The simplest way to find Property

BENGALURU: he promoters of DLF Ltd have infused the last tranche of ₹2,250 crore into the company, a move that will help India’s largest real estate developer pare its debt and strengthen its cash reserves.

The infusion was made by allotting equity shares against warrants that were issued to the promoters in 2017.

DLF has allotted around 138.1 million shares to promoter group companies Rajdhani Investments and Agencies Ltd and DLF Urva Real Estate Developers and Services Pvt. Ltd at ₹217.25 apiece.

In December 2017, the promoters had infused ₹9,000 crore into the company and promised to invest an additional ₹2,250 crore.

The fund infusion was made after the promoters sold their entire stake in DLF’s rental arm DLF Cyber City Developers Ltd for ₹11,900 crore.

This big-ticket deal, which DLF had said would be a “game-changer" for the company, saw a 33.34% stake sale in DCCDL to Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte Ltd for ₹8,900 crore and buyback of shares worth ₹3,000 crore by DLF Cyber City Developers from the promoters.

“…Upon receipt of ₹2,249.90 crore now and the allotment of equity shares upon exercise of warrants, the induction of capital of ₹11,250 crore by the promoter/promoter group stands completed," DLF said in a regulatory filing on Thursday.

In the March quarter, DLF said it had reduced its net debt to₹4,483 crore with the help of funds raised from selling shares to institutional investors, from ₹7,224 crore in the December quarter.

The developer has an unsold inventory of around ₹11,650 crore and is targeting sales of ₹2,700 crore in fiscal year 2020.

In March, DLF raised ₹3,173 crore by selling shares to institutional investors through a qualified institutional placement offer.

“The infusion of ₹2,250 crore gives DLF an option to further reduce its debt or to keep it as cash reserve. Anyhow, the infusion will reduce the interest outflow of the company," said a person familiar with the development, who didn’t wish to be named.

“...Upon allotment of the aforesaid equity shares, the paid-up equity share capital of the company stands increased to ₹495.06 crore comprising 2,475,311,706 equity shares having a face value of ₹2 each.The total shareholding of the promoter/ promoter group entities would stand increased to 74.95% from 73.47% and will remain within the minimum public shareholding limits as prescribed under the Securities Contracts Regulation Act, 1956," according to the filing.

An individual’s credit history plays a major role in determining his loan eligibility. We look at the importance of obtaining this credit report in advance, before applying for a loan

When you buy a property or book a property, it is necessary for you to have sufficient funds at your disposal. These liquid assets can be in the form of bank balance or investments in shares or mutual funds. In case you do not have liquidity at the time of buying the property, you should be confident of borrowing the money, either from your friends and relatives or from the credit system. A housing loan is the major source of funding a house purchase in India. Hence, it is essential for you to assess your ability to get a home loan, beforehand. Lenders, on their part, also verify the applicant’s credit history from the credit information bureau (CIB), before disbursing the housing loan. Presently there are four CIBs, authorised to operate in India. CIBIL (Credit Information Bureau of India) was the pioneer CIB and hence, these CIB reports are also referred to as CIBIL reports.

What is a credit report?

The government has enacted the ‘Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act’, under which four CIBs – CIBIL, Equifax, CRIF High Mark and Experian – have been established. Based on the details provided by the financial institutions, of the credit transactions of their customers, the CIBs maintain records of all the borrowers who have borrowed from the financial system. Data reported by the financial institutions, is collated by the CIBs and made available in the form of a report and a score. Details of all your credit transactions, including credit card transactions, loans and credit enquiries, are reported by these financial institutions and reflected in a single credit report from such bureaus.

Before sanctioning a home loan, the lender will verify your credentials and creditworthiness from the CIBs, to assess the probability of the applicant defaulting on the housing loan. The creditworthiness is assessed from the ‘credit score’ and ‘credit reports’ issued by the CIBs, to minimise the risk of the housing loan becoming bad.

Importance of obtaining a credit report in advance, for home buyers

As the lender will invariably obtain the details of your credit profile from the CIB, it is in your own interest to know in advance, the particulars about you that will be available to the prospective lender. This will help you in finding out whether, prima facie, you will be able to get a home loan or not. For example, people with a CIBIL score of more than 750, have a better chance of getting a home loan than those with a lower score.

Reasons for a home loan getting rejected, based on the credit report

There may be various reasons for your home loan application being rejected by the prospective lender, based on your credit score and credit history. Sometimes, it may be due to defaults in payment of credit cards or in servicing other loans, which affect the credit score. It may also happen due to the adverse transactions of someone else being included under your profile accidentally, because of similarity in the fields like address, name, city, etc.

A bad credit history/score may also be due to carelessness on the part of the financial institutions in reporting your financial transactions or on the part of the CIBs in collating the data received. So, if you become ineligible for a home loan, due to bad credit history or low credit score, your plans to buy a property may go haywire. In such cases, if you have already partly implemented your plan to purchase a house, by either paying token money or advance, you may end up losing the earnest money paid to the seller or the builder. Hence, it is advisable to obtain your credit report in advance, to ensure that there are no erroneous transactions reflecting in your profile. If there are any, you can take corrective actions to get it rectified, before the lender accesses your credit report. As per the RBI mandate, all the CIBs are required to provide the credit score and credit report, free of cost, once in a year.

New Delhi: Private equity investment in real estate rose 26% in the first half of this year to nearly ₹28,000 crore ($3.9 billion) driven by higher inflow in commercial and warehousing projects, according to property consultant Colliers.

Private equity (PE) inflows from foreign investors increased 28% during the first six months of the 2019 calendar year.

"During the first six months of 2019, the real estate sector witnessed private-equity (PE) inflows of $3.9 billion ( ₹27,767 crore), eclipsing the first halves of previous years," Colliers International said in a report.

The increase in PE inflow signals rising confidence of institutional investors in India's premium office spaces, retail properties and warehousing sector, it said.

"Foreign funds remain active in the real estate market, with inflows from such investors rising 28% in H1 2019. While foreign funds continue to be active in the commercial office space, they are also investing into the logistics sector," the report said.

"The sector is at an inflection given the 3Rs - Reforms, REITs, and Results of the recently concluded elections. The year 2019 will see the bulls at play, with phenomenal capital influx in the office and logistics space," said Suresh Castellino, Executive National Director, Capital Markets & Investment Services at Colliers International India.

Mumbai attracted maximum (27%) of the total PE inflows, garnering around $1.05 billion of investments.

Pune saw 10-fold increase in PE inflow to $237 million in January-June period of this year.

During the first six months of the year, investments in commercial office assets accounted for 42% share of total investments. Investors pumped in $1.2 billion into the retail sector, accounting for 31% share.

"We foresee the current year to create a new record for investments in real estate, with investors viewing retail and logistics assets favourably in addition to commercial office assets," said Megha Maan, Senior Associate Director, Research at Colliers International India.

Mumbai: India’s first ever real estate investment trust has outperformed peers since its debut in late March, helped by a low interest rate environment that’s forcing investors to look elsewhere for yield.

Blackstone Group LP-backed Embassy Office Parks REIT has risen 21% since its listing, beating indexes that track REITs in Singapore and Japan.

“This kind of return isn’t usual from a REIT," said K.V. S Manian, an executive director at Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. “A large part has to do with the benign interest rate environment in India now."

Interest rates in India are on a downward trajectory after the central bank cut borrowing costs three times since January. Economists say further easing is expected. REITs offer a fixed return from a pool of rent-yielding assets, along with the prospect of capital appreciation.

Embassy operates around 33 million square feet of office space and has marquee tenants including Microsoft Corp. and Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc. The REIT should see compound annual growth in rental income of around 16% through 2023, analysts at Kotak Securities Ltd. wrote in a report last month.

Sobha has emerged as the ‘Brand Leader of Indian real estate’ for the 5th consecutive year, with Embassy very close behind at 2nd, according to Track2Realty’s BrandXReport 2018-19, with five of the top 10 brands from Bengaluru.

Sobha Limited has been recognised as the Top National Realty Brand across asset class in India, by Track2Realty’s BrandXReport 2018-19. This is the 5th consecutive year that Sobha has been conferred with the National Brand Leadership of Indian real estate. Embassy has jumped from its last fiscal ranking at number 5 to number 2 now, with a brand score of just 0.4 behind Sobha. Godrej Properties has retained its brand rank as 3rd-best brand at the national level. Bengaluru-based Prestige Group not only loses its 2nd ranking to Embassy but drops two places to number 4 this fiscal. K Raheja Corp jumped from 8th position to 5th position.

Brigade Group was at the 6th position from its previous rank at 9. Mumbai-based Oberoi Realty and Piramal Realty were at 8th and 10th places, respectively. Piramal Realty entered the elite list of brand leaders for the first time. DLF Limited was the only brand from north India to figure among the top 10 national brands, at 7th place. The biggest loss of brand equity at the national level was with Puravankara Limited, which dropped to number 9 this year, after remaining at number 4 in the previous two consecutive years. Lodha Group went out of the list of top 10 national brands, in the wake of consumer complaints. Adani Realty was also very close to the top 10 national brands this fiscal year but could not make it.

The comprehensive Brand Perception Audit Report recognised Sobha as the top national realty brand, top brand in south India, top brand in residential space, top brand in super luxury segment and its compact luxury sub-brand Sobha Dream Series as the top brand in affordable homes. Speaking on the occasion, Ravi Menon, chairman of Sobha Limited said, “We are delighted to be recognised as the top brand nationally by Track2Realty – BrandXReport for the 5th consecutive year. Over the last five years, we have been continuously improving our brand leadership score and consolidating our position. It is a rare achievement. There is still a lot to do and we are committed to taking right steps in that direction.” JC Sharma, vice-chairman and managing director of Sobha Limited added: “While the market continues to face tough conditions due to liquidity issues, Sobha has been able to improve its performance significantly. Our ability to maintain the leadership position in any given situation, exhibits our solid foundation and resilience. It is this quality that has helped us become one of the most admired brands in the Indian real estate sector.”

Who would have thought that real estate stocks would lead returns in 2019. Nearly halfway into the year, the Nifty Realty index delivered returns of 19%, making it the biggest gainer among NSE’s sectoral indices this calendar year. The Nifty 500 index, in comparison, has risen about 6% so far this year.

In fact, most investors did not pencil the real estate sector as having a good year. The liquidity crunch post-September 2018 was expected to dash the chances of recovery. But the sector has shown resilience, thanks to the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) that has helped larger real estate firms.

The once unorganized real estate sector is now getting legitimacy, with organized developers launching more properties under the legislation. In fact, new launches under RERA have seen a sharp rise, leading to a strong increase in sales volumes.

“Sales growth for the coverage universe was 38% YoY in 4QFY19 at ₹5,800 crore in 4QFY19...Strong improvement in pre-sales was evident across all geographies, while the decline in realizations was largely due to the increased contribution of lower-ticket housing in overall sales volumes," says Kotak Institutional Equities in a note to clients.

Sales volume in FY19 increased 7% over the previous year to 443 million sq. ft, point out analysts at Kotak. This, coupled with a decline in new launches, has been helpful in cutting back inventory.

“Declining launches and improving sales momentum have continued to aid draw-down of inventory, with all-India inventory declining 11% YoY to ~1.23 bn sq. ft from 1.4 bn sq. ft in March 2019," notes Kotak.

Further, the latest cut in the repo rate, which has resulted in a cumulative decline of 75 basis points since August 2018, is expected to bring relief to the sector. Of course, with some housing finance companies still under the weather, problems related to the liquidity crisis are still pinching. But things are clearly better compared to a few months ago.

It is also worth noting that some of the stocks in the Nifty Realty index are up considerably this year. This has driven up their valuations and made them a tad more expensive. Returns of the Godrej Properties Ltd stock stand at around 41.1% in 2019. Sunteck Realty Ltd, too, gained 36.81% in 2019. So, from that perspective, investors must watch their steps while investing in these stocks.

NEW DELHI: The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has asked real estate giant Unitech to refund over₹53 lakh to two home buyers for failing to hand over the possession of an apartment.

The apex consumer commission asked the company to refund within three months ₹53,73,561 and give a compensation of simple interest at 10 per cent per annum to Gurgaon residents Abhishek and Mani Agarwal for a delay of over seven years in handing over the possession of the apartment.

"Refund the entire principal amount of ₹53,73,561 to the complainants along with compensation in the form of simple interest at 10 per cent per annum with effect from the date of each payment till the date of full refund," Presiding Member of the Commission Justice V K Jain said.

The Commission also asked the firm to pay ₹25,000 as litigation cost to the home buyers.

The Agarwals had booked a residential apartment with Unitech Reliable Projects Limited in a project namely 'Capella' in Uniworld City, which was to be developed in Greater Noida.

According to the allotment letter, the apartment was to be delivered to them by November 30, 2011.

However, their allotment was shifted to another project, namely, 'Unitech Verve', the possession of which was to be delivered within 15 months, that is, June 29, 2012.

Though the real estate giant assured the home buyers of the possession of the apartment, the Agarwals failed to get their house even after a lapse of more than seven years after which they filed a complaint.

Ankit Khandelwal and his wife Sonali, both 34, wanted to get their financial life on track for a very long time but didn’t know whom to consult or how to go about it. About five months ago, they met Shweta Jain and Nithin Sasikumar, who are the co-founders of Investography, a Bengaluru-based financial planning firm, thanks to a financial literacy workshop that was held at Ankit’s office. “Earlier our investment planning was not structured and we were not sure about where we must invest our money," said Ankit, a finance professional.

One misconception which the couple had was that you need a large amount of money to start investing but Jain explained to them why that wasn’t true. “Middle-aged individuals’ investments should be targeted towards their goals, growth for the long term and liquidity and safety in the short term," said Jain.

Sonali and Ankit were initially hesitant about exploring investment options other than Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) and real estate. Ankit said their investments were not planned through and the little that was invested was done only to get some tax benefits.

Once they started working with a planner, they figured out how investment options such as mutual funds could help their money grow better. Getting the couple to start saving was not the real challenge but increasing savings to match their requirements was hard. However, five months into the financial plan, they’re now saving about 25% of their total income. What most of us don’t realise is that one of the biggest leaks is the money we spend on shopping. “We had to help them get things in order. While the couple did mention what they saved, the numbers were not matching up to what they should have actually saved," said Jain. the mismatch was because of the unaccounted expenses.

Sonali and Ankit have their long-, medium- and short-term goals chalked out. Their priority is to ensure that their one-and a-half-year-old son Tiyansh gets the best education and they’ve already started putting aside money to meet this goal. They also wish to buy a house of their own in the next five years which is their medium-term goal. Planning for retirement and having a contingency fund are other goals. The couple has started regular investment in equities to meet their long-term goals. For other goals, they have a significant debt exposure.

“We should have started earlier and planned well. But now we are carefully selecting our investment avenues based on our needs. Better late than never," said Sonali, a marketing and sales professional.

Jain said most people tend to take decisions such as buying a house or going on vacations without really considering what impact it could have on their other goals. “It is worthwhile to figure out what is important to you and the implications your money decisions could have on your future goals," said the financial planner.

Their son and Ankit’s parents are financially dependant on the couple. In terms of money lessons, the couple said they’ve learnt a lot. Starting early was their biggest takeaway and this is one thing they’d like to pass on to their son as well. “Another thing I learnt was that it doesn’t matter whether you start with a small amount or a big amount. Saving in whatever quantity is okay and investing the same will only help your money grow," said Ankit.

Having a financial plan is very important. Jain said it is the foundation and if you don’t have a foundation, how successful and tall a building can you build? Most people end up spending a lot in their early years and regret it only much later. “Putting a plan in place and saving for the goals gives a person focus and clarity which is important. A financial plan is like Google Maps, it shows you various routes to get to your destination—you can choose which one serves you the best," said Jain.

In the recent past, several developers have avoided mentioning the possession date in the agreement. We look at what home buyers can do, under RERA, in such cases, and recent judgements in favour of home buyers.

There have been cases galore, where home buyers have faced delays in getting the possession of their flats. In many cases, the delays have been for more than five to six years. Some developers have even gone to the extent of not mentioning the date of possession in the agreement, leading to mental and financial trauma for the home buyers.

While taking a serious note of the issue, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA), in a recent judgement, directed Skyline Construction Company to refund Rs 1.06 crores, along with an interest of 10.55 per cent to actor Vrajesh Hirjee, for failing to hand over possession and keeping the date of possession clause empty in the registered agreement. The Authority also asked the builder to refund tax deducted at source (TDS) and stamp duty paid by Hirjee. In another case, Aparna Singh, who had purchased a flat in a residential project in Thane, was not able to claim interest relief under Section 18 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) rules, due to the absence of the possession date in the sale agreement. In her case, the RERA tribunal ordered the developer to pay interest to her, even though the date was not mentioned in the agreement.

MUMBAI: Demand for commercial real estate, led by sustained occupiers’ interest to expand businesses in India, is pushing prime office rentals in main cities such as Mumbai, New Delhi and Bengaluru upwards.

During the first quarter, prime office rentals in Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi rose 17%, 5% and 1.4%, respectively, from a year ago. The growth has made New Delhi’s Connaught Place the fourth-most expensive office market in the Asia-Pacific region, showed data from Knight Frank. 

Connaught Place recorded gross effective monthly rents of $82.5 per sq metre (Rs 330 per sq ft) that stacked up just behind Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore. Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), with effective monthly rents of $75.1 per sq metre (Rs 300 per sq ft), was the seventh-most expensive office location. 

