Properties in India

Friday, April 27, 2007

Ansal’s Rs22,500 cr township to occupy 5,000 acres in Lucknow

Ansal Properties & Infrastructure Ltd has received preliminary government approval to more than double the size of its planned golfing and hi-tech city in Lucknow to 5,000 acres, making it one of the country’s largest township projects.

The Ansal township, which would house 3,50,000 people, will require an investment of about Rs22,500 crore. Ansal’s share would be Rs6,500 crore—the rest will come from the public sector and private investors. Ansal will fund the project through a combination of equity, debt and the sale of land.

The company has already purchased 1,500 acres directly from farmers and has had strong demand for the project’s houses and plots. The township, to be built in phases, will feature a championship golf course, three 5-star hotels, a medicity, a university, a Mahesh Bhupathi Tennis Academy centre, and 120 acres devouted to office buildings for information technology and biotech companies. Construction on the project began about two months ago. The company also said it has planned a 5,000-acre township for the Greater Noida area.

Author: Rakesh Malhotra » Comments:

---

Wednesday, April 25, 2007

Author: Rakesh Malhotra » Comments:

---

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

IT, Reliance SEZ along Noida Expressway

NOIDA’S Special Economic Zone (SEZ) dream is set to become a reality. The Centre’s revised norms on SEZs have paved the way for the region’s biggest Information Technology SEZ and a multi-product SEZ of the Reliance Group along the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway.

Senior Noida Development Authority officials say that land has been allotted to nine IT companies and the Reliance Group for the SEZ Project, and with these allotments falling under the legal preview of the Centre’s recently revised policy, the SEZs will be registered soon after UP’s model code of conduct ends next month.

The nine IT companies, who have been allotted 25-acre plots each on the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway in sectors 143 and 144, are Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) Limited, Hindustan Dorr-Oliver Limited, IVRCL Infrastructures and Project Limited, Unitech Hi-tech Project Private Limited, Logix Techno Park, DLF Commercial Developers Limited, Prakash Industries Limited, Aachman Limited and Century Avenues Private Limited. BPOs, Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPOs) and software development will be the three main areas of business here.

A consortium of three companies of the Reliance Group has also been allotted 2,500 acres of land along the Expressway for a multi-product SEZ.

The Noida Development Authority followed the revised July, 2006 SEZ policy of UP, by which companies with net worth over Rs 300 crore could apply for an SEZ. Companies allotted SEZs here will now be exempted from taxes, levies and cesses by local bodies and no trade tax, turnover tax or purchase tax will be levied on their exports, as the SEZ area will be considered a duty-free enclave.

Author: Rakesh Malhotra » Comments:

---

Thursday, April 19, 2007

Property prices in Hyderabad set to fall

Hyderabad may now be the country's second largest city. But the city's big growth could actually mean property prices falling.

The Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad is now 450 sq km larger, second only to the National Capital Region (NCR). The additional areas will have all infrastructure and basic amenities that the center of the city enjoys. The project will require a total investment of Rs 28,000 crore from the government. Officials said the new supply would cause prices of residential property in the city to fall.

Property developers will be able to open up many more areas for residential purposes and the availability of housing in terms of supply will go up and because of that the prices will come down.

Real estate consultants expect the fresh land supply coupled with rising interest rates to lead to a 15% correction in property prices.

Besides this, the Hyderabad urban development jurisdiction has been increased from 2,000 to 6,000 sq km and the authority is doubling its expenditure to Rs 2,000 crore a year to develop the area.

Over the last year, the local Government has been accused of driving up real estate prices in the city unnaturally through highly priced land auctions with a huge amount of land set to hit the market all that could change, leaving consumers happy.

Author: Rakesh Malhotra » Comments:

---

Wednesday, April 18, 2007

LJ Hooker Expanding Horizons in Indian Real Estate

L. J. Hooker, the Australian real-estate company, which opened its outlet in Koramangala, Bangalore inaugurated its first franchise store with much fanfare is buying franchisee, franchisor and the customer into the idea of real estate franchising.

The company has an international network franchising model backed by a strong software support, internet-based operation and in no small measure values of L.J. Hooker Family’s support, closeness and networks as part of its franchise offer. L.J. Hooker franchise model’ incidentally, has won the company the prestigious `Australian and New Zealand Franchiser of the Year Award.'

L.J.Hooker Ltd. has achieved unqualified success in creating its international network that spreads across a host of countries in South-East Asia that includes Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Hong Kong, New Zealand, and China. The Group has more than 730 franchises in Australia and Asia.

The company aims to offer a comprehensive, reliable and efficient service to the customer who wants to buy, sell and rent or needs to be advised on property matters. Apart from consultancy, its bouquet of services includes a rent-management program and a portfolio management scheme. It would periodically review the client’s real estate holdings and advise him/her on future real estate investment.

As part of its portfolio management activities, it will tell the client when and where to buy or sell. More specifically, a customer can expect to be entertained and guided through all phases associated with buying, selling, renting and leasing a property including financing, insurance, relocating and utility connections.

Author: Rakesh Malhotra » Comments:

---