‘Political stability may revive sluggish market’
Omkar Realtors & Developers Pvt Ltd is a renowned name in Mumbai real estate sector, particularly in the luxury segment. Having an experience of nearly 10 years, the group has delivered around two million sq ft of residential space till date and has around 8 million sq ft of space under construction. Gaurav Gupta, director of the group spoke to Sruthi Kailasof Magicbricks.com Bureau about his expectations about Mumbai real estate in 2014. Here are the excerpts -
What are your expectations from the Mumbai real estate market in the year 2014?
The market sentiment will continue to be sluggish – to- steady as a lot will depend on the political scenario. While realty is largely defined as a state-centric business, political stability at the Central level will play a critical role in ushering any buoyancy. While the macro-economic climate and RBI’s lending policy for realty sector will also determine the market sentiments, interest of leading PE funds in redevelopment space is a positive sign.
However, Marquee projects in prime locations from performing brands will continue to witness transactions which had been the case in 2013 also. For example, even with sluggish sentiments, Omkar’s luxury residential offerings witnessed an average rise of 20 per cent in the Mumbai market.
Which areas are expected to see maximum real estate development in the coming year 2014? Why?
Western suburbs are expected to do well in the coming year owing to factors such as location-development. It also enjoys good connectivity and proximity to malls, schools, airports and the CBD (BKC).
Did you launch any new projects in 2013? How did you choose these locations?
We launched our luxury project Omkar Worli 1973 in South Mumbai. There is a strong demand from HNIs located in South Mumbai looking for extremely niche developments which are in sync with their lifestyle, status and privacy quotient. We have targeted this segment with our project.
We also launched the tower B for another of our luxury projects in Malad.
Which locations in the city witnessed maximum launches in year 2013? Why?
Again the western suburbs have done well in this regard witnessing a large number of new launches this yea. South central Mumbai was also not far behind. They have emerged as prime lifestyle locations for gated communities with some of the leading brands launching luxury residential projects.
What was the volume of sales and stock in the year 2013 vis-Ã -vis the last year? Is there any un-sold inventory in the city that might impact real estate prices in the coming year?
Sales booking volumes in 2013 were slightly less than 2012. Customer- mostly end-users, have more choices and he is opting for the wait and watch syndrome to match his satisfaction. Investors continued the hunt for value buying and closed the deals that had a good future potential.
According to you which infrastructural project had the maximum impact on real estate in Mumbai in the year 2013?
Eastern freeway has been one of the most prominent infrastructural projects in Mumbai this year. The road that connects South Mumbai to Ghatkopar has proved to be a game changer for realty in eastern parts of the city. Areas such as Chembur, Ghatkopar, and Powai saw rising values post the opening of the freeway. It had a positive impact on projects which have a quick connectivity to this corridor.
What are the five things you would want to see in 2014?
I would want to see faster clearances, faster completion of much-awaited infrastructure projects, softening of interest rates, political stability and better government support for to performing developers.
Source :- MagicBricks
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