India’s second-largest property firm Unitech has put on the block its 2-lakh square feet office at upmarket Saket in New Delhi. Market buzz
suggests Unitech is in talks with HDFC to sell the property.
Both Unitech and HDFC admitted the property was on the block, but refused to confirm the deal. “I cannot confirm till we sign a deal,” Unitech chairman Ramesh Chandra said.
HDFC joint MD Renu Sud Karnad said Unitech wants to sell the property but HDFC was not interested in buying it. She said the Saket property was mortgaged with HDFC as collateral for the Rs 30 crore her firm had lent to the real estate developer. HDFC has a much larger debt exposure to Unitech, said Ms Karnad.
But a Unitech executive told ET that HDFC had agreed to buy the Saket property for Rs 450-500 crore and a formal agreement is likely to be signed by the end of this month.
Most real estate firms have been facing a severe cash crunch as sales have slowed down and credit has become tight. With the crisis deepening in the real estate space, rating agencies have been downgrading realty firms.
