Category: Property Articles

NIREM Offers Specialization in Realty

March 18, 2010 – 11:05 am

fresh off the stage
With the ever growing realty sector in India, the roles and responsibilities of real estate professionals have evolved considerably. This in turn forces a strong need for an efficient background in real estate along with strong professional skills in their functional areas of responsibilities. Since commercial property sector is very new for Indian property market there lies an urgent need the highly specialized real estate professional. Unfortunately, we don’t have any such real estate education program targeted at preparing specialists in commercial real estate.

IDS National Institute of Real Estate Management (IDS NIREM) has taken several initiatives to develop human resources for the Indian real estate market focusing on real estate education, training, consulting & research. Acknowledging the immediate need for specialization in realty management education it launched PG Diploma in Commercial Real Estate (PGD-CRE).this will be a one year distance learning course. This real estate course, patterned on MBA in real estate, is also offered at diploma and certificate level.

This Diploma course will be offered in two segments. First, for those who want to begin their career in real estate including the fresh graduates and MBAs and second for already existing realty professionals who either want to enhance their learning or want specialization in commercial property sector.

This course will concentrate on both knowledge and practical skills to analyze, acquire, finance, and operate real estate assets.

About the Institute:

IDS National Institute of Real Estate Management has been established by ‘The Industry Development Society for Real Estate’, which is a realty sector development and promotion body. NIREM will provide PG level degree, diploma and certificate courses in addition to MDPs, Consulting and Research in different areas of real estate. This institute is planned for Centre of Excellence in Real Estate Education, Training & Research.

In addition to learning programs, it also aims to develop benchmarks for real estate sector, retail & institutional investors and other stakeholders, provide with comprehensive market data to end-users facilitate simplification of asset acquisition and investment process, promote adoption of international standards including the financial and other disclosure norms, best practices and corporate social responsibilities etc

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Reason behind New Delhi’s real estate hike

September 8, 2009 – 11:53 am

Real estate in India
New Delhi has been considered the business of real estate in India. With the growing number of students, tourists and bureaucrats, the real state of Delhi has become an area offered in India. Apartments, houses, land, agricultural and industrial lands, industrial and residential plots, are the main segments in which the real estate industry in New Delhi is thriving. Real estate prices in the city depend on a number of factors, including the location, accessibility, etc. Tourists look out for accommodation that is close to historic monuments and, secondly, the employers look out for residential properties that are easily accessible from the airport, train station, etc. Real estate demand in Delhi has increased more than ever. It has become the preferred place for foreign direct investment and many multinationals have established their headquarters at the site and adjacent areas. The search for a real estate agent recognized as offering real estate in New Delhi, according to your budget and needs. Beyond this, there are some other important factors such as strong economic growth, the recovery of financial markets and investor friendly policies of the government will also increase the demand for real estate in the city.

