the much-awaited industry status for Real Estate.”

Himanshu Jain, VP – Sales, Marketing and CRM, Satellite Developers Private Limited (SDPL)
“Just like the Covid-19 pandemic, initially we thought that demonetization would affect all the major industries including real estate. But the move has created a positive impact and the real estate industry has done better in the last 5 years. Demonetization has led to a level playing field in a lot many sectors including real estate. It led to further consolidation in the category, nearly wiping out the non-serious players. It has also led to an increased understanding of digital payments and financial transactions amongst the people of India. Since the announcement, the government has incentivised digital payments and desires to envision a country which survives with limited requirements of cash based dealings. Demonetization has brought in much needed transparency and helped to double the trust of the investors in the real estate sector.”

Vedanshu Kedia, Director, Prescon Group
“The impact of demonetization has had a positive impact in the long run on the real estate industry. The move has had an impact on the perception of real estate transactions. All the 3 major objectives of curbing black money, fake notes and most importantly creating a cashless economy have been achieved as India has become one of the largest markets for digital payments. After demonetization, a large share of the population has gone digital and have adopted cashless transactions. There are many proptech startup’s now that are working on creating platforms that allow homebuyers to experience property and make a block on their inventory by committing an expression of interest. This will definitely enable ease of doing business and bring liquidity to the real estate market.”

Piyush Gupta, Managing Director, Capital Markets & Investment Services, Colliers India
“The big-ticket Reforms in Indian Business started with Demonetisation in 2016 followed by RERA, single tax regime of GST and Real Estate sector has witnessed the significant impact of these reforms. Overall past five years, there is a significant improvement in Corporate Governance and Transparency in Real Estate and the confidence of Investors and end buyers to acquire Real Estate has got better. The Real Estate Sector as a whole has moved up the curve on organisation and administration since reforms started, it helped navigate the crisis such as NBFC and then Covid”

Also Read: Vicky Kaushal rents a flat in Juhu, the deposit he paid can get you an awesome Home in Mumbai

The post Real Estate 5 years After Demonetization appeared first on Square Feat India.