How To Find Premium Real Estate In Kolkata?

Real estate can be one tricky market for sure, especially in metro cities like Kolkata. On one hand, price rises have impacted the entire market and supply chain, demand still remains steady at a very basic level. The latter occurrence is a natural cause though, because of the demand and supply gap in most urban areas. Developers often have no choice but to hike rates in order to offset their losses. Real estate is not a business that is considered too favorable any longer. This is mainly because of the losses plaguing the sector of late. Since the recession, real estate has taken a huge beating.

Demand has gone down in a jiffy and developers have been left with piled up inventory all throughout the year 2013. Budget housing projects have almost stopped and developers are trying to recover as much of their investment as possible by selling residential units at a competitive price. Alongside, much of this dilemma has arisen out of the rising prices in most areas. This has resulted in an overall slump in demand in most premium areas owing to the high prices of projects. The upper middle class and premium customers are turning their backs on multiple projects owing to the price factor.

Developers are now looking to clear unsold inventory through a plethora of innovative schemes like flexi pricing, flexi repayment, freebies and so on. Alongside, there are various contests and prizes attached with real estate projects these days to enable developers to clear inventory. Prices are not being corrected in most premium areas in metro cities though owing to the demand and supply imbalance talked of earlier.

Alongside, prices have stagnated at unbearably high levels owing to high rates of land. Increasing prices of land and other building materials also combine to keep property prices extremely high in premium locations.

It is the same story in Kolkata, a city where real estate has not been hit as badly as the rest of the country. Some semblance of market demand still remains and there are multiple projects still on the anvil as well. Yet, finding a premium property in Kolkata can be a very difficult task if you do not know where to look. You should also avoid taking the help of a broker or agent. These people can take you for a ride and you may have to end up paying a hefty commission to these brokers and agents as well. Why take all this trouble when you can find it out for yourself online?

You can use online classifieds to find property in your chosen area in Kolkata. Looking for a premium area to invest in? You must be aware of the spiraling prices and high demand from particular sections of the affluent class in the city. You should be prepared to shell out anything between INR 50/60 lakhs to INR 1crore and more for a property in premium areas of Kolkata. Online classifieds will help you strike a direct deal with the buyers as well. Are you confused with regard to the best area for investment or residential purposes?

If you are hell bent on a posh area in Kolkata, you can try looking at the Ballygunge area. The entire length and breadth of Ballygunge circular road is a much coveted place along with other intrinsic flanks. This area has some of the best eating joints, roads and a fabulous ambience. It is home to the famous Maddox square puja and connects seamlessly to Lansdowne which is another top notch area for buying premium property. Some other areas that you can try include Dover Lane, Hazra Road, Garcha Road, Cornfield Road, Gariahat, and Lake Gardens and so on.

The serenity of the Rabindra Sarobar lakes and Southern Avenue might attract you as well. This is another fantastic area for snapping up a good property as well. Property is highly expensive in this area especially in the lanes and by lanes leading to the Lake Kalibari temple. Another expensive place is New Alipore which is fast turning out to be a posh area for sure! New Alipore has seen unprecedented development in recent years as well. Alipore continues to be the most expensive location in Kolkata followed by Salt Lake which has been transformed into a glitzy township for sure!

Alipore has the most expensive rates for every square foot of residential space. It is home to numerous bungalows belonging to the who’s who of Kolkata. Emerging areas that you can invest in include New Town and Kasba. You can still find property at decent rates in these areas and this will bode well for you in the future considering the development in the area. New Town is still in the process of development and promises to have unparalleled development and growth in the future. It will fast become a business hub and this will see you earning a handsome sum on your initial investment for sure!

Kasba, situated on the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass, is close to Gariahat and is a fabulous place to buy property as well. Kasba is now home to multiple restaurants, bars and departmental stores among other attractions. It is being labeled New Ballygunge for the unprecedented development taking place in the area. Many high net worth individuals are steadily moving into the Kasba area and this has created a buzz around the same. Some other premium areas that you can take a look at include Mudiali, Jadavpur, Bhawanipore and of course, Park Street.

North Kolkata still has its own charm and you can look for property in this area as well. All in all, Kolkata still has potential for investment in real estate, especially in posh and premium city areas. You should always consult an expert before zeroing in on your investment. This is the best time to invest in premium Kolkata areas before prices shoot up even further owing to scorching development and growth in the city. Happy buying!

Should you Invest in Real Estate in Kolkata Right Now?