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Real estate terminologies

September 3, 2009 – 5:30 pm

The common and simple terminologies used (in fact misused)  and often discussed in real estate industry generally end up into lots of confusion.Our aim is to provide an information for a common man  having some kind of interest in sale /purchase or renting of properties.Surely you will find it useful:
A. Built-up area: It refers to the entire floor area including carpet area, walls, lobbies and corridors, atrium areas and basement.
B. CAM: CAM stands for Common Area Maintenance. It includes maintenance of hallways, pathways and utilities.
C. Cap rate: This is also known as Capitalization Rte. It is the return on investment (ROI) on the property. It is measured by the formula: Purchase Price / Net Operating Income from the Property.
D. Carpet area: It is the actual usable area within the walls of the floor.
E. Cash on cash: It is the annual percentage return of your down payment not including appreciation.
F. CPI: The Consumer Price Index is used to calculate the annual rental increase so as to compensate for inflation.
G. Efficiency ratio: Efficiency ratio is generally expressed as a percentage of carpet to super areas of the property.
H. FSI: FSI stands for Floor space index is the quotient of the ratio of the combined gross floor area of all floors excepting areas specifically exempted under these regulations to the total area of the plot.
I. Full service lease: This is a lease where the tenant pays rent to cover everything including utilities.
J. GLA: GLA stands for Gross Leasable Area. This is the total rentable area.
K. Gross lease: This is a lease where the renter pays only rent and the landlord pays the taxes, insurance and maintenance.
L. LOI: LOI stands for Letter of Intent. It is a non-binding offer letter to buy a commercial property.
M. Maintenance charges: These are charges taken by the maintenance society towards the maintenance of the property.
N. Market value: Market value of the property is the price that the property commands in the open market. It is calculated by the valuation process which works on “demand and supply” principle.
O. Mixed use: These are commercial properties with retail on the first floor and apartments on upper floors.
P. Registration charges: These are the fees associated with getting the legal title registered in your name. This legal activity is conducted in the sub-registrar office.
Q. Stamp duty: Real Estate Stamp duty is a tax collected by the Government of India. Stamp duty is based on the market value or the agreement value whichever is greater.
R. Sale deed: Sale deed is the process by which the seller transfers all the rights on property to the buyer.
S. Super area: Super area is the entire area of the building including carpet area, walls, lobbies and corridors, lifts, staircases basements, and other atrium and utility areas.

By rajani | Tagged | Comments (0)

Let us find some positive aspects of recession

August 7, 2009 – 2:08 pm

Real estate
Everybody is cursing recession as it resulted into slowdown in market. But, have you ever realized that there is always some positive aspect behind every off-putting phase. Recession has changed the point of views of consumers, lenders and developers as well. Consumers became more cautious during spending their saved money. On the other hand developers shifted their focus towards low cost housing.
Recession has made tremendous changes in real estate, various real estate giants showed interest in housing for middle class people rather than building a huge complex. Investors may seem to be winners with recession giving them an opportunity to pick investments at more realistic prices.

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Mumbai is most preferred property investment destination

July 22, 2009 – 2:48 pm

The financial capital Mumbai now ranks as the most preferred destination for investing in properties, while Chennai has replaced Bangalore.

The survey, “Trend in residential space across top cities in the current scenario” ranked Mumbai as the most preferred destination to invest in property while in south, Chennai is in the first place for property investments, overtaking Bangalore.

Cities like Patna, Nasik, Tiruchirapalli and Madurai have also become choive destinations for property investments, the survey said.

It said 60 percent of respondents felt interest rates for home loan would come down further in the coming months, while 40 percent evinced interests on properties with an area between 500 to 1,000 square feet.

More than three thousand people from the metros and other cities, including Pune, Ahmedabad, Thane, Coimbatore, and Vadodara participated in the survey.

“Market sentiments are reviving and people are ready to invest. Based on our survey, more than 60 percent of customers are looking at buying residential properties in the next six months. They also have a hope that interest rates on home loans will soon come down”, Consim Info Founder and CEO Murugavel Janakiraman said.

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Expatriates’ Struggle For Finding Right Home

August 8, 2008 – 4:58 am

Finding the right kind of place to live in is not that easy when you come down to a different country.

Coming from a foreign land and making India their home is not an easy task for most expatriates, considering the differences in culture, language, lifestyle, habits and so many other small things that we don’t even realize in our everyday lives. It’s definitely not child’s play. Setting up a new home, taking care of intricate details and also making a large number of adjustments is what comprises an expatriate’s life in the initial phase of settling down in a new country. Jim Gainsford , Regional Director (North), CEC shares his experiences of settling down in India.

Talking about how he found a home for himself in the National Capital, Delhi, Gainsford, who comes from the United Kingdom expresses, “I live in DLF Central Park, Gurgaon, Haryana, just outside Delhi and I chose to live here because it is very close to my office. I am single and needed a single apartment close to my office.”