“The office space demand witnessed record growth in 2018 with over 47 million square feet (msf) of leasing, while new office space supply rose 13% in the same period. Prime office markets are already operating with very low vacancy, which is slowing down new transactions. Strong demand trends have put upward pressure on rentals, especially in prime markets, a trend that is expected to continue,” said Shishir Baijal, CMD of Knight Frank India.

Knight Frank’s Asia-Pacific Prime Office Rental Index for the first quarter of 2019 recorded a decline of 0.4% sequential growth in rentals, though it remained up 6.2% year-on-year basis. The sequential decline in the index was attributed to continued heightened global uncertainties led by re-escalation of US-China trade tension, Brexit and various major elections across the region.

Dubai: The UAE's recently-launched permanent residency scheme could be a game changer and provide a fillip to the real estate market by encouraging expatriates to invest in property and settle in the Gulf nation, industry experts said.

The United Arab Emirates last week launched a permanent residency scheme to woo wealthy individuals and exceptional talents, a move that could attract more Indian professionalsand businessmen to the country.

The "Gold Card" programme unveiled by UAE Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum is open to investors and "exceptional talents" such as doctors, engineers, scientists, students and artists.

Sameer Barakat, Executive Director at Provis, a real estate and property management company in UAE, said the permanent residency scheme is a significant step towards realizing the economic diversification and sustainable development goals of the country.

“This initiative further positions the UAE as an innovative destination for business leaders, providing millions of people with high-quality opportunities in a tolerant, safe and productive environment," he said.

Lewis Allsopp, CEO of Allsopp & Allsopp, Dubai estate agents, said this is a huge milestone for the UAE and for the Dubai property market.

“Over the last few years, we have seen continual steps to enhance the property market and to add longevity to the UAE with five-year retirement visas, long-term visas and ten-year visas," he said.

“Most expats have a money-making mindset when they move to Dubai with a short-term plan. The UAE Cabinet's decision to enforce a Gold Card for permanent residency, now allows expats to look at Dubai as a home rather than a temporary plan," he added.

The permanent residency is a good step forward and likely to boost the fortunes of its property market, a statement from the Property Finder said.

It said that around 6,800 people have been granted permanent residency and a ‘Gold Card’ in the first round of applications.

“This is a game changer for the real estate industry in Dubai. We are yet to get full details of the Gold Card program, such as who can qualify, the terms, etc. However, it's definitely a step in the right direction and very much needed to stimulate investment," Lynnette Abad, Director of Research and Data, Property Finder, said.

Currently, short-term visas linked to employment hold back expatriates from investing and owning real estate in the UAE. They prefer to remit savings to their home countries instead. The Gold Card scheme will encourage expats to make long-term investment goals, including owning a property.

The UAE already offers long-term visas valid for five to 10 years to property investors, entrepreneurs and people with exceptional talents without the need for a local sponsor.

A minimum investment of AED 5 million (USD 13,61,225) is needed to obtain a five-year visa, and double that amount is necessary for a decade-long visa.

“Initiatives and new regulations like these are expected to have a positive impact on the real estate market in Dubai. The more the government offers to entice talent and companies, the easier it will be for them to settle here and call Dubai home. Then, the investment should follow suit," Abad said.

The Indian expatriate community is reportedly the largest ethnic community in the UAE, constituting roughly about 30 per cent of the country's population of around nine million.

A preliminary probe into the fire in Surat, at a coaching class, which killed 22 students shows several lapses by the builder and local municipality officials.

A preliminary probe into the causes of the devastating fire in Surat at a coaching class, which claimed the lives of 22 students last week, has highlighted various lapses on the part of officials of the local municipal corporation as well as the builders. The probe also found that the structure where the coaching class was operated was prone to fire incidents. It had low ceilings, and tyres were used for sitting in place of chairs.

The builders had hidden the fact that they had added a fourth floor to the three-storey Takshashila Complex while seeking regularisation of the structure in 2013 by paying ‘impact fee.’ According to a top bureaucrat, the officials concerned did not conduct a physical inspection of the building before approving the proposal of the builder. The fire was triggered by a spark in the compressor of the air-conditioner fixed between the first and second floors of the Takshashila Complex and spread through a vertical display panel to the top floor with a dome structure where the coaching centre was located, as per a preliminary report submitted by Urban Development Department principal secretary Mukesh Puri, to the state government. He said access to an RCC staircase connecting the fourth floor to the lower floor was blocked due to which the students could not escape out of the building. “Another escape route through an iron staircase could not be accessed due to the fire,” he said.

Puri said three officials have been suspended for various lapses. They are identified as SK Acharya and Krti Mod, both with the fire department in Surat Municipal Corporation, and deputy engineer VK Parmar. Chief minister Vijay Rupani had directed Puri to conduct an inquiry and submit a report in three days. “In 2013, four owners of the complex had applied for the regularisation of the structure by paying an impact fee. Their application was approved in 2015. It is learned now that they had applied for approval of a building with only three floors, and with no mention of a fourth floor. The responsible engineer did not conduct a physical inspection of the building. Declaration by the builders was false and approval by the engineers was wrong. Officials who carried out the survey for the impact fee for the building and approved it without conducting physical verification are also responsible,” Puri stated.

“The builders or the tenants using such a structure like the one on the fourth floor of the building are also responsible. Also, there is a big lapse on the part of the person who blocked access to the RCC staircase,” he said. Puri also said that certain fire department officials were also responsible as they did not carry out a survey of the building even after they were directed to do so in the wake of a similar incident in a tuition class in the city’s Vesu area, in November last year. Two persons were killed in that incident. The structure where the coaching class operated was prone to fire incidents, with low ceilings, tyres for sitting in place of chairs, and an iron staircase attached to it placed on a wooden structure which collapsed. Puri said the smoke caused due to the blaze could not escape as the structure had no ventilator.

As per the report, as many as 918 sensitive establishments were surveyed and 450 have been asked to comply while 39 properties have been sealed. “Fire officials were supposed to carry out the survey. How the building remained to be surveyed is a big lapse,” he said. Puri also said there were three teachers in the coaching centre at the time of the incident. While one of them died, another received serious head injuries while jumping off the building. The third also sustained injury while escaping but has been arrested.

Puri said the findings are a result of a three-day investigation and a detailed investigation will continue further in the case. He shared that Surat has two vehicles with hydraulic ladders but one of these arrived 45 minutes after the fire erupted and was of not much use. The police have so far arrested three people, namely Harshul Vekaria, Jignesh Paghdal, and Bhargav Butani. While Vekaria is the builder, Paghdal used to handle the overall management of the complex and Butani is the owner of the coaching class.

New Delhi: Realty major DLF has transferred a three acre land worth ₹330 crore in Gurugram to its joint venture with Singapore sovereign wealth fund GIC and is in process to hand over a Noida shopping mall to settle dues.

DLF owed ₹8,700 crore to DLF Cyber City Developers Ltd (DCCDL) as on 31 December, 2018.

In December 2017, the realty firm DLF entered into this joint venture with GIC when DLF promoters sold their entire 40% stake in DCCDL for nearly ₹12,000 crore.

This deal included sale of 33.34% stake in the DCCDL to GIC for about ₹9,000 crore and buyback of remaining shares worth about ₹3,000 crore by the DCCDL.

DLF holds 66.66% while GIC holds 33.34% stake in the JV firm DCCDL.

In its latest analyst presentation, DLF has informed that the company has transferred 3.05 acre land parcel near Mall of India, Gurugram for ₹330 crore.

The 2 million sq ft Mall of India project at Noida in Uttar Pradesh is in process to be transferred to DCCDL at a valuation of ₹2,950 crore, it added.

Post this transaction, the outstanding amount would come down to around ₹5,450 crore.

To settle this balance amount by next year, DLF has proposed to sell its stake in its prime commercial project Horizon Centre in Gurugram, Haryana for about ₹850 crore.

That apart, it plans to transfer its mall at Saket in South Delhi at a valuation of ₹1,050 crore. Another ₹1,000 crore is proposed to be settled through transfer of DLF's commercial land in Chennai, while ₹1,100 crore would be settled as per the previous contract with group firm DLF Assets Ltd.

DLF is in discussion with the DCCDL for identifying other assets to settle the remaining ₹1,450 crore dues.

DCCDL currently holds about 28 million sq ft of rent-yielding commercial assets, largely in Gurugram, with annual rental income of about ₹2,800 crore.

A team from the MMRDA, the Railways and contractors, have successfully launched six girders along the 1.6-km-long elevated BKC- Eastern Express Highway corridor in Mumbai, paving the way for the opening of the route by July 2019.

Update on May 23, 2019: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) launched 6 major girders each, over the Sion rail over-bridge (ROB) and Chunabhatti ROB during the wee hours of May 17-19, 2019 (Friday, Saturday and Sunday). The 52-metre-long 6 girders launched at Sion ROB weighed 480 tonnes and the 60-metre-long 6 girders launched over Chunabhatti ROB weighed 600 tonnes, the agency said, in a statement. The BKC-EEH connector is expected to be launched soon.

March 20, 2019: A team of a hundred people, which included 21 engineers, two railway officials and 80 workers, launched six major girders weighing 80 tonnes each for the much-awaited 1.6-km-long four-lane elevated connector from Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) to the Eastern Express Highway (EEH). The heavy-duty activity took place in the wee hours of March 17-19, 2019, during the different blocks allotted by the Railways. This will help the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) construct a bridge across the Mithi River and a rail overbridge on the Central Railway near Sion station and another rail overbridge on the Harbour Line, near Chunabhatti station.

“This was a very complex task but great team work was put up by the MMRDA, Railways and contractors, to showcase progress on the project of this magnitude. The Rs 155-crore elevated connector from BKC to EEH is expected to decongest traffic in the Sion-Dharavi area, reduce journey by three km and travel time by 30 minutes, in turn, helping the environment,” said RA Rajeev, metropolitan commissioner, MMRDA.

The 53-metre-long girders were launched in three operations, each comprising two girders at a time. While the first two girders were launched between 1.06 am and 1.34 am on March 17, the next two girders were launched between 2 am and 2.46 am on March 18. The remaining set of two girders were launched between 2.22 am and 3.18 am on March 19, 2019. The launching operations were carried out under the supervision of the consultants recommended by the Railways, M/s RITES Ltd and Railway officials.

MUMBAI: Bank of Baroda reported on Wednesday that its net loss narrowed to ₹991 crore for the quarter ended March 2019 as against net loss of ₹3,102 crore in March 2018.

According to 19 Bloomberg analysts, the bank was expected to post a profit of ₹913 crore.

Provisions and contingencies surged 93% to ₹5,399.29 crore in the quarter from ₹2,794 crore a quarter ago. On annual basis, it was down 19% from ₹6,672 crore.

The provisions for non-performing assets (NPAs) during the March quarter declined to ₹5,550 crore as compared to ₹7,053 crore in March 2018.

Gross non-performing assets (NPAs) fell 33.5% to ₹15,609 crore at the end of the March quarter from ₹23,482 crore in the same quarter last year.

As a percentage of total loans, gross NPAs stood at 9.6% as compared to 11% in the previous quarter and 12.26% in the same quarter a year ago. Net NPAs were at 3.3% in the March quarter as compared to 4.26% in the previous quarter and 5.49% in the same quarter a year ago.

The lender also got shareholders' nod to raise additional capital up to ₹19,400 crore.

Net interest income (NII), or the core income a bank earns by giving loans, increased 27% to ₹5,066.96 crore versus ₹4,002.26 crore last year. Other income was at ₹1,970.41 crore, up 16% from ₹1,695.90 crore in the same period a year ago.

Fresh slippages for the quarter and the 2018-19 financial year stood at ₹3,192 crore and ₹10,138 crore respectively

The net interest margin in March quarter was at 2.9%.

On Wednesday, Bank of Baroda's stock on BSE closed 0.7% higher at ₹126.

The centre’s new notification, exempting constructions in areas between 20,000 and 50,000 sq metres from obtaining environment clearance, has invited criticism from activists, who have claimed that the move will benefit builders.

Construction in areas between 20,000 and 50,000 sq metres will not require environment clearance from the government anymore, the centre has said, in its modified notification on the environment impact assessment (EIA). The notification, recently issued by the Ministry of Environment, states that it has decided to ‘re-engineer’ the EIA rules, based on amendments and the experience over the years in its implementation. “As the principal notification has undergone substantial changes over the years, the ministry has decided to re-engineer the entire notification, in line with the amendments issued and circulars issued from time to time and experience gained over the years in implementation of the EIA notification,” it said.

Under the new notification, the process of clearances granted for sand mining and construction activities have been eased out, a decision that has not gone down well with environmental activists, who claim that the EIA notification compromises on public hearings. The draft allows district-level authorities, headed by the district magistrate, to seek exemption from public hearing, while granting green clearance for sand mining in areas up to five hectares of land.

Lawyer and environmentalist Vikrant Tongad said that through the notification, the government was trying to give benefit to builders and mining companies, which in turn, was weakening the EIA. “Under the modified EIA, building and construction in areas between 20,000 sq metres and 50,000 sq metres do not require environmental clearance, which has been taking place all this while. In the sand mining sector, no public hearing will now take place for mining in an area of 0-5 hectares. It is a wrong move and public hearing must take place,” Tongad said. He said, the government was ‘trying to give benefit to builders, mining companies and industries, by weakening the EIA notification of 2006, which would increase pollution and corruption in India’.

EIA is a process of evaluating the likely environmental impact of a proposed project or development, taking into account inter-related socio-economic, cultural and human-health impacts, both beneficial and adverse.

Sharing his view, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) deputy director general Chandra Bhushan, said this draft has weakened the existing EIA. “My first impression is that this draft, if it is converted into the final law, will weaken the environment assessment. EIA needs substantial strengthening. Public participation part has been weakened,” he said.

Bhushan said that the entire process has become meaningless and will not help in bringing down corruption. “This notification does not set up right institution for compliance of the conditions under which clearance is given. The entire process becomes meaningless. Corruption remains a major issue. The draft is a status quo draft,” he said. The activists were also of the view that this new notification would violate court and National Green Tribunal orders, by which several amendments included in the EIA draft have been quashed already. “The kind of changes which are being brought in, is a violation of court/NGT orders,” Tongad said. No comment was available from the Environment Ministry.

The Odisha government has asked the centre to sanction five lakh houses under the PMAY, to reconstruct houses that were damaged by cyclone Fani.

The Odisha government, on May 13, 2019, urged the centre to sanction at least five lakh houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), as the ‘extremely severe’ cyclone ‘Fani’, which hit the state on May 3, 2019, damaged lakhs of kutcha houses in the state’s coastal region. According to preliminary estimates, five lakh houses have been completely or substantially damaged across 14 districts, with the major loss occurring in Puri district.

In a letter to prime minister Narendra Modi, chief minister Naveen Patnaik wrote, “I would request you to kindly consider sanctioning five lakh PMAY special houses, initially, for the state of Odisha.” Stating that the state government had mentioned about the housing damage during the prime minister’s visit on May 6, 2019, Patnaik wrote, “I reiterate our request for waiver of the permanent wait list (PWL) criteria for this particular allocation and also consider a centre-state fund sharing pattern of 90:10, as a special case.”

A copy of the letter was released to the media, a day after the chief minister announced that those whose houses have been damaged fully or substantially, will be given pucca houses. Noting that the monsoon is likely to reach Odisha around June 10, Patnaik said that keeping in view the urgency of providing pucca houses to the affected people, the state government is going ahead with issuing of work orders from June 1, 2019, in anticipation of the centre’s approval of the proposal. “Your good self had personally witnessed the damage in the cyclone-affected areas during your visit to the state on May 6. A presentation on the extent of damage was also made by the state administration, highlighting the dire need for building disaster-resilient housing along the coastal belt of Odisha, vulnerable to cyclonic storm,” he said.

The state government is undertaking a detailed assessment of houses damaged, which would be completed soon, Patnaik said, adding the exact number of houses damaged completely or substantially will be arrived at, after the survey. Meanwhile, union petroleum and natural gas minister Dharmendra Pradhan assured the Odisha government that an additional 1,000 kilo-litre of kerosene will be arranged for distribution among the cyclone-affected people. In a letter to the chief minister, Pradhan mentioned, “I wish to inform that I have advised one of the PSUs under the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, to contribute around Rs 3.2 crores (equivalent to the cost of 1000 kl of kerosene on cost basis) through CSR fund to the CM Relief Fund/state exchequer, to meet the requirement.”

Logistic firm Bhumika group has forayed into real estate and is developing a mixed use project at Udaipur, Rajasthan with an investment of ₹300 crore. The company is developing over 10 lakh sq ft area in the first phase of this project named Urban Square.

"We are developing our first real estate project at Udaipur. The total area in this project will be 18 lakh sq ft. But, we are currently developing the first phase comprising over 10 lakh sq ft," Bhumika group Director and chief executive officer Uddhav Poddar said.

The project cost for the first phase in ₹300 crore, he said. Urban Square project is being financed with a mix of equity, sales advances, internal accruals and debt which has been secured from Aditya Birla Finance Ltd, Poddar added.

The construction work has already started and the first phase will be delivered in the next three years. In the first phase, the company is constructing a 5star hotel with 200 keys and has roped in Holiday Inn for the management purpose.

Bhumika group is also developing a shopping mall, high-street retail and office space and serviced apartments in the first phase. The company is giving retail space in shopping malls on lease, while office space, high-street retail and service apartments are on sale model.

The project is being designed by shopping mall specialist architect from South Africa - Bentel Associates.

Bhumika Group is planning to develop more commercial projects in Rajasthan, Haryana and the national capital market.

In its logistic business, the group handles transportation and warehousing for cement manufacturers.