The real estate market is witnessing a slowdown and prolonged slump for quite some time. This is not unusual, considering the global situation and the increasing costs of materials and other costs of production. Alongside, there is one big factor that has hit the real estate market hard in recent times. Owing to increasing costs of land and other variables, real estate prices have increased drastically across all major metro cities in recent times. Over the past year, prices have been extremely high and this has expectedly led to fewer takers for various newly launched projects. The real estate industry in India is in bad shape overall and the sector is looking at governmental reforms to revitalize the market.

Alongside, the upcoming Land Acquisition Act promises to toughen up things for real estate companies and developers and might lead to further price increases. At the same time, developers are trying their hand at affordable housing projects. Some are selling projects with hefty discounts and special payment schemes including flexible payment options. These discounts translate into almost 10-15% of the entire price of a property on an average. Alongside, real estate prices have seen minor corrections in some areas while suburban areas are witnessing slight increases in price owing to the actualization of much needed development. Unsold inventory has been piling up with developers and they are facing a sticky situation in this regard. Kolkata is no exception to this slump that has gripped the industry.

Are you looking to invest in the real estate market in Kolkata? You should be careful about your decision though and should only go ahead after a thorough understanding of the entire situation. Is this the best time to invest in real estate here? Read on to find out more about the prevalent situation in the Kolkata real estate market.

Customers are now hell bent on ferreting out the perfect home for themselves and this is one of the most dominant factors behind the overall performance and sales of the real estate industry currently. End users are still seeking out perfect homes at the end of the day in spite of the condition of the Indian economy. This is one trend that can be observed in Kolkata especially. Real estate developers of Kolkata are slowly shedding their traditional inhibitions pertaining to non investment in affordable housing projects. Some of them are even snapping up land in remote locations, almost on the city outskirts. This was something that would have been greeted with loads of skepticism and censure from middle to high income background customers earlier.

This would have mainly been on grounds of minimal commuting options to central business areas in Kolkata. However, this does not hold ground anymore in today’s times. Communication systems have improved to a great extent and the Kolkata metro railway system offers a fabulous alternative for people living in the outskirts. Real estate can only thrive on proper infrastructural support for a large chunk of customers in any location. Developers are now coming up with projects in areas that are quite a distance from major city centers. The suburban areas, namely Baruipur, BT Road (North), Howrah (West) and Chandpur Champahati (extreme East) are witnessing a slew of top notch projects. These are affordable housing projects and developers can keep prices low in these cases owing to the low costs involved in acquiring land in these areas. Other transportation facilities and the economic crunch on a whole, make these projects attractive options for a mass market.

Property investments have risen in Kolkata as more and more people look for affordable real estate investment options as a security option against the wake of growing economic insecurity and income depreciation. Realty prices are not going down and are only increasing with time in the suburbs. Real estate companies in Kolkata have been following models used in Bangalore, Mumbai and Chennai and are offering various goodies with projects. For instance, mid range cars are being offered to the first lot of customers along with other freebies like air conditioners and modular kitchens for the second and final lots of customers. This allows them to sell off flats which would otherwise be difficult to dispose of, owing to design aspects and other factors. Kolkata is witnessing high demand from NRI buyers and individuals from other cities who are making safe investments in the city. Real estate markets are thus witnessing an increase in overall demand and this is one favorable sector for the overall growth of the sector in the future.

Investments are mainly being triggered by market aspects and prevailing economic scenarios instead of hardcore preferences in some cases as opposed to the perfectionist group of buyers on the other. The latter has a good budget to partake of while the former wants value maximization at the lowest prices. Real estate companies are going by amenities, facilities, infrastructural support, good designs and good locations to market affordable housing projects to customers.

Kolkata has suddenly emerged as a good arena for investments in real estate owing to better infrastructure, low prices and steady appreciation in the value of properties. The resale market is also a thriving one here and these properties do fetch good returns for investors. This may just be the right time to invest in real estate in Kolkata according to experts and market watchers owing to the static prices. Some areas have even seen a reduction in overall prices and developers are going all out to clear inventories with discounts and special offers. Buying a property now will help you stay secure for the future and get fabulous value on your investment.

The Kolkata market has not been as fluctuating as say Mumbai and Delhi and that has worked in its favor with more people from other cities choosing it as a safe haven for their investments. If you are among those looking to snap up a property in the city, do not waste anymore time!

Kolkata Land Prices Stir a Hornet’s Nest of Sorts!