He states that he was extremely fortunate that he was saved of a lot of time while he was house hunting, because he was shown a suitable place in Gurgaon within the first few times only, and thus, did not have to waste his time ‘house hunting’ for long.

Though for Gainsford, Gurgaon is just the perfect place to live in, there are a few changes that he feels will make this area a better area to live in.

“Hopefully, the main developer in Gurgaon will one day make an effort to finish off and tidy up the roads and open space areas linking and between their buildings. Most of the traffic problems in Gurgaon stem from the badly constructed roads which are already in a state of disrepair, a situation exacerbated by the total absence of a traffic plan and/or controlled signaling, adequate signage and illegal breaks in central reserves that are not policed at all,” he avers.

It’s not all that easy to settle down in a country which holds no similarity to one’s own homeland. A lot of adjustments need to be done and some major changes have to be made to one’s lifestyle too apart from the basic change in the living environment.

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BOA For SEZ Approved 29 Proposals

August 2, 2008 – 7:15 am

The Board of Approval (BoA) for Special Economic Zones (SEZs) cleared a total of 29 proposals to set up SEZs, including three proposals for conversion of in-principle approvals into formal ones. The Board recommended grant of 23 formal and six in-principle approvals.
Prominent among the formal approvals are four IT/ITeS SEZs in Kerala by Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Limited, another two IT/ITeS/electronic hardware SEZs in Andhra Pradesh by Godrej Real Estate Private Limited and S2tech.com. Two more IT/ITeS SEZs were approved to be set up in Gujarat by Strength Real Estate and Gaurinandan Property Holders.
Two biotechnology SEZs in Andhra Pradesh by Lahari Infrastructure and a Biological E were also approved.
An SEZ for non-conventional energy, including solar energy equipment/cell SEZ in Gujarat by Euro Multivision was also granted formal approval.
An engineering SEZ in Tamil Nadu by Township Developers India was converted from in-principal to formal approval.
In-principle approvals were granted among others for a multi-product SEZ in Madhya Pradesh by Reliable Smart City.
The airport and aviation sector, including maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) SEZ in Tamil Nadu by Taneja Aerospace and Aviation Limited, was given in-principle nod as also a free trade warehousing zone SEZ in Tamil Nadu by Vikram Logistics and Maritime Services.

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DLF Assets files for IPO approval in Singapore

May 14, 2008 – 5:16 am

DLF Assets, the property fund of DLF Ltd, plans to launch an initial public offer of its office trust in Singapore by June to raise over Rs 8,000 crore. DLF is India’s leading real estate company in terms of market evaluation. Read More »

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Heat Of Rising Interest Rates

March 11, 2008 – 1:07 am

New Delhi, Mar 10, 2008. When finance minister Mr. P Chidambaram has decided for decreasing home loan rates for the loan of less than Rs. twenty lakhs, many other sectors facing the heat of rising interest rates.

Read More »

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Asipac to launch real estate fund

March 6, 2008 – 4:56 am

BANGALORE: Realty marketing and consultancy firm Asipac Projects is close to putting together a real estate fund, in association with a few institutional investors. The move by the company , aimed at widening the scope of the company’s services is part of a series of initiatives that will roll out in the coming months.

According to Bangalore-based Company, the first fund will have an initial amount of Rs 50 crore and will invest in real estate SPVs across the country. “The first fund should be in place in six months. We intend to invest small amounts into SPVs, picking up a 2-3% stake in specific projects,” said Asipac Project’s chairman Amit Bagaria.

Year 2008 will see the company launch two new strategic business units (SBUs) — an investment advisory services group and a construction management consultancy division. “The idea is to be an end-to-end consultancy services company, helping clients (realty firms) raise funds for as well as help reduce material procurement costs,” said Mr Bagaria.

As on date, Asipac Projects represents about 18 real estate firms. The company is also seeming to expand its services to Indian business houses that are in the process of unlocking value from their land holdings.