With improving infrastructure and connectivity, Ghaziabad’s housing market has become a hub for end-users, owing to its varied offerings and competitive pricing, as compared to its nearby hubs like Greater Noida West

From being a densely-packed suburban city in the National Capital Region (NCR), Ghaziabad has come a long way, aided by infrastructure development and improving connectivity. Besides the metro rail network, the Eastern Peripheral Expressway connects it radially with the other highways in the north and south of the national capital. This micro-market, hence, has become a hub for end-users in the residential real estate space.

Mumbai: The next flash point in India’s credit markets could be real-estate debt.

That’s the view of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co., a major corporate bond buyer and one of India’s top life insurers. The firm avoided investing in debt of stressed companies before credit market strains spread last year.

That crisis was triggered by shock defaults by major infrastructure financier IL&FS Group, and its fallout pushed up financing costs for a range of borrowers including wealthy property tycoons struggling to roll over debt. The country hardly needs more stresses now just as credit markets regain some normalcy after policy makers took steps to inject more liquidity into the financial system.

“While most of the credit market is healthy, one needs to be cautious on NBFCs having large exposure to the real-estate sector," said Chief Investment Officer Manish Kumar, who oversees 1.1 trillion rupees ($15.8 billion) at ICICI Prudential Life. Pressure may rise at non-bank firms, raising the need for lenders to liquidate assets or for stronger developers to buy up projects, he said.

Indian shadow banks lent heavily to the property industry in recent years, helping to fuel a construction boom. They now face rising risks that weaker developers may struggle to repay those borrowings, as housing sales have failed to keep pace with debt expansion. Teetering economic activity also isn’t helping.

Earlier this year, troubles for mortgage lender Dewan Housing Finance Corp. were among factors that pushed up financing costs.

An analysis of about 11,000 home builders by research firm Liases Foras in February showed that developers on average have to repay twice as much in debt each year as the income they generate that can be used to service it. Property prices in India’s biggest cities have been flagging -- home values in Mumbai sank 11 percent last year.

That all means property debt investors need to be extra cautious, but there are still pockets of opportunity, according to ICICI Prudential. The firm has raised corporate bond holdings to 33 percent from 31 percent since the IL&FS crisis, mainly by increasing investments in notes issued by top-rated housing finance firms and bonds that will be serviced by the government.

Peninsula Land Limited has announced that it has sold over 1,200 apartments at its affordable luxury project, ‘addressOne’ in Gahunje, Pune.

Peninsula Land Limited, a part of the Ashok Piramal Group, on May 7, 2019, announced that it has sold over 1,200 apartments at its affordable luxury project, ‘addressOne’, in Gahunje, Pune. The value of the apartments sold is close to Rs 300 crores. In its first four phases, the company launched approximately 900 units for sale, of which it sold 800 apartments.

Commenting on the success of the project, Nandan Piramal, director – sales and marketing, Peninsula Land Ltd, said, “We are thrilled with the customer response received for our project addressOne in Gahunje, Pune. The project saw an 18% rise in prices, since its project launch. Gahunje as a destination is fast emerging as the next big realty hotspot for Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation’s (PCMC’s) residential needs, thereby, making it the next growth precinct of Pune. The Pune market overall holds great promise, given its proximity to Mumbai and the thriving IT/ITeS industry in Pune. The saturated regions of the city have pushed spillover residential demand to more affordable areas like Gahunje in Pune, which is witnessing rapid infrastructure upgrades.”

To provide financial assistance to home buyers, Peninsula Land has tied up with Home Capital, to provide interest-free loans on stamp duty and registration. “Around 350 home buyers have availed of the benefits of this offer,” Piramal added.

While nominations can be given for shares, bank deposits, mutual fund investments, bank lockers, the rules and implications for immovable properties are different. Here’s how they operate.

The reply to a question raised in the Indian parliament revealed that deposits worth Rs 5,124.98 crores were lying unclaimed for 10 years or more, with scheduled banks. This is a huge amount, considering the fact that banking facilities are generally availed of by educated people. These unclaimed deposits could have been significantly lower, if the depositor had appointed a nominee for his bank account/deposit. Here’s a look at what nomination is and its effect on succession.

What is nomination?

Nomination is a process, whereby, a person authorises someone to receive the assets on his/her behalf, after death. It comes into operation, after the death of the owner. The specified asset is transferred in the name of the nominee.

Rights of nominees and legal heirs

There is a general perception, that the nominee becomes the owner of the asset, once it is transferred in his name or is handed over to him. However, the rule is subject to a few exceptions, that the nominee becomes a trustee to hold the property on behalf of the legal heir.

Under the Insurance Act, an insurance company is discharged of its liability, once it pays the amount of claim to the nominee. It is the responsibility of the nominee, to hand over the claim amount to the legal heir/s. The judiciary has made this amply clear. The Supreme Court, in the case of Sarbati Devi, which was decided in 1983, held that the nominee is a trustee of the property and is liable to hand it over to the legal heirs. This applies to deposits in bank accounts, as well.

Those who reside in cities, often have their residential properties in cooperative housing societies. Such properties are governed by the cooperative society laws that are applicable in each state. According to Section 30 of the Maharashtra Cooperatives Societies Act, for instance, the society is legally allowed to transfer the property in the name of the nominee, in case the owner has submitted the nomination form to the society, in respect of that property. However, such a nominee, who is registered as the owner of the property in the records of the housing society, represents the legal heir/s. It is only the legal heir/s, who have the beneficial ownership rights of the flat, ruled the Bombay High Court, in the celebrated case of Ramdas Shivram Sattur in 2009, which dragged on for 25 years.

In the case of provident fund dues and shares in companies, the law provides that the nominee becomes the legal and beneficial owner of such property. Therefore, in case of shares in a demat account, the nominee shall become its absolute owner, as decided by the Bombay High Court in the case of Saraswat Bank Limited.

Importance of nominating

Home owners should make nominations for all their assets, wherever such a facility is available. As the nominee/s are also the legal heir/s in most of the cases, the making of such nominations, will help transfer of the asset to the legal heir/s. Even in other cases, it will ensure that that the property does not remain unclaimed or become subject to litigation. While making a nomination for shares and provident fund dues, one needs to remember that the nominee will become the owner of these assets.

It seems that the rapid decline in sales of residential properties has finally come to a halt. Over the last few quarters, sales numbers have either remained stagnant or improved marginally, but did not fall, according to various real estate reports. One of the major reasons that is likely driving the slight revival in sales is the increasing demand for affordable and low-cost housing. Other contributing factors are — confidence generated by the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 among homebuyers when it comes to buying apartments in new launched projects, and relaxation in goods and services tax (GST) on under-construction property.

Increase in sales

“Sales across Tier I cities have grown by 5% during FY2019 as compared to FY2018. MMR (Mumbai Metropolitan Region) has posted highest sales of 70,794 units (25.5% of total sales in Tier I cities), followed by NCR (National Capital Region) with 54,174 units contributing 19.5% of total sales," according to the Residential Market Report for the quarter ending March 2019 by Liases Foras, a Mumbai-based real estate research and advisory firm.

Among the eight cities covered by the report—MMR, NCR, Pune, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai—seven cities witnessed sales growth between 6% and 20%. While Hyderabad and Kolkata witnessed maximum growth of 20% each, followed by Bengaluru with 14% increase in sales numbers, NCR witnessed a 13% decline in sales when compared to last year.

While revival in sales will bring some respite to developers, home buyers warming up to newly launched projects is a big plus for them. However, the latter trend is just picking up and most homebuyers still prefer ready-to-move-in houses.

According to a recent report, Consumer Sentiment Survey H1 2019, by Anarock Property Consultants Pvt. Ltd, “While ready-to-move-in homes remained the preferred choice for several homebuyers, new launches (which drew the least consumer interest in the previous survey) saw a decent revival. Over 18% of respondents now prefer newly launched properties as against a mere 5% in the previous survey."

The reasons behind the increase in preference for newly launched projects are “implementation of RERA and lower GST rates", said the Anarock report.

Meanwhile, affordable housing witnessed higher demand compared with other segments, thanks to government incentives. “Like last quarter, close to 54% of the sales of this quarter were contributed by sub- ₹50 lakh segment. Growth in this segment is supported by government initiatives," said the Liases Foras report. About “70% of prospective buyers prefer properties under ₹80 lakh," added the Anarock report.

Taking cues from the trends, developers have been focusing on affordable and mid-range segments. “Over the past five years, developers have been actively focusing on the affordable and mid-range housing segments. The share of new supply in the affordable and mid-segment combined (within ₹80 lakh) stood at 77% between 2017 and 2018—39% in affordable housing and 37% in the mid-range segment," according to the Anarock report.

High Inventories

An increase in sales notwithstanding, inventory of unsold units continues to remain high. “Unsold stock in Tier I cities increased by 4% on year-on-year basis, while the number of unsold units currently across top eight cities is 9,66,591 units," according to the Liases Foras report. Hyderabad witnessed a 16% increase, the highest, followed by Chennai, Kolkata and Pune, showing a rise of 15%, 12% and 10%, respectively. Single-digit growth was observed in MMR (7%), Bengaluru (5%) and Ahmedabad (1%). NCR witnessed a decline of 8%.

High inventory at developers’ end has kept a lid on property prices. According to the Liases Foras report, “Prices have remained unchanged largely across the top cities with some upward movement being recorded only in Hyderabad."

Prices are expected to remain stagnant till there is a significant increase in sales. So if you are planning to buy a house, take your time to mull options.

After cricketer MS Dhoni moved the SC, seeking protection of his ownership over a penthouse in Amrapali Group’s project, the court has asked the company to explain its monetary transactions and agreements with the cricketer.

The Supreme Court, on April 30, 2019, directed the embattled Amrapali Group to explain its monetary transactions and agreements with Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who was the realty firm’s brand ambassador between 2009 and 2015. The top court said it wants the entire picture to be placed before it and also sought an explanation of each and every transaction and dealings with Dhoni. It said the Group might have ‘cheated’ Dhoni, as well and that is the reason some media houses have reported about his case.

A bench of justices Arun Mishra and UU Lalit, asked the firm to submit the details, as to how much money was transacted between Amrapali Group and Dhoni. “We want entire picture before us. How much money was transacted between you and Dhoni and what were your agreements with him. How much money you have paid for the advertisements (branding). We want entire details. You might have cheated him also, that’s why media houses have recently reported about his case,” the bench said.

At the outset, the court-appointed forensic auditors, Pawan Agrawal and Ravi Bhatia, told the bench that they had detected 24 transactions between Amrapali Group and M/s Rhiti Sports Management Pvt Ltd, which manages the endorsement and advertisement rights of Dhoni. Agrawal told the bench that in one of the transactions, around Rs 25 crores was given by Dhoni to Amrapali and there were several transactions between different group companies.

Rhiti Sports told the court that it was an operational creditor of Amrapali Group and had entered into various agreements, for endorsement and promotion of brand ‘Amrapali’, between the year 2009 and 2015. It had said that the endorsements’ agreements and various MOUs were executed between Amrapali Group CMD for and on behalf of all the companies, partnership firms, joint ventures doing their business under the brand umbrella of Amrapali Group and M/s Rhiti Sports Management Pvt Ltd. “That the respondent builder Amrapali Group owes an amount in excess of Rs 38.95 crores, out of which Rs 22.53 crores is towards the principal amount and Rs 16.42 crores towards the interest calculated at 18% simple interest per annum,” Rhiti Sports said in its affidavit. The sports management company had told the court that two agreements were entered between Amrapali Group and Dhoni in 2009 and 2012, for three years each, for the brand endorsements of the real estate firm and it was agreed that all the amount payable to Dhoni was to be done through it only.

The bench asked senior advocates Geeta Luthra and Gaurav Bhatia, appearing for Amrapali, to furnish all the details by May 1, 2019. Dhoni, in an earlier affidavit filed in the apex court, had said that he was a creditor of Amrapali Homes Projects Pvt Ltd and had entered into a joint venture agreement with it, on June 14, 2011. Under the agreement they were to create a joint venture company to develop a residential complex in Ranchi and adjoining areas in Jharkhand, he said. Dhoni said that for creating the JV an MOU was executed between Amrapali Group CMD Anil Kumar Sharma and him and had contributed Rs 25 crores, as initial capital. He said he was guaranteed and assured payment of a minimum sum of Rs 75 crores to him, by Amrapali. In another affidavit, Dhoni had sought protection of his ownership rights over a 5,800-sq ft penthouse he had booked 10 years ago, in an Amrapali Group project.

Residents of the Trans Hindan area in Ghaziabad staged a protest following a 29-hour-long power outage, which has been blamed on damage to the underground cables, caused by the Water Works Department.

Residents of 17 colonies in the Trans Hindan area, protested against the Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (PVVNL) in Ghaziabad, on April 29, 2019, for a near 29-hour-long power outage in their neigbourhood. The protestors alleged negligence on the part of the Water Works Department of Ghaziabad Nagar Nigam. The power outage lasted from 9.00 pm on Saturday (April 27, 2019) to 2.00 am on Monday (April 29, 2019).

The PVVNL said that it would will lodge a FIR against the Water Works Department, for allegedly damaging underground cable while laying water pipes, officials said. Chief engineer Rakesh Kumar Rana said the case will be lodged under the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

NEW DELHI: Property brokerage firm 360 Realtors will hire 1,000 employees this fiscal year and is actively looking for acquisition in the US market to grow its business in India and overseas, a top company official said.

Gurugram-based 360 realtors currently has over 50 offices across India and overseas with a sales force of more than 1,000 people. Its revenue grew by 46 per cent to ₹152 crore during the last fiscal. The company sold 6,000 units worth ₹4,100 crore during 2018-19.

"We have set a target to sell 12,000 units this fiscal. To achieve this, we need people. We will be hiring about 1,000 people this financial year," the company's founder and MD Ankit Kansal told PTI.

With 30 per cent of sales in value terms coming from non-resident Indians (NRIs), he said, the company is actively looking to acquire a brokerage firm in the US to market Indian properties.

The discussions are underway with some of the US-based brokerage houses that are marketing Indian properties in America.

360 Realtors competes with the likes of PropTiger.com, ANAROCK, Square Yards, Investor Clinic and Wealth Clinic in the organised property brokerage business, which has now come under the ambit of new realty law RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority).

On the overall real estate market, Kansal said, it has once again started turning bullish on the back of regulatory reforms and healthy economic growth.

"Developers are also coming up with numerous attractive schemes such as developer subvention, attractive prices and freebies, thereby giving a buying boost," he added.

Kansal said, housing prices are likely to remain stable for at least another 6-8 months. Over the last year, the company has incubated verticals such as a unique broker aggregation platform, strategic advisory services for developers and a media house to achieve higher growth, he said.

The Bombay HC has struck down the powers of the BMC commissioner to frame rules for laying down guidelines for determining the capital value of a property, saying that such rules are ultra vires to the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act

The Bombay High Court has said that there was no provision for Mumbai’s civic chief, to frame rules for laying down guidelines for determining the capital value of a property, based on which tax could be levied on it. The high court made the observation, while striking down certain rules enacted by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), for assessment of capital value of a property based on which tax could be levied on it.

A division bench of justices AS Oka and Riyaz Chagla had, on April 24, 2019, struck down Rules 20, 21 and 22 of the Capital Value Rules of 2010 and 2015, saying they are ultra vires to the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act (MMC Act). The high court said all the assessments and bills issued under these rules stand quashed. “There is no provision which enables the civic body commissioner to frame rules for laying down guidelines for determining capital value,” the bench said in its order made available on April 25.

The order noted that the Corporation, while assessing capital value of a property, will have to consider factors like nature of land, type of land or structure, area, user category (residential or commercial) and its age. “In fact, framing rules for laying down the method of calculating the capital value is itself ultra vires, beyond one’s legal authority,” the bench noted. The court said the civic body will have to give a fresh hearing to the complaints filed before it.

The bench, however, upheld the constitutional validity of the 2009 amendment to the MMC Act that had changed the levying of property tax basis in Mumbai, from rateable value on standard rent to capital value. Rateable value of a property is derived from its rent, while capital value is based on a host of factors, such as the property’s market value, its location and use, among others. “By adopting capital value as the basis for levy of property tax, only the measure of computing of property tax has undergone a change,” the court said in its order. “Only the basis of charging the property tax has changed. Instead of calculating hypothetical rent, now, the hypothetical market value of the property will have to be worked out,” the court said.

The bench had stayed the striking down of the rules part of the judgement till August 31, to enable the BMC to approach the Supreme Court in an appeal. The bench was hearing a bunch of petitions filed by an association of property owners, builders’ associations and charitable institutions, including religious bodies, against the BMC and the Maharashtra government, challenging the levy of property tax on the basis of capital value. In 2009, the MMC Act was amended and a concept of levying property tax on capital value system, was brought into force.

The petitioners challenged the constitutional validity of the amended property tax based on capital value of land, as opposed to the earlier rateable value based on standard rents. There were a series of constitutional challenges raised by the Property Owners Association and developers, to an amendment to the MMC Act and rules framed in 2010 and 2015, for fixation of capital value of lands and buildings. The rules are void and unconstitutional, the developers had argued.

Following the Congress’ allegations that the Shiv Sena-BJP government had ‘fooled the people of Mumbai’, by waiving only 0.110 per cent of the property tax for houses up to 500 sq ft, the BJP clarified that all components of the levy would be waived

After the Congress accused the Shiv Sena-BJP alliance of misleading Mumbaikars on the property tax waiver, the BJP has clarified that all components of the levy would be waived in future bills. The process to change the rules, to facilitate the waiver is on, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar said, on April 18, 2019.