Kolkata has always been a favorable market for the real estate industry. Real estate, as we all know, forms a pivotal part of the Indian economy. Much of the growth of the overall economy is dependent on flourishing real estate sectors across cities. However, the industry has been witnessing a rapid slump all throughout last year. Demand for real estate projects has dwindled to unthinkable proportions in recent times.

Why has this happened? This is mainly due to a combination of factors which have triggered a collapse in customer demand in the industry. The real estate industry has been hit by lack of governmental regulations and policies that were deemed favorable for the industry. Alongside, the high prices of land have also acted as a trigger towards the increasing of overall prices of property across cities. Property prices have swelled to unmanageable levels. Earlier, the real estate industry thrived on the basic principle of greater demand as opposed to supply. There was a need to fulfill the housing aspirations of millions. However, with the sudden increase in prices, the mass has turned its back on the real estate industry at present. Everyone is cautious about investing his/her hard earned money in real estate these days.

With regard to investments, Kolkata still remains a good market with regard to NRI investment and property acquisitions by individuals from other cities. These investments are fetching good returns owing to sudden appreciations in overall value of properties across major areas of Kolkata. However, it is the end user segment that is giving developers sleepless nights. End users are reluctant to buy property at this time and for the first time, supply far outstrips demand, with unsold inventory piling up with real estate companies. To add to these woes, Kolkata is witnessing the same price syndrome which is making the public turn their backs on mainstream real estate projects.

In spite of the slowdown in the real estate sector at large, as mentioned earlier, the prices of land have been increasing at an unprecedented rate all across Kolkata. This is having a chain effect on the housing prices in Kolkata, taking them into uncharted territory across major areas. Areas which are considered posh and premium localities have seen an increase in land prices to the tune of fifty percent which is staggering to say the least. Overall demand has gone down but prices of land are rising on the back of steady demand courtesy outside investors and high net worth individuals. Semi-urban and urban areas have not seen many townships or affordable housing projects recently.

At a recent auction of land by the Housing Infrastructure and Development Corporation or Hidco and the KMC or the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, buyers witnessed the spiraling prices for the first time. The highest land deal in Kolkata this year was successfully concluded when a 2 acre plot right on the EM Bypass was sold off for a mindboggling INR 115 crores! The biggest land deal earlier was taken to be the INR 135 crores received for a 3.35 acre EM Bypass plot. Alongside, the Rajarhat IT Township recently saw an INR 51.3 crores deal for a 2.5 acre plot on which a retail complex and office are slated to come up pretty soon. These deals indicate at the rising prices of land in the city and the effect on the costs of housing. According to market sources, the mainstream public will feel the pinch as developers will have no option but to hike housing prices considerably owing to their own rising costs of land acquisition. Alongside, the new land acquisition act, if passed, could also lead to a further rise in prices for properties in the city.

According to a realtor in Kolkata, Santosh Rungta, the overall value of land in Kolkata has gone up by a mindboggling fifty percent and this impact will be felt on most of the upcoming projects coming up in good localities. Demand remains steady for high priced land surprisingly while the supply of the same is dwindling steadily. Alongside, demand is not being met by the creation of new townships in major areas according to him. Sudden price rises of land are not new to the state. West Bengal witnessed huge surges in prices in and around the year 2009 and government agencies made pots of money by selling off land in premium areas.

The KMDA or Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, Hidco and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation have okayed deals which are estimated to be worth more than INR 18, 000 crores which is indeed a staggering sum in these times. This involves about 5, 250 acres of land in just a little more than two years. KMDA has in reality signed deals more than INR 800 crores with city based real estate developers in just one day! This is fascinating to say the least and just goes to illustrate the current situation prevailing in the city. Townships are facing hurdles like the ULCA or the Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation Act of 1976. There is a limit on vacant land which can act as a constraint. Godrej Properties is one of the prominent conglomerates who had appealed for a reconsideration of the ULCA. However, the urban development minister ruled out any repeal and instead, announced permission for land purchases beyond the fixed ceiling in case thirty percent is kept for the low income housing sector.

According to the managing director and chairman at the PS Group, Pradip Chopra, prices have remained quite steady in the city and the market will remain steady for quite some time now. Kolkata real estate sector was earlier driven by mainstream customers but investors rule the roost these days. There has been a slowdown in the commercial real estate sector with very low rates of occupancy across major office areas and Sector V. According to Pradeep Sureka, the Sureka Group Managing Director, the commercial real estate market has not been growing in comparison to the housing sector. Prices of office rentals have not gone down according to him.