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The Paul Hotels and Resorts to develop South Indian hotel

March 6, 2008 – 4:43 am

The Paul Hotels and Resorts plans to develop a five star hotel chain in South India. As part of the first stage, the group will develop business class hotels or resorts across Karnataka, in locations such as Bengaluru, Mysore, Hampi and Coorg.

According to Shelly Thayil, Director – Operations, The Paul Hotels and Resorts, the group wants to tap the state’s immense tourism potential. In addition to this, the Karnataka Government is keen on providing the investors with incentives.

The group has acquired five acres of land for a 180 room hotel in Mysore. It will be developed with an investment of Rs 150 crore. The group is in the process of sourcing 30 acres of land for its 75 suite heritage property in Hampi. It will be developed near the Tungabhadra river at a cost of Rs 30 crore (in the first phase).

The Paul Hotels expects both these properties to be operational within the next two years. “We develop all our properties in phases, as this gives us enough time for trials. This model also helps us to work on our guests’ feedback, after which we make the necessary changes,” offers Thayil. Commenting on the tax holiday for hotels in UNESCO-certified heritage sites in India, Thayil feels that this announcement has come at the right time. The Hampi property is in the drawing board stages.

By rajani | Also posted in Property Investment, Property News | Comments (0)

Mega property Show At Hyderabad

March 5, 2008 – 7:22 am

Real estate in Hyderabad is witnessing a boom and the demand for residential & commercial properties has taken a quantum leap. Hyderabad is fastest growing cities in India is experiencing a rapid need for enhancement in infrastructure.

Read More »

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GTC set for Realty Business Separately

March 3, 2008 – 5:14 am

NEW DELHI:Cigarette manufacturer GTC Industries pronounced that its board of directors has considered and decided an in-principle approval to separate the tobacco and the real estate business into two different entities.

The two entities would be listed separately on the stock exchanges in India.

ET had initially reported plans of a separation of the real estate business last November.
Commenting on the progress, GTC Industries chairman Sanjay Dalmia  told that the separation would unlock distinctive shareholder value across both verticals, tobacco as well as  the real estate. The company is in the process of probing different options for working out a suitable scheme of separation keeping the interest of shareholders in mind.”

As reported earlier, GTC Industries had been looking forward to separate its real estate assets spread across Mumbai, Baroda and Hyderabad into a separate company.

The separated entity would then become a real estate development company while GTC would remain the cigarette manufacturer with brands like Panama and Chancellor. The separated companies would form joint ventures and develop real estate assets.

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Indiabulls realty purchases majority stake in Dev Property

March 1, 2008 – 4:32 am

MUMBAI: Indiabulls Real Estate(IBREL), the real estate division of the Indiabulls group, has decided to take greater part stake in Dev Property Developers, the London-listed property fund, in order to gain best part control over two of its prized properties in Mumbai. IBREL has bought over 90 percent in DPD for about Rs 1,100 crore.

DPD, which is listed on London’s Alternative Investment Market, in turn holds a minority stake in various realty assets, a majority of which are owned by Indiabulls group, like Jupiter Mills, Elphinstone Mills and the 6,000-acre SEZ at Raigad in Maharashtra. It is expected that the deal would help IBREL launch its Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) in the Singapore Stock Exchange (SSE). IBREL had received the approval to list REIT at SSE and initiated steps to create a property trust prior to the listing.

Jupiter and Elphinston Mills were purchased by Indiabulls in a series of high-profile transactions in 2005 from state-owned textile firm NTC. Indiabulls plans to convert them into commercial complexes.

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Vastu based construction for prosperity

February 23, 2008 – 6:44 am

Vastu is the antique Indian science of constructions which state how finest the environmental energy can be used to benefit the inhabitants. The size of the buildings including its length, breadth and height and the shape of building are very important in Vastu based positioning.