“In case of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, civic rules have been changed to waive general component of property tax for houses up to 500 sq ft. However, to waive other components of property tax, you need to change the state rules. The process of issuing an ordinance in this regard is on,” said Shelar.

The Shiv Sena-ruled Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had earlier announced that the property tax for houses up to 500 sq ft will be waived. However, Mumbai Congress chief Milind Deora, on April 17, said that the Maharashtra government’s waiver of the tax was a joke.

The Maharashtra ordinance number 11 of 2019 is a ‘farce’ as it waives only 0.110 per cent of the property tax. Therefore, all Mumbai residents who live in houses not bigger than 500 sq ft ‘should NOT pay their property tax for the year 2017-18’, Deora tweeted.

“The Sena-BJP alliance has fooled the people of Mumbai and failed to fulfil its promise. The financial position of the BMC is robust and it can easily afford to waive property tax for owners of properties up to 500 sq ft carpet area,” he said.

The Mumbai Congress chief said that following the Sena’s promise to waive property tax, the BMC asked the state government to implement it and the latter issued an ordinance last month. However, the government resolution of March 8, 2019, only amended section 140 (C) of the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act and only the general tax component – which varies from 10-30% of total tax slab – was exempted, he alleged. Further, the GR said the exemption would come into effect from January 1, 2019, but the BMC issued bills for up to March 31 (without exemption), Deora alleged.

Bengaluru: Birla Estates Pvt. Ltd, part of BK Birla Group, has ventured into residential property development with its first project launch in Kalyan, in suburban Mumbai. With a focus on premium housing projects, the firm also plans to build homes in Pune, Bengaluru and the National Capital Region (NCR), said a top company executive.

The Kalyan project, Birla Vanya, which has one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments priced between ₹43 lakh and ₹1.2 crore, was launched in April. It has sold over 400 of the 530 units in Phase I within three days of its launch. It will start its next project in Bengaluru spread across eight acres in the IT suburb of Whitefield.

Birla Estates started operations as an independent company from January, and is a subsidiary of Century Textiles and Industries Ltd (CTIL). It has also developed a couple of commercial office spaces in Mumbai, as a real estate division of CTIL.

“The main focus of the company will be on the residential segment. The ‘Birla’ brand resonates in the consumers’ mind and our aim now is to build a strong real estate brand and develop residential spaces," said K.T. Jithendran, chief executive officer, Birla Estates.

The customer plays a critical role today, Jithendran said, and “how well we are focused as a company in serving the customer will be a challenge". “Product design and execution of a project are important, just as the pricing of a product is."

Corporate real estate developers, many of them new entrants, have embarked upon expansion plans to take advantage of the changing regulatory environment amid rising distressed assets in the property market. Large corporate houses clearly see an opportunity in the stressed realty market and are out to acquire land and explore development opportunities.

Birla Estates is actively looking at several joint development deals with partners in Bengaluru and Pune, and plans to sign new projects. It already has around 200 acres, mostly industrial land, in Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), which it intends to develop.

In the last few years, land acquisition has slowed down in India and, as a result, many real estate companies have signed joint development agreements with land owners or other developers, in a bid to either monetize their own land parcels, or in some cases, to take over the development rights themselves.

MUMBAI | BANGALORE: Hyderabad property market has overtaken Bangalore for the first time to be the dominant office market driving quarterly space take-up, on the back of culmination of several pre-commitments. In the first quarter of 2019, gross leasing touched 12.8 million sq. ft., recording a growth of 3% on a quarterly basis with Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi-NCR accounting for more than 75% of the leasing activity, showed data from CBRE South Asia. 

In the first quarter, Hyderabad witnessed leasing of 3.5 million sq ft against 1.1 millon sq ft a year ago, while leasing in Bangalore declined to 2.5 million sq ft from 5.5 million sq ft. 

Small sized deals with less than 10,000 sq ft and medium-sized transactions ranging between 10,000 sq ft and 50,000 sq ft dominated space take up accounted for 33% and 48% of the transaction activity respectively. The share of large-sized deals greater than 1 lakh sq ft increased from 7% in fourth quarter of 2018 to 10% during this quarter. Hyderabad followed by Bangalore, dominated large-sized deal closures in the first quarter of 2019, while a few such deals were also reported in Mumbai, Noida and Chennai. 

Tech corporates and flexible space operators mainly dominated large-scale deal closures. A few large-sized deals were also closed by e-commerce, BFSI, engineering & manufacturing and research, consulting & analysis companies. 

“Office leasing activity is expected to remain stable in the short term, backed by corporates looking to expand or consolidate their operations. While interest from American corporates is expected to sustain, we anticipate that India’s position as a preferred outsourcing destination would continue to attract corporates from other geographies such as EMEA and APAC,” said Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO, South East Asia, Middle East and Africa, CBRE. 

Magazine believes policy initiatives such as Make in India, Digital India etc., along with the emphasis on smart cities and industrial corridors, will likely boost operations of both Indian and multinational corporates. 

Tech corporates continued to drive office space take-up in the country, with their share in total leasing rising to 33% during the quarter from 22% a year ago. The share of key flexible space operators rose from 5% to 16% during the same time period. Other sectors such as engineering & manufacturing (10%), BFSI (9%) and research, consulting & analytics (7%) also contributed to the leasing activity during the quarter. 

“Bolstered by several policy initiatives to ease out liquidity pressures and promote construction activity and the listing of India’s first Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), the real estate services (along with financial and professional services) grew at 7.3% during the review period,” said Ram Chandnani, Managing Director, Advisory & Transaction Services, India, CBRE South Asia. 

Driven by tech, BFSI and e-commerce firms, quarterly pre-leasing activity rose marginally on an annual basis, largely led by Pune, Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad. 

Supply addition in during the quarter rose by 23% sequentially to touch 13.4 million sq. ft. Hyderabad, Bangalore, Delhi-NCR and Mumbai accounted for about 80% of the quarterly supply addition. Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore reported a rise in development completions on a quarterly basis. Special Economic Zones (SEZs) continued to account for a third of the quarter’s supply, rising by almost 40% as compared to a year ago period. Almost the entire SEZ supply in Hyderabad, in particular, was pre-committed as developers refrained from investing in speculative development in this segment. 

Singapore-based investors are betting big on India’s commercial realty and other sunshine sectors, including logistics and warehousing, real estate consulting firm ANAROCK said in a report.

Top Singapore-based private equity (PE) firms such as GIC, Ascendas-Singbridge and Xander are funnelling billions of dollars into India’s realty sector, particularly in South Indian cities, according to the report.

About one-third of the total $14.01 billion PE investment in India’s realty sector between 2015 and 2018 was made by Singaporean firms, the highest among both domestic and foreign investors, according to ANAROCK’s report Private Equity in Indian Real Estate.

“With funding from banks and non-banking financial companies drying up, Indian developers are being forced to explore debt and equity funding from various PE firms. Singapore investors were on top of the list, followed by PE players from US and Canada. After establishing a strong base in China, India was their next destination of preference," said Shobhit Agarwal, managing director and chief executive officer at ANAROCK Capital.

Singapore-based investors and developers have gained a substantial foothold in India’s property market over the last four years, with their more patient and long-term outlook, he said. They pumped $1.15 billion into Indian real estate in 2015 and 2016, and nearly $3.5 billion in 2017 and 2018. In recent years, they have also started diversifying their portfolios and eyeing sunshine sectors such as logistics and warehousing. In the past four years, GIC has invested close to $2.5 billion, mainly in cities such as Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and NCR.

For Ascendas, the preferred regions have been Hyderabad, Chennai and Mumbai Metropolitan Region.

Meanwhile, US-based investors such as Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, Hines, Warburg Pincus and Proprium Capital have invested nearly $4 billion in India in the last four years. Blackstone infused $2.9 billion in this period. PE firms from Canada, led by Brookefield and CPPIB were the third largest investors with capital infusion of close to $2.3 billion in four years.

Top seven property markets of India have a total stock of 5.6 lakh delayed housing units worth Rs 451,750 crore, showed data from ANAROCK Property Consultants.

MUMBAI: Homebuyers across top property markets, including the Delhi-National Capital Region and Mumbai, continue to await delivery of their apartments which has made buyers wary of under-construction properties. 

Top seven property markets of India have a total stock of 5.6 lakh delayed housing units worth Rs 451,750 crore, showed data from ANAROCK Property Consultants. These units were launched either in 2013 or before that. 

Top cities such as the NCR and Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) collectively account for 72% of the total stuck housing units across the top 7 cities worth Rs 349,010 crore, nearly 77% of the total worth of the stuck projects. In comparison, the main southern cities -- Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad -- together account for a mere 10% of the overall stuck housing units of a total worth of Rs 41,770 crore. 

Interestingly, among the two major IT destinations, Bengaluru is far better off than Pune in terms of the total number of delayed or stuck projects. Chennai has the least project delays during this period, with around 8,650 units worth Rs 5,620 crore, the data showed. 

“Besides some developers' lack of real will to complete their projects and preference for funds diversion, the tightening credit crunch has been one major factor contributing to this mounting problem. It has become a 'chicken and egg' situation -- buyers have understandably stopped releasing funds to builders, and builders claim they have no funds to complete construction,” said Anuj Puri, chairman – ANAROCK Property Consultant. 

Also, every delayed project results in cost overruns that compound the funding crunch even further. Lack of project clearances for whatever reason also contributes to the piling up of housing stock. In the pre-RERA era, many builders launched green field projects without the requisite approvals in place, resulting in their projects getting stuck.

By amending the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code and treating buyers at par with banks and other creditors, the government has further protected the interests of the affected buyers. With this provision, even when builders opt for bankruptcy, the state authorities will intervene to safeguard homebuyers' investments. 

Besides monitoring cash inflows of the concerned entity, the government will try and ensure that the project is completed either by the developer himself or by outsourcing its completion to a third party. However, buyers are still waiting for the final outcome of these interventions.
 

A union of engineers of the BMC has condemned the arrest of two civic engineers in connection with the collapse of the foot overbridge near Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus

In a letter addressed to civic chief Ajoy Mehta, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Engineers’ Union (BMEU) said that the engineers working in the bridge department could not be held solely responsible for the collapse of the foot overbridge (FOB) at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) that had left six people dead. So far, two engineers of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) – assistant engineer SF Kakulte and executive engineer AR Patil – have been arrested by the Mumbai police, in connection with the FOB collapse.

The BMC engineers are ‘civil servants’ carrying out their ‘specified duties’, the BMEU said. “Municipal engineers are always overloaded with work, due to the shortage of staff. In this case, the exact cause of the bridge collapse is yet to be established. Further, a consultant was also appointed to give structural a stability report of the bridge. It is also understood that some cosmetic changes were carried out, under the control of assistant commissioner in ‘A’ ward, in 2016. In such cases, only engineers working in the bridge department cannot be held responsible,” the letter said.

“If there are any lapses in the supervision or any other service, punishment for that should be given as per the Municipal Service Rules,” the union said. Referring to the collapse of a British-era bridge on Savitri river at Mahad in Raigad district of Maharashtra, during the 2016 monsoon, it said it was appropriate that no action was taken against engineers in that case, as it was an ‘accident’. “The arrest of engineers, who are civic servants, gives a very bad message to the engineers working in the BMC. In future, such action will definitely prevent the entry of good engineers in the BMC,” it said.

The bank account statement that home loan lenders ask for, is used to ascertain your financial activities during the period and will bare your saving and spending habits to the prospective lender

While granting a home loan, lenders generally ask the applicants to submit a copy of their bank’s account statement, for six months to a few years. These are very important documents from the lender’s perspective, for determining the applicant’s home loan eligibility. Here’s what the lenders look for, in a bank account statement.

1. The existence of any loan being serviced

From the bank statements, the lender can easily find out the existence of any loan(s) being serviced, in case identical amounts are debited at regular intervals. The existence of any such loan, will help the lender in deciding your loan eligibility amount. An existing loan, will reduce your overall home loan eligibility.

2. The level and nature of activity

For self-employed persons, the lender asks for bank statements of the account, where the business or professional income is credited. These statements, will help the lender in verifying the level of business activity like sales/receipts and compare it, with the one declared in the income tax returns or in the loan application form.

It will also help the lender to identify huge cash deposits or withdrawals. Huge cash deposits in the account, will create doubt, unless the nature of the business warrants such deposits.

For salaried people, bank statements enable the lender to verify that the salary purported to be shown in the income tax return, is in fact credited in the bank account. In case the salary is credited month after month and the amount is also similar, it points to the salary being genuine. In case the amount of salary, as shown in the income tax return, is not credited month after month in the bank statement, it is sufficient for the lender to view such credits with suspicion.

3. Inward and outward cheque returns

Bank charges that are debited for bounced cheques or those that are returned unpaid, help the lender to know the volume of cheques returned, which are either deposited in your account or are issued by you. The volume and value of the cheques deposited or returned, will point towards the profile of the customer, his financial discipline and the strength of his business.

Isolated cases of cheque returns, will not impact your chances of getting a loan. However, repeated instances of cheque returns, could impact your chances of getting a loan, because the lender will tend to avoid a person who issues cheques, without ensuring that adequate balance in maintained in the bank account.

4. Account balance and nature of debits

The balance amount in your bank account, reflects your financial health, as well your saving habits. Regular debits (for example, in a Systematic Investment Plan) in mutual funds, will show your financial discipline and good saving habits.

There is a growing trend of using credit cards or internet banking, for making payments for online purchases. The quantum of credit card payments or debits for online payments, will help the prospective lender to understand your spending habits and pattern. This will help the lender, in determining your loan eligibility in relation to your income. Higher payments or debits in your bank account, are likely to reduce your overall loan eligibility.

UP RERA issues show-cause notices to Ansal API over alleged fraud

The UP RERA has said that it has issued show-cause notices to Ansal API over alleged fraud and diversion of funds

The Uttar Pradesh Real Estate Regulatory Authority (UP RERA), on April 1, 2019, said that it has issued show-cause notices to Ansal Properties and Infrastructure, following a report submitted by a forensic auditor that had investigated 91 projects of the company over the last three months, for financial misappropriation. In October 2018, the Authority ordered forensic audit in registered projects with a view to investigate into the affairs, especially the accounts of Ansal API to find out the possible diversion of funds, and causes of inordinate delays, among others.

The Authority had appointed Currie and Brown (C&B) for conducting the forensic audit, it said in a statement. “The auditor had submitted its report, where it has stated that under Ansal API, the projects have found to be in breach of RERA compliances, managing separate accounts, half-yearly project account audit and a possible diversion of over Rs 600 crores from the projects to other purposes,” the statement said.

Consequently, its four projects in Lucknow were finalised for notices. These projects are EWS/LIG-PKT 2-Sec K-SGC, Bliss Delight, Block 1, 2, 3 & 4, GH-2, Sec, Pocket-2, Sector-J, Sushant Golf City and Pocket 3 Sector A, Sushant Golf City. “A large number of complaints were filed against these projects before us, in respect of non-delivery of units/plots, failure to refund money advanced by buyers, violation of various approvals, etc. Further, some serious allegations of mismanagement, diversion of funds, etc., were also made by the complainants. Hence, this was needed to protect the interests of the allottee(s) and to identify the ways and means to ensure the requisite fund flow for the completion of the projects,” UP RERA chairman, Rajive Kumar said.

The first of its kind action by RERA has been taken under Section 35 along with Section 7 (2), for violation of Section 4, 7 and 11 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, the Authority said in a statement.

It would give the developer 30 days’ time to reply and deposit the amount in the concerned separate account, UP RERA member Balwinder Kumar said, adding “If the developer fails to respond, we might revoke the project registration with the Authority, impose penalties and other necessary restrictions.” Abrar Ahmed, UP RERA secretary, said the notices have been issued to Ansal API’s full-time directors Sushil Ansal, Pranav Ansal and managing director Anil Kumar.

Environmental activists formed a human chain at Marine Drive in south Mumbai, to protest against the tree-cutting in the city, for the ongoing metro rail construction

Wildlife conservation activists, students and representatives of those displaced because of various development projects, were among those who took part in a human chain, which extended for almost a kilometre on Marine Drive, on March 30, 2019, to protest against tree-felling for the various metro rail projects in Mumbai. They also demanded that political parties include environmental issues, in their manifestos for the Lok Sabha elections.

“This chain is the city’s way of declaring that its citizens will not vote for any party that does not address environmental concerns, in its manifesto for Lok Sabha elections,” said Amrita Bhattacharjee, a senior member of the Aarey Conservation Group (ACG). “We want to save the only green lungs of the city,” Bhattacharjee said, referring to Aarey Colony in north Mumbai. “Why only Mumbai city, environment-related issues in the entire country should be addressed with top priority,” Bhattacharjee said.

The ACG is agitating to protect the green cover in Aarey Colony, where around 2,700 trees are to be cut, to make way for a car-shed for the Mumbai Metro. Trees are being chopped down arbitrarily for the metro and activists are not allowed to be present when the trees are cut, Bhattacharjee said. Advocate Abhishek Bhatt, another activist, said, “Measures for protection of the ecology do not feature in any political agenda across the country.” Tribals and kolis (fishermen), the original inhabitants of Mumbai, were being driven out from their lands for so-called development, the activists said in a statement.

The panel would prepare a blueprint for project completion. The blueprint would consist financial details and a detailed roadmap towards arranging the said finances.

The Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA) on Thursday issued a standard operating procedure (SOP) to allow home buyers to remove a developer in case the project was delayed. The project would then be handed over to an expert panel for completion.

The authority, however, clarified that it could initiate such action only against non-litigated projects.

“It will help complete all delayed projects in the state. This is an unique move, probably the first in the country, under the Real Estate Regulatory Act, 2016, which will help the association of allottees (homebuyers) take control of the situation,’’ Vasant Prabhu, MahaRERA secretary, told TOI.

In case of revocation orders, the developer will lose rights to the project and his bank accounts will stay frozen, the order said, adding that the authority would then set up a panel of experts to prepare a project report within four months to decide on future course of action.

The panel would prepare a blueprint for project completion. The blueprint would consist financial details and a detailed roadmap towards arranging the said finances.

The SOP has been issued under section 37 of the RERA Act, 2016, with reference to sections 7 and 8. MahaRERA officials said the authority will only consider complaints received from an association of allottees and not from single home buyers for such action. “The complainants should not be less than 51% of the total allottees,” they said.

Alstom has bagged two contracts worth over 90 million Euros, to provide Communications-Based Train Control technology for five metro rail routes in Mumbai and Pune

Alstom has been awarded contracts to equip Mumbai Metro lines 2A, 2B and 7 and Pune Metro lines 1 and 2, with Urbalis 400, Alstom’s latest generation of Communications-Based Train Control (CBTC) technology. The combined value of the two contracts comes to over 90 million Euros. The Urbalis 400 system is presently in service in over 30 cities across the world, a statement from the company said.

The contract for Mumbai Metro, awarded by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (DMRC), is to provide the CBTC signalling system, as well as a state-of-the-art telecommunications system for the three elevated lines. The combined lengths of lines 2A, 2B and 7, make it one of the most extensive signalling projects in the country. The signalling scope includes design, manufacture, supply, installation, testing and commissioning of Urbalis 400 and includes supply and commissioning of on-board equipment for 63 trains. The telecommunications scope includes public address systems, passenger information display systems, fibre optic transmission systems, CCTV and access control systems. The contract for Pune Metro, awarded by the Maha Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL), will see Alstom provide Urbalis 400 for Corridors 1 and 2, to control 31 trains on the 32-km-long stretch, allowing them to run at higher frequencies and speeds in total safety.

Speaking about the contract, Alain Spohr, Alstom’s managing director for India and south Asia said “We are proud to have been selected by our customers for these prestigious projects. Our cutting-edge technologies will help enhance the quality of life of the citizens of both, Mumbai and Pune and will contribute to the overall development of the cities. We are also proud to be a key partner, via these projects, in the growth of sustainable transportation in the region.”

A politician, who had contested the May 2018 Karnataka elections on a prominent political party’s ticket and involved in the real estate business, has been arrested for defaulting on tax of Rs 5.4 crores

A politician involved in the real estate business in Karnataka, has been arrested for defaulting on tax of Rs 5.4 crores, the Income Tax (I-T) Department said, on March 27, 2019. The politician, who was arrested recently, had contested the May 2018 assembly election on a prominent political party’s ticket, it said. Without revealing his identity, the department said in a release that it carried out searches and seizures at various places, during which he admitted to defaulting on taxes of Rs 5.4 crores.

The department said it made several attempts to recover the tax, by issuing notices and recovery proceedings. The politician was involved in various land transactions as reflected from the affidavit filed by him during elections. Yet, he did not use the transaction to clear the tax dues. Subsequently, various prosecution proceedings were initiated before the Economic Offences Court. However, he did not pay anything, the release said. A final notice was issued but he did not pay up, compelling the income tax officials to arrest him with the help of the Bengaluru police, it said.

The sub-registrar of societies in Vasai division has served notices to 19 cooperative housing societies, for allegedly not admitting non-Catholics as their members or allowing them to buy flats

The sub-registrar of societies in Vasai division, has served notices to 19 cooperative housing societies, after receiving a complaint that these housing societies were preventing non-Catholics from renting, purchasing flats or becoming members. These cooperative housing societies are a part of the Citizen Housing Complex at Naigaon, in Palghar district of Maharashtra, neighbouring Mumbai.

The sub-registrar has sought their replies and warned them of action under the Maharashtra Cooperative Housing Societies Act, 1960, if the complaint is found to be true. The 19 societies that received the notices, consist of a total of 57 wings, having 912 flats and were constructed almost 15 years ago.

“I came to know from my friends that since the last 15 years, when this housing complex came up, only members of the Catholic community get entry into the society. People belonging to other religions or communities, are not allowed to buy or rent flats in the complex,” Jitu Yadav, the complainant, said. Yadav is the president of the Real Estate Agents Welfare Association in the locality and had filed the complaint in the first week of February 2019.

When contacted, an official from the sub-registrar office, on March 26, 2019, confirmed receiving the complaint and said they were still waiting for a reply from the housing societies. “We would like to wait for a few more days. After that, we will initiate action under the relevant sections of the Maharashtra Cooperative Housing Societies Act, 1960,” the official said. When contacted, an office-bearer of one of the housing societies denied having such a rule and claimed people from all castes and communities are welcome in the complex.

According to experts dealing with cooperative society laws, individuals cannot be barred from entering into a housing society, on the basis of their caste, community, food preference or any other ground. Advocate Vinod Sampat, president of the Cooperative Societies Residents Welfare Association, said, “Nobody can be restricted from purchasing, renting or leasing a property by a society, on the basis of their caste, community or food preferences.”

Dhoni became the brand ambassador of the Amrapali Group in 2009 and continued to feature in its marketing and public relations activities till 2016.

Former Indian cricket team captain, MS Dhoni has moved the Supreme Court to get Rs 40 crore from the Amrapali group for for using his services for branding and marketing activities.

Dhoni became the brand ambassador of the Amrapali Group in 2009 and continued to feature in its marketing and public relations activities till 2016.

Last year, Dhoni had sued the real estate group for over Rs 150 crores.

The real estate group is currently in dock for duping 46,000 homebuyers.The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed arrest of Amrapali Group Chairman and Managing Director Anil Kumar Sharma as well as two other directors, Shiv Priya and Ajay Kumar, by the Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in an alleged criminal case involving cheating.

In 2016, Amrapali had even announced gifting each member of the cricket team with an exquisitely designed independent villa at its Amrapali Dream Valley Project at Noida Extension worth Rs 9 crore after India’s victory in the World Cup in 2011. While Dhoni was presented with a villa worth Rs 1 crore, the other team members were gifted villas worth Rs 55 lakh each covering an area of 1690 sq ft. A person familiar with the situation said those villas were never built or gifted to the cricketers.

Lack of clear guidelines and apprehension of possible controversy around transition of unutilised input tax credit as on 31 March 2019, has been a key issue for the sector.

The GST Council at its 34th meeting on 19 March 2019 laid down the roadmap for implementation of the recommendations made in the previous meeting, towards rate rationalisation for real estate. These recommendations attempt to address the apprehensions of the sector on multiple issues including loss of unutilised input credit, exemptions and rate applicability.

Ongoing projects

A one-time option has been proposed for on-going projects not completed by 31 March 2019, to continue to pay tax at the existing GST rates (effective rate of 8 percent for affordable housing and 12 percent for others). Ongoing projects have been referred to as buildings where both construction and actual booking started before 1 April 2019 and which have not been completed by 31 March 2019. The option has to be exercised once within prescribed time frame. It is quite interesting that this option has been allowed at a project level instead of at the individual residential unit level. Complexity arises in interpreting the term 'ongoing project', particularly in cases where the construction is undertaken in a phase-wise manner consisting of cluster of buildings in a large township project. Absence of clear definition of 'ongoing project' would leave room for interpretation and may invite unwarranted disputes.

As far as choice of option is concerned, from the viewpoint of home buyers, the existing higher GST rate may not be acceptable. From the developers' standpoint, continuing with the existing rate structure may seem to be beneficial where input credits for the project would have been factored into the pricing of units, and also where benefits under anti-profiteering have already been passed on to customers. The process of selection of alternative would not only entail determination of benefit which could be derived by the developer, but may also have to be balanced with the part of such benefit which the home buyer would bargain to continue with the existing rate.

New Projects

New projects for which the construction would start after 1 April 2019 shall attract the revised lower GST rate (1 percent for affordable residential units and 5 percent for other residential units). As far as mixed use projects are concerned, the GST Council has clarified that residential projects having commercial space such as shops, offices etc., up to 15 percent of total carpet area, shall also be eligible for lower GST rate of 5 percent.

These rates are coupled with conditions that input tax credit shall not be available and 80 percent of procurements, except procurements of capital goods, Transferable Development Rights (TDR) / development rights under Joint Development Arrangement, long term lease (premiums), are made from GST-registered persons. This would require developers' to revisit budgeting and costing of their new projects to factor the potential tax cost towards non-creditable taxes. Also this requirement requires clarity in the enabling notification in terms of timing and manner of compliance.

Further, the compliance with the condition of 80 percent procurement from registered persons in case of ongoing projects opting to pay tax as per new rates, requires clarity as to whether it should be computed from 01 April 2019 onwards or even for the past period. This would also require re-visiting the existing procurements and selection of vendors given the fact that value chain in the sector comprises of unorganised suppliers. This would also entail applying internal controls as well as checks and balances by developers to avoid potential violation of this condition.

Considering the peculiar nature of the sector, to avert any possible complexity and controversy around determination of eligible credit, it has been proposed that the Credit Rules shall be amended to provide requisite procedure and guidelines for mixed use projects (residential and commercial use).

Bandra (West)- Linking Road is sought after for its good schools, hospitals and retail outlets. The social infrastructure is a highlight, as is the availability of premium sea-facing properties.

In this edition's realty hot spot series, we look at yet another Mumbai area, a quite popular one too. Bandra (West)- Linking Road is a n affluent residential area, it has a lot to offer- from all the basic and even fancy amenities, to an elaborate connectivity system.

Properties are available starting from Rs 26,480 per sq ft and go up to Rs 54,270 per sq ft. The social infrastructure here is a major highlight, as is the availability of premium sea-facing properties.

It is safe to say that this is one wholesome suburb offering a good lifestyle to the residents.

Sometimes, the smallest things can turn your fortunes around. Vastu Shastra shows you how tweaking your bedroom can enhance positive energy and even bring couples closer to each other

Sunaina Mehta, a homemaker from Mumbai, had been quarreling with her husband a lot. These were trivial issues but they sometimes ballooned into heated arguments. Then Sunaina did something unusual – she rearranged their bedroom and tossed out a stack of broken CDs and a DVD player she had stored in the bed box. Mehta shares how marital bliss soon returned to their home.

Sunaina’s house cleaning was no random act. She had followed the laws of Vastu Shastra while rearranging their bedroom. “I even got rid of an oil painting of a weeping woman on the wall,” she says.

“Vastu Shatra is the Indian cosmic science of architecture and it helps create a harmonious environment to set up one’s life for wealth, happiness and harmony. It’s all about creating a rhythm and balance to ensure a better life,” reveals Mumbai-based Nitien Parmar, a Vastu consultant and author of books on the subject.

Here’s how Vastu can help you optimise your bedroom as a place of rest, relaxation and rejuvenation.

Which direction?

“Ideally, the bedroom at south-west brings good health and prosperity for the home owner and enhances longevity. Avoid a bedroom in the north-east or south-east zone of the house. In the south-east, it may result in quarrels among the couple. The bedroom in the north-east may cause a health issue. The children‘s bedroom is best in the east or north-west zone of the house,” says Parmar.

Bed placement

According to Vastu, your bed should be placed with the head towards the east or south.

The bed in the guest room can have its head towards the west. Also, it is best if your bed is made of wood. Metal can create negative vibrations. To encourage togetherness, a couple should sleep on one single mattress and not join two separate mattresses.

Mirror, mirror

Careful where you fix your dressing table, assuming it has a mirror.

According to Vastu, avoid a mirror in front of your bed as the reflection of one’s sleeping body in a mirror is inauspicious.

Banish devices

Anything that disturbs the calm of the bedroom has no place here. Hence, no television. If you must have one, make sure it is placed at a reasonable distance from your bed. “The TV screen should not work as a mirror opposite the bed.

“Avoid a computer in the bedroom, or at least distance it with a partition. Computers and mobile phones are high electro stress instruments and the frequencies from cell phones, computers and TVs emit harmful radiation, advises Parmar.

What colour paint?

Colours don’t just brighten our world; they also affect our mood, health and happiness.

Ideally, paint your bedroom off-white, baby pink or cream. Avoid dark colours. The room should be well-organised. Keep your bedroom clean and clutter-free, says Snehal Deshpande, an expert in Classical Vastu and Feng Shui.

Toss them out

Also, do not keep things that have not been used for years such as clocks, watches, electronic equipment, broken artefacts or machinery, in your bedroom. Clutter disturbs the energy flow and creates disharmony in the house, she explains. “In the bedroom, avoid water fountains, aquariums and paintings of war scenes and single women.”

Aromatherapy

Smells and aromas can be very powerful and can uplift the mood and spirit. So, make sure your room smells fresh; keep aromatic candles, diffusers or potpourri in your bedroom. Use refreshing jasmine or lavender fragrances.

Courtesy Desphande, couples might want to heed this advice – keep two rose quartz hearts in the south-west corner of your bedroom. It will add happy energy to your life.

The Mumbai-based firm commenced operations in 2010 as an integrated facility management company, but later ventured into project and construction management as well as real estate advisory and consulting services.

NEW DELHI: Real estate consultant SILA group has entered into the property development business and is constructing a luxury housing project near Mumbai with an investment of about Rs 70 crore, a top company official said.

The Mumbai-based firm commenced operations in 2010 as an integrated facility management company, but later ventured into project and construction management as well as real estate advisory and consulting services.

"We see an unique opportunity in getting into real estate development business. With new realty law RERA and the GST, there is level playing field for new players," SILA group founder and MD Sahil Vora said.

"We have tied up with land owners to develop this luxury project at Alibaug comprising 64 units. The prices will be in the range of Rs 1.2-2 crore," he said.

A person cannot feed birds from a flat’s balcony, creating nuisance due to droppings and filth for other occupants in a residential society, the Supreme Court has said

The Supreme Court has refused to interfere with an order restraining a woman from feeding birds from her balcony flat, in a high rise building in Mumbai. “If you are living in a residential society, then, you have to conduct yourself according to the norms,” said a bench of justices UU Lalit and Indu Malhotra.

The bench said in a recent order that the Bombay City Civil Court, on September 27, 2013, had granted interim injunction by which it had restrained the petitioner Jigeesha Thakore, from feeding the birds from the balcony of her flat. It noted that when the civil court order was challenged by the woman before the Bombay High Court, it had refused to interfere and made the interim injunction as absolute, by dismissing the appeal on July 12, 2016. “In the circumstances, we see no reason to interfere in the matter. The special leave petitions are dismissed,” the bench said, while directing the civil court to dispose of the pending suit as expeditiously as possible.

In 2011, Dilip Sumanlal Shah and Meena Shah, residing in the 10th floor of an apartment in Worli, moved the civil court against Thakore and her family members residing on the 14th floor. The Shah family sought injunction against the Thakore family, for creating nuisance for them and other occupants of the building, by feeding birds with water and grains from her balcony. The 20-storey cooperative housing society had also moved court against the Thakore family, seeking direction to restrain them from feeding the birds from the balcony of their flat.

In their plea before the civil court, the Shah family contended that the Thakore family has installed a metal platform outside their balcony window. They argued that a large number of birds flocked the platform, causing nuisance due to droppings and filth. The Shah family argued that Thakores start bird feeding at 6.30 am in the morning, which is done several times in the day till evening.

The society had requested the Thakores to use the public places designated for feeding birds and passed a resolution that no member will be allowed to feed birds from their balconies or windows.

The Thakores, in their reply to the civil suit by Shah, had contended that they were animal welfare activists and associated with an NGO since 1998 and ran a dog shelter. They said that the Shahs used to be regular suppliers of medical and surgical equipment to the NGO but their relations turned sour. They said it was not possible to feed birds on the ground level, as they could come under a car or be attacked by some cats and dogs.

Real estate investment trusts are intended to enable more people to invest in the Indian property market and boost funding in the sector. How does it work and why haven’t more people flocked to this investment avenue? We examine The Indian real estate sector has been lucrative for savvy investors over the last decade, but it has not been without accompanying uncertainties. The introduction of real estate investment trusts (REITs), will provide a platform that will allow all kinds of investors (even those with smaller budgets) to make safe and rewarding investments in the Indian property market.

With REITs, investors can start with as small a sum as Rs 2 lakhs, to secure units in exchange.

The REIT platform has already been approved by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and like mutual funds, it will pool the money from all investors across the country. The money collected from the REIT funds, will subsequently be invested in commercial properties to generate income.

A REIT will need to be registered via an initial public offering (IPO). REIT units will have to be listed with exchanges and consequently, traded as securities.

The SEBI board has kept the minimum asset sizes to be invested in, at Rs 500 crores. However, the minimum issue size would have to be less than Rs 250 crores. As with stocks, the investors will be able to buy the units from either primary and/or the secondary markets.

How does a REIT work?

REIT is a process to generate funds from a lot of investors, to directly invest in properties like offices, residential units, hotels, shopping centers, warehouses, etc. All REITs will be listed with the stock exchanges, as they would be structured like trusts. Consequently, REIT assets will be held with independent trustees for unit holders/investors.

NEW DELHI: Federal indirect tax body the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council will on Tuesday announce new rules on how far builders can make use of credit for taxes paid on raw materials and services in settling their final tax liability as the sector moves to a new tax regime from 1 April.