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India Faces Housing Slowdown

February 20, 2008 – 8:46 am

The withdrawal of an IPO by a big property developer in India earlier this month was just the latest sign of the growing difficulties companies world-wide are having tapping capital markets.

But the message for the sizzling Indian real-estate development business was worse: get ready for a slowdown.

Emaar MGF Land Pvt. Ltd. said it pulled its initial public offering of shares because of “prevailing adverse market sentiments, fueled by renewed indications of a U.S. recession and global meltdown.” Emaar MGF is a joint venture between the developers Emaar Properties PJSC of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and MGF Development Ltd.

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Developers shrug off REIT plans, looking out of the country

February 16, 2008 – 5:44 am

MUMBAI – Property developers are expected to turn overseas to list Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) as proposed local rules favour funds and small investors rather than real estate companies, officials said.
Developers are hoping to recover costs by selling properties to REITs in which they hold a controlling stake. However, draft rules, which restrict ownership by a single entity, may prompt them to list REITs elsewhere.
“We can sell our developments to Indian REITs. But we will still be floating them in countries that favour developer REITs.” Ramesh Sanka, chief financial officer at India’s largest real estate developer DLF, said.
“The protection mechanism (in India) essentially makes it a product for funds and investors and not developers,” said Sanka.
A REIT is a property investment trust that raises money from investors by listing on exchanges and uses the funds to buy out investments from a developer. It then leases out the property, using the rental income to pay dividend.
DLF and rivals Unitech and Indiabulls Real Estate are among a clutch of developers looking to Singapore for a REIT listing. DLF wants to raise $1.5 billion, Indiabulls $1 billion and Unitech $600 million, bankers have said.
R. Nagaraju, general manager, corporate planning, Unitech, told that Valuations in the international market are better. Funds are also better developed (abroad) and yields lower.
It is told by the one of the analyst that India does not yet allow REITs, but draft norms are in place. The move will increase transparency in the fragmented sector but developers need to be made direct stakeholders.

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NRIs Ride High On Stocks and Real Estate

February 13, 2008 – 8:35 am

Indian Stock Market and Real Estate sector is attracting NRI attention in a huge way. Non-resident Indians are more and more tending towards investment in these two sectors. This is primarily due to the fact that India is growing at a faster pace than other countries and the equity market has outperformed those of developed nations.

NRIs know the potential of investments in India very well but find it difficult to execute a comprehensive plan. Most green card holders have not capitalized on the Indian growth story because of their poor evaluation of the market. NRIs rarely find time from their hectic professional life, they lack proper advice or find handling and monitoring investment transactions inconvenient, says Anand KS of Nile Financial Planners.

Another point of concern felt by NRIs is the transparency level on charges in various trading sites and other investment options. Remember to ask for details regarding time horizon of investment, risk and return before starting off and opening accounts.

To invest on a repatriable basis, the person must have an NRI or FCNR bank account in India. In this case, the net income or capital gains after tax is eligible for repatriation subject to regulatory guidelines. In the case of investment on a non-repatriation basis, only the net income the dividend arising out of investment is eligible for repatriation.

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Indian construction sector outlook positive for 2007-08 – Fitch

February 13, 2008 – 4:06 am

MUMBAI – Fitch Ratings said it sees the outlook for the Indian construction sector in 2007-08 as positive, boosted by increased investment in infrastructure projects and real estate.

The ratings agency noted that while Indian construction companies have witnessed sharp growth in their order books and revenue with the increase in investment projected over the next five years, the majority of the profit in terms of revenue and earnings will start accumulating from fiscal year 2009.

Fitch also said it imagines that the industry to exhibit negative cash flow from operations due to increased working capital requirements. Substantial investments in real estate will also put pressure on the industry credit profile, it added.

The ratings agency warned that credit profiles are likely to deteriorate, with increased debt required during the mobilisation phase to complete the massive projects but will get better substantially over the long-term once these projects achieve the stable revenue phase.

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