The Council has designed a formula to allow builders to take advantage of the tax credits on their books as best as GST principles will allow. Policymakers want to give relief to builders to the extent possible as unused credit will either push up the cost of property or impact the bottom line of builders, explained a government official, who asked not to be named.

The GST Council had decided on 24 February to lower the tax rate on under-construction residential properties from an effective 12% to 5% and on under-construction affordable houses from an effective 8% to 1%. The new tax structure does not allow builders to use credits for taxes paid on raw materials to be used for settling part of their final tax liability.

The new rules to be announced on Tuesday will specify under what circumstances sale transactions initiated in the current tax regime but concluded after 1 April will be eligible for credits on taxes paid on raw materials and services. It will clarify on the tax rates applicable and the availability of tax credits in a host of scenarios including where the builder has paid taxes on raw materials but has either not started construction or has only half-completed the construction. These rules were necessitated as home buying is often a lengthy affair while the new tax rate kicks in from a specific date. The move is significant considering that many builders are grappling with project delays which are likely to continue beyond 1 April.

“We had extensive discussions on the impact of the new tax regime on the real estate industry. The new formula for utilization of credit during the transition period takes into account the fact that unlike other industries, real estate projects have a long gestation time," the official quoted above said on condition of anonymity.

For builders, the change in the tax regime is a challenging situation. Currently, unutilized tax credit is an asset on the builder’s books. The moment that becomes unusable, it becomes an expense and has to be shown accordingly, explained Ved Jain, former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). Disallowed tax credits could thus affect builders’ bottom line and even valuation.

Also, under property sale deals, customers are liable to pay the property price plus GST at the applicable rate. In the case where houses were booked earlier but sale is to be completed after 1 April, buyers will insist on paying only 5% GST, while developers may prefer to utilize the input tax credit available to them and charge the higher tax rate prevailing now.

“Rules on transition to the new tax regime should address such scenarios to prevent civil disputes," said Jain. “It is essential to frame modalities for the rate reductions in the real estate sector in a manner that is beneficial to both the real estate business and the consumers with clarity on transition provisions," said M.S. Mani, Partner, Deloitte India.

South Mumbai offers high-end homes as well as key amenities like schools, hospitals and markets.

This week’s realty hot spot South Mumbai offers a range of properties: 1BHK (640 sq ft), 2BHK (1130 sq ft), 3BHK ( 1800 sq ft) and 4BHK (2740 sq ft). The locality boasts of over 12 hospitals, more than 14 restaurants, 12 plus grocery store, and more than 15 petrol pumps.

This premium residential area has more than ten schools which include the Cathedral & John Connon School. Also, amenities include several markets and malls and hospitals including Breach Candy Hospital and Bombay Gymkhana Club.

The high-end homes prices range between Rs 30,720-80 and Rs 80,790 per square feet. South Mumbai is 19 KM away from the airport, 4 KM from the nearest railway station and 2 KM from the highway.

In the second incident of bridge collapse in Mumbai in eight months, six persons were killed, when a section of a foot overbridge connected to the busy Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus in south Mumbai, collapsed on March 14, 2019

Six persons were killed and 31 injured, after a section of a foot overbridge near a busy train station in south Mumbai collapsed during evening rush hour on March 14, 2019, officials said. The bridge connected the area near the Times of India building with the iconic Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus railway station. The injured have been admitted to nearby hospitals, a disaster management cell official said.

Just after the incident, Mumbai Police had tweeted: “Foot overbridge connecting CST platform 1 north end with BT Lane near Times of India building has collapsed. Injured persons are being shifted to hospitals. Traffic affected. Commuters to use alternate routes. Senior officers are on spot.” A case has been registered against officials of the Central Railway and the BMC in connection with the incident, police said. “We have registered an offence under section 304A (causing death by negligence) of the IPC at the Azaad Maidan police station,” said Manjunath Singe, spokesperson of the Mumbai Police.

Civic authorities started dismantling the remaining portion of the overbridge late night, after the collapse. Additional municipal commissioner of the BMC, Vijay Singhal, said the remaining portion of the damaged bridge is being dismantled manually. He said action will be taken against the firm that conducted the structural audit of the bridge. Deven Bharti, joint commissioner (law and order), said that police ‘will, for sure, launch an inquiry into the incident’. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said a high-level committee will probe the circumstances under which the 40-year-old overbridge collapsed.

An eyewitness said the south Mumbai overbridge was being used by pedestrians, even as repair works were ongoing. Several motorists were also under the bridge when it came down, which led to an increase in the number of injured, an official said. Another eyewitness said most of the victims were walking on the overbridge, on their way to the CST station, when it collapsed. “Thankfully, when the bridge collapsed, it was red signal at the nearby road, otherwise several people would definitely have been crushed under the rubble,” said a taxi driver, who escaped the tragedy.

Lawmakers and local party leaders rushed to the spot as a political blame-game ensued. Arvind Sawant, the local Shiv Sena MP, said, “This bridge was under minor repairs after the audit of all bridges in the city. Action will be initiated against the responsible officials.” Local BJP MLA Raj Purohit also visited the spot and demanded immediate action against the engineer who had declared the bridge as ‘safe’. “He should be arrested right now. He is responsible for the entire disaster.” Local Shiv Sena corporator Sujata Sanap said she had alerted officials about the structure, but they did not act in time. “I have been pursuing the issue of this unsafe bridge for long and also wrote so many letters to officials but they were ignored.” Congress leader Milind Deora said murder charges should be slapped on auditors who inspected the bridge and the BMC officers who appointed them. The collapse will be jointly probed by BMC and Central Railways, said Vinod Tawde, district guardian minister of Mumbai.

The tragedy comes eight months after another bridge collapsed in suburban Andheri, in which five persons were killed. In July 2018, a portion of a road overbridge had collapsed in suburban Andheri. Railway minister Piyush Goyal had then announced a joint safety audit of all 445 bridges in Mumbai. Following the order, the railways, the BMC and IIT-Bombay had conducted a safety audit.

As the inhabitants of a house age, the décor of the home may need to be modified to suit their needs. We look at some simple design dos and don’ts, vis-à-vis safety, accessibility and aesthetics that can make the home comfortable for senior citizens As one ages, simple chores like reaching high shelves, climbing the stairs or getting up from the chair with ease, can become a task. Home owners who are ageing or have elderly parents or grandparents living with them, may need a home décor that is suitable for senior citizens. As comfort, safety and accessibility become key concerns, incorporating simple design changes that do not hinder the aesthetics, is essential.

“Studies have found that doing household chores, gives seniors a sense of purpose and contributes to both, their physical and mental well-being. In terms of design, one has to focus on helping active seniors to be as independent as they can. This means ensuring that they can carry out their activities with ease, simplicity in maintenance and housekeeping, reducing everyday risks and creating a safe home that supports active aging,” explains Nagesh Battula, founder and managing director, FHD (Fountainhead Design Group).

Many seniors continue to contribute to their professions, through advisory or consultancy, even after their retirement. In such cases, a spare room can double-up as a home office, as well as a guest bedroom for visitors or extended family. “Interior decorations should, ideally, reflect the family’s aspirations and preferences. The overall décor of the room should be positive, relaxing and not remind one of ill health,” adds Battula.

The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which measures changes for repeat sales of single-family homes, showed prices fell 0.4 percent last month from January.

TORONTO: Canadian home prices fell in February for the fifth straight month as most major markets weakened, data showed on Wednesday.

The Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which measures changes for repeat sales of single-family homes, showed prices fell 0.4 percent last month from January.

Except for 2009, when there was a global financial crisis, the decline was the largest for February in 19 years of index history, said Marc Pinsonneault, senior economist at National Bank of Canada.

Prices fell in nine of the 11 markets in the index. It included a 2 percent drop in Victoria, British Columbia's capital city. In Hamilton, a city in Ontario where much of Canada's steel is produced, prices were down 1.4 percent.

Canada's once-hot housing market has softened since the start of last year, weighed by tighter mortgage rules and five interest rate hikes from the Bank of Canada since July 2017.

Prices rose 1.9 percent in February on an annual basis, led by a 6 percent increase in the capital region of Ottawa-Gatineau. In Montreal, prices were up 5.2 percent year-over-year.

The SC has allowed an NGO, which alleged that the draft master plan for Noida was altered, to convert a forest in Noida’s Sector 91 to a biodiversity park, to raise objections before the authorities concerned.

A Supreme Court bench, comprising justices DY Chandrachud and Hemant Gupta, has granted liberty to the NGO, ‘Society for Protection of Culture, Heritage, Environment, Traditions and Promotion of National Awareness’, to point its objections to the proposed change of the Noida Draft Master Plan of 2031. “Thereafter, if the appellant is aggrieved by the Master Plan as finalised, it would be open to it to adopt appropriate proceedings, in accordance with law,” the bench said.

The NGO had approached the apex court against a November 14, 2018, order of the National Green Tribunal (NGT), which disposed of the plea after taking note of the report by the Division Forest Officer (DFO) of Gautam Buddh Nagar. The NGO had moved the tribunal against the development of a biodiversity park in Sector 91, Noida, on the ground that illegal felling of trees was taking place. The apex court also clarified that the NGT order ‘will not come in the way of the appellant in pursuing its remedies under the law, including before the tribunal afresh’. The NGO had claimed before the NGT that although the DFO granted permission to the Noida Authority only for removal of eucalyptus trees, the authority ordered a private contractor to remove 3,000 trees of different species, which was in violation of the permission granted under the UP Trees Protection Act, 1976 and hence, the permission is liable to be quashed.

The NGO had sought prohibition on further felling of trees at the biodiversity park site and plantation of 10 times the number of trees felled by the Noida Authority, in and around the site. The Noida Authority plans to develop the biodiversity park on about 75 acres in Sector 91. The Authority has mandated it to be developed as ‘Noida Biodiversity Park’, as per the plan.

In the last five years, the real estate sector saw the average size of budget apartments in major cities, shrinking by 17 per cent to match affordability, a study has found.

The top seven Indian cities collectively saw the average size of budget-friendly apartments shrink by almost 17 per cent, between 2014 and 2018, according to a study. The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) topped with a 27 per cent squeeze, followed by Kolkata with 23 per cent reduction, the report by ANAROCK Property Consultants showed. Bengaluru saw the least decline in average property size, at roughly 12 per cent during the period. The average size dip for Pune was 22 per cent, Delhi NCR 16 per cent, Chennai 15 per cent and Hyderabad 13 per cent.

“A major element contributing to the shrinking apartment sizes across most metros, is the rising demand for budget-friendly housing. With property prices going overboard in most metros, developers have been reducing sizes, to align their offerings more with the actual home buyer demand,” ANAROCK Property Consultants’ chairman, Anuj Puri said. Compact housing is the fastest seller in the resale market. So, such homes give millennials both, locational and financial flexibility, he said.

Among the factors leading to the shrinkage are the not-so-healthy job market and income in the last five years, a realty analyst said. The report also said that most home buyers are averse to the higher maintenance costs that larger properties entail.

“Live-in relationships are becoming more popular and socially acceptable and more and more young people give high priority to career growth, before deciding to marry and settle down,” Puri said. The mean age of marriage in India has increased from 21-25 years to 30-35 years, the report said.

82% of companies/businesses in India are introducing flexible working, to help attract and retain employees, finds a new study by IWG Global Workspace Survey

Businesses that do not have a flexible workspace policy, risk losing out on top talent, according to the findings by IWG Global Workspace Survey. For the majority of those surveyed, the definition of a flexible workspace policy is the ability to choose and change their workplace location. The research by IWG revealed that 83% of people globally would choose a job which offered flexible working, over a job that did not and almost a third (28%) of people value being able to choose their work location, over an increase in holiday allowance.

IWG released the study based on insights of over 15,000 professionals from a range of different industries in over 80 countries. The survey was independently managed by MindMetre Research. The sample was highly representative of senior managers and owners in businesses across the globe, spanning a variety of industries.

PUNE: Experts have said that the RERA, which was envisaged to usher in more transparency in the real estate industry, is yet to be an effective deterrent against malpractices.

As the RERA is a small quasi-judicial and administrative body (with three members and a few adjudicating officers for the entire state), it does not have the bandwidth to look into the details of over 19,000 registrations that were granted by the body in the state, so far.

The adjudicating officers themselves have powers to look at only certain sections of the act, while the main powers are bestowed only upon the members.

Experts have advised that even though disputes can be entertained later in courts, it is better for consumers to get conduct more due diligence. This can be done by consulting a lawyer on their own or perusing the documents for minute details and verifying the facts on the ground before investing.

Real estate lawyers said false and misleading information about control of open spaces, use of floor space index and completion of services creep into bilateral agreements due to the absence of checks and balances. “It is not uncommon for developers to easily eke out completion and occupancy certificates from the municipal corporation, irrespective of the status of work. People should themselves verify if all civic works have been completed,” said a Chinchwad-based property lawyer.

These malpractices, though common, now fall under section Section 7 of the RERA Act. “Consumers who have been allotted property can demand a refund if they are impacted by false information and exit the project. There is also a provision to impose a fine on the developers,” said property lawyer Harshal Jadhav.

So far, there is little evidence of people exercising this option as most of the complaints received by the RERA relate to just inordinate delay in the projects. The consumers can approach the RERA forum or the courts when the developer defaults on key promises. But it is a time-consuming process.

“Legally, buyers of properties where builders have defaulted (on the provision of promised services) can exercise their legal rights and drag the builder to court. They can issue a notice to the builder and/or approach consumer forums. The consumers can also issue legal notices to officials from corporations, in a case where the corporations have defaulted. In fact, there are many instances wherein both builders and corporations were involved in wrongdoings and the consumers had to suffer,” said Anuj Puri, the chairman of Anarock Property Consultants.

In the recent past, several developers have avoided mentioning the possession date in the agreement. We look at what home buyers can do, under RERA, in such cases, and recent judgements in favour of home buyers.

There have been cases galore, where home buyers have faced delays in getting the possession of their flats. In many cases, the delays have been for more than five to six years. Some developers have even gone to the extent of not mentioning the date of possession in the agreement, leading to mental and financial trauma for the home buyers.

While taking a serious note of the issue, the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA), in a recent judgement, directed Skyline Construction Company to refund Rs 1.06 crores, along with an interest of 10.55 per cent to actor Vrajesh Hirjee, for failing to hand over possession and keeping the date of possession clause empty in the registered agreement. The Authority also asked the builder to refund tax deducted at source (TDS) and stamp duty paid by Hirjee. In another case, Aparna Singh, who had purchased a flat in a residential project in Thane, was not able to claim interest relief under Section 18 of the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) rules, due to the absence of the possession date in the sale agreement. In her case, the RERA tribunal ordered the developer to pay interest to her, even though the date was not mentioned in the agreement.

What is possession date?

The possession date, in case of a home purchase agreement, is the date on which the unit’s possession is to be handed over to the buyer. This date should be clearly mentioned in the agreement and is well-defined under the RERA norms and rules. “The possession date, generally known as completion date, is usually a few months or years from the date of entering into or executing the agreement in favour of the flat purchaser. It is the date when the developer completes the construction work of the building and obtains the requisite permissions from the local body/authority, for permitting the flat purchasers to occupy the same. In other words, it is the date from which the buyer has the right to demand the possession of the flat from the developer,” explains Parth Mehta, managing director of Paradigm Realty.

The RBI board had warned of the short-term negative impact of demonetisation on the country’s economic growth and observed that the unprecedented move will not have any material impact on tackling the black money menace.

Although demonetisation is ‘a commendable measure’, it would have ‘short-term negative effect on the GDP for the current year’, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) board had said, as per the minutes of the meeting, posted by RTI activist Venkatesh Nayak on the website of Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. “Most of the black money is held, not in the form of cash but in the form of real sector assets such as gold or real estate and that this move would not have a material impact on those assets,” the board observed, in its 561st meeting held in Delhi.

The board, according to minutes of the meeting revealed by the central bank in an RTI reply, had met just two-and-a-half hours before prime minister Narendra Modi in an address to the nation, announced the demonetisation decision on November 8, 2016.

The minutes of the crucial board meeting, which approved the government’s request for demonetisation, recorded the presence of the then RBI governor Urjit Patel and the then economic affairs secretary Shaktikanta Das. Others at the board meeting included the then financial services secretary Anjuli Chib Duggal and RBI deputy governors R Gandhi and SS Mundra. Both, Gandhi and Mundra, are not part of the board now, while Das was appointed as the RBI governor in December 2018. Curbing black money was one of the prime objectives of the shock move to junk old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, which saw 86 per cent of high-value currency going out of circulation.

The prime minister had announced demonetisation of high-value currency notes with the aim to curb the black money, check counterfeit currency and stop terror finance, among others. While any incidence of counterfeiting is a concern, the minutes said, Rs 400 crores as a percentage of the total quantum of currency in circulation in the country, is not very significant.

Of the Rs 15.41 lakh crores worth of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in circulation on November 8, 2016, notes worth Rs 15.31 lakh crores came back during the 50-day window for depositing junk notes given to resident Indians and till June 2017 for non-resident Indians. Only Rs 10,720 crores of the junked currency notes did not return to the banking system, while the rest 99.9% was deposited, raising a question mark over the government’s effort of curbing black money through demonetisation.

The minutes pointed that “The growth rate of economy mentioned is the real rate while the growth in currency in circulation is nominal. Adjusted for inflation, the difference may not be so stark. Hence, this argument does not adequately support the recommendation (in favour of demonetisation)”. The government has always maintained that the decision did not have much impact on the GDP growth. The board was assured that the government would take mitigating measures to contain the use of cash, it said.

In another reply, the RBI has said it has no data on the old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes used to pay for utility bills such as fuel at petrol pumps – payments that are anonymous and are believed to have formed a good part of the demonetised currency that returned to the banking system. The government had allowed the exchange of the junked notes, as well as they being used for payment of utility bills for 23 services. Old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes could be used at government hospitals, railway ticketing, public transport, airline ticketing at airports, milk booths, crematoria/burial grounds, petrol pumps, metro rail tickets, purchase of medicines on doctor prescription from the government and private pharmacies, LPG gas cylinders, railway catering, electricity and water bills, ASI monument entry tickets and highway toll.

On November 25, 2016, the exchange of old notes was stopped and the government allowed the use of only old 500 rupee notes at these utilities, till December 15, 2016. The government, however, stopped the use of even this currency at petrol pumps and for the purchase of air tickets at airports abruptly, with effect from December 2, 2016, after reports that they were becoming fronts for laundering of old currency notes.

A developing micro-market comprising several residential options, government offices and research institutes.

This week’s realty hot spot is Pashan-Sus Road, Pune. The main draws of this well-developed area are its good connectivity to commercial areas and presence of good infrastructure. It is well-connected through the Pashan-Sus Road, Baner Road, Mumbai Highway (NH-48) and Shivaji Nagar Railway Station.

It is a micro-market with property prices ranging between Rs 4680 and Rs 8980 per square feet. Pashan-Sus Road is 19 KM away from the airport, 8 KM from the nearest railway station and 1 KM from the National Highway 48.

With senior citizens projected to form nearly 34 per cent of the population of the country by the end of the century, the centre has issued guidelines for the regulation and redevelopment of retirement homes.

To protect the rights of senior citizens and address the special needs, the government, on March 6, 2019, said that it has issued guidelines for the regulation and redevelopment of retirement homes. According to a statement, a task force for constant dialogue with states and other stakeholders will be constituted by the union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry, to ensure implementation of these guidelines.

A developer can build and manage the ‘retirement homes’ or engage a ‘service provider’ or ‘retirement home operator’ for the management of these homes, the guidelines say. Such service providers will be required to be registered with appropriate state authorities. “The model guidelines provide for the disclosure of technical skills of the service provider at the time of executing the ‘Agreement to Sale’ in the form of a ‘Tri-Partite Agreement’ to be executed among the developer, service provider/retirement home operators and the allottee,” the statement says.

Retirement homes should be aligned with the principles, guidelines and norms prescribed in the National Building Code (NBC), Model Building Bye Laws and Harmonized Guidelines and Space Standards for Barrier Free Built Environment for Persons with Disability and Elderly Persons. Retirement home apartments can only be sold, after registration under the respective Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act (RERA) of the states, the government also said.

“From approximately 7.6 crores in 2001, the number of senior citizens in India has increased to 10.4 crores in 2011. This number is expected to grow to 17.3 crores by 2025 and about 24 crores by 2050. By the end of the century, senior citizens will constitute nearly 34 per cent of the total population of the country,” said the statement.

Prime minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the 6.6-km Noida City Centre-Noida Electronic City section of the Delhi Metro’s Blue Line, as well as the 9.4-km-long Dilshad Garden-New Bus Adda section of the Red Line, on March 8, 2019

Prime minister Narendra Modi is likely to inaugurate the 6.6-km Noida City Centre-Noida Electronic City section, an extension of the Delhi Metro’s Blue Line, on March 8, 2019, official sources said. On the same day, the prime minister is also slated to inaugurate the 9.4-km-long Dilshad Garden-New Bus Adda section, an extension of the Red Line.

According to officials, Prime Minister Modi will launch civilian flight operations at Hindon airbase and inaugurate the Dilshad Garden-New Bus Adda section of the Delhi Metro’s Red Line on March 8. After inaugurating the metro corridor, the prime minister will return to the airbase, where he will launch the civilian flight operations and will then address a public meeting, at an adjacent ground. Sources said, the prime minister is likely to inaugurate the extension of the Blue Line during the public meeting, along with a few other projects. After opening of the two corridors, the Delhi Metro’s span will extend to over 342 kms, with 250 stations.

We look at some of the basic fire safety provisions that home buyers can check for, in high-rise buildings, to ascertain whether it is safe for occupation

Fire is undoubtedly a big hazard that people moving into high-rise apartments in megacities, need to consider. The aftermath of gruesome infernos at Kamala Mills in Mumbai’s Lower Parel business district and the fires at high-rises like the ultra-posh Beau Monde Apartments in Prabhadevi or the slum rehabilitation buildings of Samrat Ashok SRA CHS in Mahalakshmi, show that fire is a common enemy to all – rich or poor. Hence, it has become imperative for anyone who is buying an apartment today to ascertain whether his dream house is fire-compliant.

In the fire at Crystal Tower, there were allegations that the electrical ducts were not sealed properly at each floor. Further footage of the fire revealed that the residents were trapped at the upper floors and the fire brigade had to use ladders and hydraulic platforms, to rescue the trapped residents. In the Samrat Ashok SRA fire at Mahalakshmi, the inferno broke out in the rehabilitation buildings constructed for the erstwhile slum-dwellers. Here too, the allegations were that the fire broke out in the electrical duct on the third floor and travelled all the way to the top of the 18-storey building, trapping many and killing one in the process.

While a fire has many causes and the authorities are quick to pin the blame on the society and residents for poor upkeep and storage of hazardous goods on the premises, seldom are fingers pointed at the fire officials who issued permits to such hazardous structures in the first place. It is no secret that such buildings are in essence ‘vertical slums’, with 20-storey towers cooped closely together, leaving no room for ventilation, sunlight, open space or enough access space for heavy fire engines. The final outcome is a death trap, which, tragically in a crowded city like Mumbai, is turning into an inferno with frightening regularity.

Actis is building the world’s largest non-governmental data centre outside Beijing and is eyeing similar opportunity in India amid implementation of RBI norms on data localization

Hero Realty, the real estate arm of Sunil Kant Munjal-led Hero Enterprise, has completed many projects in Haridwar and is currently developing projects in Mohali and Ludhiana. It builds and markets projects under the brand Hero Homes. “We are coming up with a 9-acre housing project in Sector 104 on Dwarka Expressway named ‘Hero Homes - World of Wellness’ This is our first project in Delhi-NCR,” Hero Realty CEO Nagaraju Routhu told PTI. He said the company would develop about 1,000 flats in this project, of which 300 units have been launched in the first phase. It is selling flats at a starting price of Rs 68 lakh. “We have achieved best carpet area efficiency and effective space utilisation in this project without compromising on the green area which is 85 per cent,” he said. The apartment sizes vary from 1,100 sq ft to nearly 1,700 sq ft. On investment, he said the total project cost is estimated at over Rs 900 crore. The construction work would commence soon and the project would be completed in four years.

Nothing’s working, not large or small-cap stocks in the US, not international or emerging equities, not Treasuries, bonds, commodities or real estate. Most of them are down, and the ones that are up are doing so by percentages in the low single-digits

Over the last decade, the commercial real estate market has transformed and matured, in the backdrop of policy reforms, institutional investments, foreign partnerships and growth in the services sector.

A Griha Pravesh ceremony is believed to bring in positivity and good fortune, for the people who live in the house. We look at the auspicious dates and how home owners can plan in advance, for a perfect Griha Pravesh in 2019 A ‘Griha Pravesh’ or a house warming ceremony is a one-time ritual that is performed, when one enters a new home for the first time, for living in it. Experts recommend that the entire Griha Pravesh ceremony should be performed smoothly, as this ceremony marks the beginning of one’s residence in the property. Hence, it is especially important to ensure that there is no mistake, while deciding the Griha Pravesh date and the timing for entering the home and timing of the puja.

However, Goods and Services Tax (GST) is applicable on sale of under-construction property or ready to move in flats where completion certificate is not issued at the time of sale, it said.

This sought-after Mumbai address has a good connectivity through Western Express Highway, JVLR, SV Road and Goregaon Railway Station.

US stocks rose 1%, boosted by technology stocks, as a report about China planning to increase access for foreign firms added to optimism fuelled by Trump’s upbeat comments on trade

According to officials, 505 people have applied for the 442 plots. The e-bidding will be held from December 13 to 21, where each plot will be auctioned separately.

The shift to tighter monetary policies in the West is weakening credit markets. Over-indebted emerging markets face headwinds from rising borrowing costs and dollar shortages

Colours have a profound effect on individuals and can affect us on a physical, emotional, mental and spiritual level. We look at how you can choose the right colours for your home, to create a positive and happy environment.

Colour or chroma therapy is an alternative method of healing, through the use of colours. When we gaze at colours, different energies are absorbed, as each colour has its own frequency and vibration. "We are constantly surrounded by a free flow of colours, through nature, the clothes that we wear and the space where we live or work. At different stages of our lives, we feel attracted to or repelled by different colours, depending on our emotional and mental needs," says Amisha Mehta, an artist and colour therapist.

Noida Expressway enjoys proximity to markets, offices and schools and this makes the NCR locality attractive to all kinds of home buyers.

DDA vice chairman Tarun Kapoor at a press conference here said several flats are under construction and by the "next six months, about 25,000 flats would be ready".

The Finance Ministry recently clarified that GST will not be applicable on real estate properties that have obtained the completion certificate at the time of sale. We examine how this will impact various segments and stakeholders in the sector.

The applicability of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the Indian taxation system, was a move aimed towards ‘one nation, one tax’. After land abetment, the applicable GST for under-construction properties was 12 per cent, while ready-to-move-in flats were kept out of the ambit of GST. Even for under-construction properties, there was a ruling to provide input tax credit (ITC) pass-over to the buyer, to ensure that it becomes a tax-neutral proposition.

RERA initiate a census of all delayed projects and pass seizure order along with auction of seized assets if it finds that funds have been diverted.

MUMBAI: The Forum for People’s Collective Efforts (FPCE), a pan-India body of homebuyers, has sought forensic audit of all housing projects that have been delayed by more than two years to find out whether funds have been diverted, as turned out to be the case with Amrapali Group’s projects.

It has suggested that the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) initiate a census of all delayed projects and pass seizure order along with auction of seized assets if it finds that funds have been diverted. The body has also sought that RERA authorities constitute flying squads to keep a check on builders adhering to RERA provisions such as maintenance of escrow account, check exact status of project completion and compare that with declaration given by the builders, deviation from sanctioned plan, specifications and layout.

NOIDA: Getting a house on the basis of a ‘lease agreement’ by simply paying 5% stamp duty may not be a solution after all, feel real estate experts.

Issues in the long-term related to the sale of property and fire safety norms, water, etc could be highly compromised by builders in this method as they will try to hastily exit projects. Buyers, meanwhile, are livid as they feel victimised.

"The proper route for handing over flats to buyers is through occupancy certificates after the houses get completion certificates. Handing over flats is not just a matter of securing revenues for the state, but there are other issues that should be kept in mind. Suppose if a lift falls or there is some other kind of problem in maintenance or construction, who will be held accountable?" said Balwinder Kumar, member of Uttar Pradesh Real Estate Regulatory Authority (UP-Rera).

Ready-to-move-in properties saw more buyer interest than under-constructed projects

Mumbai: This year was a buyers’ market for real estate. "Real estate prices remained static, which didn’t work well for developers and investors," said Pankaj Kapoor, founder and managing director of Liases Foras, a realty research company. "It was a tough time for the sellers because they could not increase the prices on the back of high inventories and were also stuck with low liquidity."

Sonu Sood is a huge star not just in Bollywood but in southern cinema as well. Yet, in his luxurious home in Mumbai, it is his humility that shines through its decor of function and aesthetics, combined with tranquil tones and beautiful textures

"Home is the best place to relax," says actor and producer, Sonu Sood. The luxurious 2,600-sq ft, four-bedroom hall apartment in Mumbai, successfully combines function and aesthetics. Sood's house is located in Yamuna Nagar (Lokhandwala), Andheri west. This place is a hub for the film fraternity, says Sood. "I have been living in Andheri for many years, even before my career took off and I love this place. All my friends are close by. My gym, my children's schools, good restaurants, various shopping malls and multiplexes, are all in the vicinity," explains Sood.

Sood designed his house, along with ZZ Architects (Zubin Zainuddin and Krupa Zubin, principal architects).

This Mumbai location hosts several business centres namely One BKC, Godrej BKC, Parinee Crescenzo, IL&FS Financial Centre, etc.

In this week's realty hotspot series we turn the spotlight on BKC Mumbai which has excellent connectivity through SCLR, Western Express Highway, Bandra-Worli Sea Link & Bandra Terminus.

The location boasts good amenities nearby such as Asian Heart Institute, Lilavati Hospital, Phoenix Market City Mall, etc.

The BSE Realty Index had a roller-coaster ride in 2018. It is now more or less where it began the year, which pales in comparison with a 106% surge in 2017 on investor hopes that reforms would usher greater transparency in the sector.

While the reforms are a long-term positive, stringent regulations and the time taken for firms to account for policy changes have caused near-term stress. Along with the liquidity crunch at non-banking financial companies, this impacted volume. Inventory levels eased only marginally, deterring new launches. Prices have been stagnant too.

"Average property prices at the pan-India level rose by only 1% in 2018 from the previous year to ₹5,545 per sq.ft," said Anarock Property Consultants Pvt. Ltd.

Surprisingly, despite tardy growth through the year, the office property segment has done well. According to Anarock, office space absorption rose by about 19% in 2018, crossing 39 million sq.ft. So, realty developers with a greater mix of commercial rental assets and retail shopping malls posted better results in the first two quarters of 2018-19.

Meanwhile, the Real Estate (Regulatory and Development) Act, 2016 has ushered in more transparency. Leading listed firms that were debt-laden have trimmed borrowings considerably, with some tying in private equity investments too. Yet, weak sales due to sluggish market conditions kept the ratio of interest cost to sales at elevated levels, especially for firms with a higher residential portfolio mix.

The trend of better income expansion for those with commercial (annuity) assets comprising office, retail and hotel, mix in their portfolio is expected to continue. Developers with residential projects are likely to shift towards affordable housing given 41% share of this segment in total home sales in 2018.

Adhidhev Chhattopadhyay, an analyst at ICICI Securities Ltd, argues that companies with annuity assets and those investing in capex to add more such assets, will have a sizeable revenue stream in the next two to three years. This will account for 60-70% of their enterprise value. "These annuity assets would act as a cushion for valuations in all these companies through cycles," he says. On the other hand, a gradual reduction in housing inventory and the new percentage completion method of accounting will make revenue and earnings accretion lumpy. This could weigh on stock valuations of such firms.

The year 2018 was uncomfortable for Indian real estate as it underwent the maturing process which had begun in 2017 with the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 (RERA) and the goods and services tax (GST). Though introduced in the previous year, these regulatory changes had their maximum impact in 2019. While the housing market was severely hit by the combined effect of demonetisation, RERA and GST, it began recovering in 2018, albeit gradually. Anarock data for 2017 indicates that while 2017 saw a huge decline of 70% in project launches, 2018 saw new launches pick up by over 30% as against 2017.

Similarly, while 2017 saw housing sales decline by 13% over 2016, 2018 brought a notable quarter-on-quarter sales growth with as many as 178,470 homes finding purchasers in the first three quarters of the year in seven top Indian cities-Bengaluru, National Capital Region, Mumbai Metropolitan Region, Chennai, Kolkata, Pune and Hyderabad. While Q4 sales numbers are not yet in, if we extrapolate Q4 housing sales from the preceding quarters, 2018 will have witnessed a rise of 15% in overall housing sales when compared to the preceding year. In 2018, the housing sector's most vibrant segment was affordable housing.

The problem of stalled housing projects continued to plague the market and acted as a stumbling block to future growth. Definitely, this issue needs to be strongly addressed in 2019 and the incumbent government is actively pursuing solutions. What progress is made on the ground remains to be seen.

In spite of a slew of policy announcements, data indicates that the government's much-touted PMAY scheme saw dismal progress in 2018. In 2015, the government had set its sights on deploying as many as 1 crore urban homes in less than 10 years. The available data, however, indicates that a mere 15% new low-income group (LIG)/economic weaker section (EWS) homes have been built so far under PMAY.

Throughout 2018, a broad rationalisation of rates was carried out and after the last round last week only about two dozen goods were left in the top 28% bracket.

New Delhi: It faced a huge political backlash and became the butt of jokes with opponents calling it 'Gabbar Singh Tax', but weathered all of it in 2018 and its proponents are confident the GST (Goods and Services Tax)is fast emerging as a strong tax-compliance tool and may eventually evolve into a single-slab taxation rate.

Dismissing the criticism that it was a 'good law, badly implemented', the those in support point out it took two years for a GST to be implemented in Malaysia - the last country before India to have introduced such a tax - but only to be scrapped in the end by a new government there.

Year-end trends: Does real estate still offer lucrative ROI?

Will real estate continue to be a preferred investment class in 2019? We speak to some experts, to gauge how real estate compares to other assets like stocks, gold, etc., to get some answers.

Real estate is often considered as one of the best assets globally, vis-à-vis return on investments. In India, recent policy reforms like the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 (RERA), real estate investment trust (REIT), the Benami Act and the Good and Services Tax (GST), have helped to transform the sector into a more organised one.

Aditya Kedia, managing director of Transcon Developers, maintains that the present real estate market offers a win-win situation, for potential buyers and developers alike. "With RERA in place, developers are bound to deliver projects within the stipulated period of time," he says.

Manju Yagnik, vice-chairperson of the Nahar Group, adds that "The sector has witnessed growth in recent times, with a rise in the demand for commercial, as well as residential spaces. Private equity investment in real estate is estimated to grow in the coming years."

Rationalisation of the GST regime and easier finance for the real estate sector, are some of the measures that the fraternity is hoping for in the new year, to make it easier for home buyers to get their dream homes.

The Indian real estate sector has witnessed a sea change, over the last couple of years. However, in spite of the advancements in construction, the use of high-end technology, the advent of smart homes and flexible apartment configurations being made available according to the evolving market, the industry is going through a lull. Real estate experts maintain that with all the major policies having been implemented in the last five years, 2019 could be the year that the property market bounces back. Nevertheless, they add that several niggling issues also need to be addressed, so that all the stakeholders in the sector can reap the benefits of a bright first quarter in 2019.

A completion certificate is an important document that states a property has been built, according to standards and proves the legitimacy of a real estate project. We explain its importance, for developers and buyers.

A completion certificate is a document that is awarded, after the inspection of a real estate project, stating that it has been constructed according to the approved building plan and that it meets all the necessary standards set by the local development authority or municipal corporation. This certificate needs to be obtained by developers, as well as owners of standalone properties. It is required, to ensure the supply of utilities like water, electricity and drainage system.

An increasing number of developers are launching smaller projects in metropolitan cities. We look at the reasons for the emergence of this trend and whether it is likely to continue in the year ahead.

The metropolitan and large cities in India, have several real estate micro-markets that are reasonably priced and offer good returns for end-users and investors alike. As these cities tend to have limited supply of land, developers need feasible options, to meet the increasing demand for housing. Consequently, smaller projects are an option that is being explored. Moreover, the general reduction in the sizes of flats, has also contributed to affordability.

Rahul Shah, CEO of Sumer Group, points out that "While smaller projects are an attractive target for developers, given the smaller gestation period and quick returns, luxury housing projects have a niche following that gives it a sizeable market share. People in the metro cities are more concerned about the location of the house than the size of it and are, hence, are willing to opt for houses with sizes that fit their budgets."

CII believes the government will continue to place high priority on simplifying business procedures in 2019, especially in terms of working with states for grassroots improvements

New Delhi: The country is expected to witness strong economic growth in 2019, after it has emerged as the fastest growing major world economy this year despite growing global vulnerabilities, industry body CII said Sunday.

The positive outlook is buttressed by strong drivers emanating from services sector and better demand conditions arising out of poll spend, with the general elections slated next year, according to the chamber.

"Better demand conditions, settled GST implementation, capacity expansion from growing investments in infrastructure, continuing positive effects of reform policies and improved credit offtake especially in the services sector at 24 per cent will sustain the robust GDP growth in the range of 7.5 per cent in 2019," CII Director General Chandrajit Banerjee said.

The industry body observed that despite 2018 being filled with external vulnerabilities arising out of rising oil prices, trade wars between major global trading partners and US monetary tightening, India outshined as the world’s fastest growing major economy.

It has identified seven key drivers for growth that need to be fostered and suggested policy actions for robust GDP growth to continue in 2019. Among key growth drivers, CII hopes the GST Council will consider extending the tax to currently exempted sectors such as fuel, real estate, electricity and alcohol.

The chamber outlined that credit availability has been a challenge, particularly for the micro, small and medium enterprises, as credit flow to industry grew by a mere 2.3 per cent in first half of the current financial year. "CII submits that the RBI should introduce measures such as revisiting lending restrictions of PCA (Prompt Corrective Action) banks, opening of a limited special liquidity window to meet emergencies of financial institutions, including Mutual Funds besides others to improve liquidity in the system," it said.

Besides, the process of insolvency resolution has taken shape, the chamber feels the government should consider setting up additional benches of the National Company Law Tribunal to strengthen the judicial infrastructure for easier and faster exit of distressed businesses.

The chamber believes the government will continue to place high priority on simplifying business procedures in 2019, especially in terms of working with states for grassroots improvements.

"We look forward to digitisation of land records, online single window systems in states, and enforcing contracts for even more improvements in ease of doing business," said Banerjee.

On agriculture reforms, CII suggested that it is important to persuade states to implement the Agriculture Produce and Livestock Marketing Model Act, which has been implemented in just four states, to strengthen agriculture produce marketing.

Going ahead, it opined that India also needs to increase domestic production of oil, providing a special window for oil marketing companies to procure fuel and stepping up diplomacy with the US to continue to secure purchase from Iran.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

The year saw increased buyouts and high activity in sectors like infrastructure, realty.

Deal-making in 2018 was one for the record books. All previous records were broken by crossing the $100 billion mark in terms of deal value across both private equity (PE) and strategic (M&A) transactions. India proved to be an investor magnet, attracting close to $35 billion during the year by way of private equity, which has now clearly entered a phase of maturity led by a steady stream of investments, record levels of exits and mounting levels of dry powder.

We examine the various ways in which technological advancements are likely to positively benefit the various stakeholders in the real estate sector, in the coming year.

Various innovative technologies have made inroads into the real estate sector in India, right from property search to construction and signing of contracts. Leveraging of these technologies, is likely to reshape the future of the real estate industry in 2019. For a buyer, the changes are welcoming but for property developers and consultants, these changes could prove disruptive and challenging. "The needs of millennial home owners, are likely to revolve around intelligent buildings with advanced technology. Thus, buildings with modern designs are likely to command a premium in the cost-conscious Indian property market. For developers, the early adoption and investment in technologies, will prove to be the best defence against disruptions," states Surabhi Arora, senior associate director - research, Colliers International.

Technologies that facilitate property discovery, map-based location services, amenities-based searches, dynamic pricing models, marketing, online credit score and EMI services, online agreements, 360-degree videos, online token payment facilities for property bookings, etc., are some of the developments that are likely to have a profound impact on the real estate sector in 2019.

DDA is also in the process of setting up a call centre having specialised agents, who would ensure that people don’t have to visit its offices for any queries.

NEW DELHI: You can now book a community centre, apply for a sports complex membership and transfer leasehold property to freehold without queuing up at Delhi Development Authority (DDA) offices.

A spokesperson said 33 forms are now available online for various DDA services, including sports complex membership, RWA requests, booking of sites, conversion of different types of properties, staff-related schemes etc. "These forms are available at the public forms section of the DDA website. For allotment of one-bedroom flat to government agencies, the online application has been designed and developed, also available on the website in the online services corner. The auction of various types of plots is being done online," he said.

The spokesperson added, "For lodging complaints about unauthorized construction or encroachment on government land, for Special Task Force and for monitoring the same, an online portal, dda.org.in/stf/, has also been designed and developed for general public, and nodal and grid officers of various organizations".

Car sales were robust in the first half of 2018 but weakened since July due to the Kerala floods and high petrol and diesel prices.

Mumbai: Domestic passenger car sales rose by 6.05% during a volatile 2018 to over 2.55 million units on the back of a low base before July and a string of new launches after the Auto Expo in February. The trend in car sales was robust during the first half of the calendar year on the back of new launches, expectations of a healthy monsoon and a low base, but weakened since July due to factors such as the devastating floods in Kerala, unfavourable macroeconomic scenario, as well as regulatory changes and high fuel prices, which increased the cost of ownership.

The hardest blow came during the 42-day festive season, which ended with Diwali in early November, when retail sales of passenger vehicles fell 14%, according to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Association, which attributed the dip in sales primarily to the liquidity crunch faced by financiers.

The festive season is crucial for auto makers as buyers consider it auspicious to make big-ticket purchases such as cars, gold and real estate. About 30% of annual car sales happen during this period.

In December, the country’s top six carmakers—Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, Hyundai Motor India Ltd, Tata Motors Ltd, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd and Honda Cars India Ltd—sold a total of 200,367 vehicles, compared with 200,456 units a year earlier.

Following the latest GST council meet, finance minister Arun Jaitely had announced that the proposal to reduce the rate may be taken up in the forthcoming meeting this month.

NAGPUR: Contrary to the perception that reduction of GST rate from the present 12% to 5% on under-construction homes would make houses cheaper, the move may, in fact, hit the interest of low and mid-priced home buyers.

Reason: The input tax credit (ITC) is likely to be done away with if such properties are brought under the 5% composite tax slab of GST.

Last week, following the latest GST council meet, finance minister Arun Jaitely had announced that the proposal to reduce the rate may be taken up in the forthcoming meeting this month.

The segment to be affected would be buyers of homes costing up to Rs7,000 per square feet. Considering the current cost of construction, which more or less is standard, and the rate of tax applicable on the material, having 12% GST along with ITC makes a better deal rather than 5% on composite basis (without ITC).

ITC is a rebate available to every taxpayer in a chain-based system like GST. The tax paid at the time of purchase of any input or raw material for making the end product is deducted from final liability.

This prevents cascading effect. The anti-profiteering laws under GST regime call for passing on ITC benefit to consumers.

Even though the real estate sector is likely to have a tough year, new trends are expected to emerge

New Delhi: For potential homebuyers, the year 2019 is not expected to be any different from the last few years. Prices are likely to remain stagnant and developers will continue to focus on clearing existing inventory rather than launching new projects as they continue to grapple with regulatory changes like Real estate (regulation and development) Act, 2016 (RERA), goods and services tax (GST) and overall subdued demand.

In fact, 2019 is expected to be another tough year for real estate developers, given the ongoing liquidity problem, owing to the NBFC crisis.

Dilip Kumar, Saira Banu send defamation notice to builder

Actor Dilip Kumar and his wife Saira Banu have sent a defamation notice to a builder accused of trying to grab the actor's bungalow in Mumbai's upscale Pali Hill area of Bandra.

Veteran actor Dilip Kumar and his wife Saira Banu have sent a defamation notice to builder Sameer Bhojwani, for making false claims of ownership to their Rs 250-crore property in suburban Bandra. In the notice, they have sought an apology from Bhojwani and Rs 200 crores in damages, for defaming them in public with their statements.

On December 21, 2018, Bhojwani had issued a public notice claiming he was the ‘rightful owner’ of the said property. He had further claimed that the 96-year-old thespian was only a ‘lessee’ of the property. Taking objection to this, Kumar and his actress-wife, on December 31, 2018, sent a defamation notice to Bhojwani, for misleading the public with false and defamatory statements.

“Bhojwani has damaged the reputation of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu in public, by making false and defamatory statement against them,” said the notice sent to Bhojwani by the star couple’s advocate, Chirag Shah. “Bhojwani issued the public notice on December 21, 2018, with a criminal intention to grab/encroach the legitimate rights of Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu, by creating a perception in public that he (Bhojwani) is the owner of the property,” it said.

“On the basis of forged and fabricated documents, Bhojwani is claiming ownership of a property, originally owned by Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu. Dilip Kumar and Saira Banu are the legitimate owners of the property situated at Pali Hill in Bandra and have acquired the same in September 1953,” the notice said.

Mumbai Grahak Panchayat on Dec 31, 2018 wrote to CM Devendra Fadnavis to bring more than 6,000 redevelopment projects in the three cities under MahaRERA as assured by him.

PUNE: For over a lakh families in Pune, Mumbai and Thane waiting endlessly for developers to complete projects under redevelopment, the only hope is to bring these units under the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority’s (MahaRERA) purview.

The Mumbai Grahak Panchayat (MGP) on December 31, 2018, wrote to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to bring more than 6,000 redevelopment projects in the three cities under Maha RERA as assured by him in May last year.

“The government had assured that all these projects will come under the purview of MahaRERA, which will set a deadline for these re-development projects and settle the rehabilitation components, including rent payment for the affected people,” MGP president Shirish Deshpande said.

“Though the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act cannot be touched, the state government can make necessary amendments to the MahaRERA rules to help the redevelopment projects. Several citizens associated with such projects are affected. They are neither getting rent nor alternative places to stay till the developers complete the redevelopment projects,” he said.

Ready for a zero-waste life? Let these green warriors inspire you to live more mindfully, intentionally and ethically this year.

Tender coconut water and paani puri are a few of Sahar Mansoor’s favourite things. As popular street food across India, these items may cost little, but they exact a steep ecological price. Their immediate by-product is usually a plastic straw that cannot be recycled or plates often disposed of carelessly, leading to clogged drainage. The empty coconut shell has a better chance of being turned into coir.

“For a long time, I would try to drink the coconut water without the plastic straw and end up pouring most of it all over myself,” says Mansoor, 27, who lives in Bengaluru. “Until I finally made the switch.” A couple of years ago, she began carrying a stainless steel straw and an empty lunch box everywhere so that she could enjoy her beloved snacks without adding to the burden of urban waste. Soon Mansoor was buying foodgrains only from a city store that sold them loose, free of packaging. She began to use home-grown personal care products made with ingredients her grandmother once used—multani mitti (Fuller’s earth), shikakai and reetha (soapnut). That led to further reduction of plastic waste. By the time Mansoor started her venture, Bare Necessities, in 2016, the amount of non-biodegradable dry waste she produced in over two years fitted into a 500ml jar.

Bare Necessities makes a range of products with ethically sourced and zero-waste ingredients, supplying them in eco-friendly packages using recyclable material. Sold from select outlets in Bengaluru, items such as the compostable bamboo toothbrush or the Boondh menstrual cup are steadily attracting buyers. “Our customer base is mostly women between the ages of 18 and 40,” says Mansoor. “Many of them are young mothers and millennials who want to consume more mindfully and associate with ethical brands that reflect their personal values.”

Home owners who wish to keep pets at home, need to ensure that their house caters to its needs and provides a safe environment for all. We explain the dos and donts

Besides providing companionship, there are also therapeutic benefits of owning a pet. Nevertheless, owning a pet is also a commitment and a responsibility. Consequently, home owners should ensure that the house is safe and comfortable for their pets. Although a pet can turn your house upside-down, things generally change as the pet grows up and you learn to adjust to its behaviour and needs.

The most common change that home owners make to the décor, is to remove all rugs. If you have cats or dogs at home, the carpets can turn into breeding grounds for fleas, cautions Lekha Gupta, senior architect, LAB (Language Architecture Body).

“Wooden flooring is usually slippery. Pets love to run around and wooden flooring may cause serious injury. So, avoid it,” adds Gupta.

All staircases must be barricaded, to prevent small pets from rolling down or trying to climb up, unattended. “Also barricade all grills that overlook lower floors, as your puppy may try to jump down. All balconies and windows with wide grills, must be meshed so that puppies cannot go through them,” advises Yashodhara Hemchandra of Yashbans Kennels in Bengaluru, a well-known pet groomer, who along with her two daughters, Rishya and Radhiya, offers various pet related services.

Realtors’ body NAREDCO also recommended that any dispute regarding new projects should only be heard by state regulators called RERA, and not consumer courts

New Delhi: Cases related to defaulting builders should be first taken up by regulators under the new real estate law RERA before being referred to the NCLT for insolvency proceedings, realtors’ body NAREDCO has suggested.

The association also recommended that any dispute regarding new projects should only be heard by state regulators set up under the Real Estate (Regulations and Development) Act, called RERA, and not consumer courts.

These suggestions were made by NAREDCO to the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs during a meeting that was called last week to seek suggestions from stakeholders for removing any difficulties under RERA, being implemented from May 2017.

This law was brought in to make the real estate sector transparent and eliminate fly-by-night operators.

“At present, complaints against builders are being taken up by consumer courts as well as real estate regulatory authorities established under the RERA. This is creating confusion,” NAREDCO President Niranjan Hiranandani told PTI.

The new projects should only be taken up under RERA, he said, and sought necessary changes in provisions of this law so that builders do not have to face litigation in multiple fora.

Hiranandani said the cases related to defaulting builders should be initially referred to RERA regulators for resolution of dispute before insolvency proceedings are invoked.

“If regulators under RERA fail to resolve, the dispute may be referred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for adjudication,” he said.

Hiranandani, the co-founder and MD of Mumbai-based real estate major Hiranandani Group, also wanted uniformity in the implementation of provisions of this law across the country.

On defect liability of promoters till five years of possession of units, the association suggested that it should only be for structural and design defects as well as material used.

However, the defect liability of the promoter should exclude equipment like lifts and generators that carry warranty/guarantee by manufacturers.

Fittings related to plumbing, sanitary ware, electrical and hardware should be excluded as they have natural wear and tear, it said.

Hiranandani also said extension of registration of projects should be decided on case to case basis instead of the current provision of one year extension.

“Sometimes the construction work in projects gets delayed because of court orders or some other issues where builders are not in fault,” he said.

This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text.

The average rent in MMR jumped to Rs 21,168 last year from Rs 17,912 in 2017 followed by Chennai and Bengaluru with 15% and 14% increase, respectively.

MUMBAI: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), which includes Thane and Navi Mumbai, experienced a maximum rent inflation of 18% in 2018, the highest among five Indian cities, a recent survey reveals.

The average rent in MMR jumped to Rs 21,168 last year from Rs 17,912 in 2017 followed by Chennai and Bengaluru with 15% and 14% increase, respectively. Rent inflation in Gurugram was close to 11% while Pune experienced the lowest rate of 7%.

The India Rent Report 2018 (Residential) stated that the 18% inflation in MMR is based on the 2.5 lakh properties listed in this region with a website which conducted the survey. “We took data of 2017 for reference when rent was more or less stagnant across cities as demonetization had hit in towards the end of 2016,” it said.

Across the country, Mumbai follows Bangalore and Chennai in terms of the size of the security deposit. In Mumbai, the average deposit last year was Rs 89,850 while in Bengaluru it was Rs 1.3 lakh and Chennai Rs 1 lakh.

Among those surveyed in Mumbai, the top-most priority of those who wished to rent a place was water supply (85%), followed by security (76%), lift (61%) and parking (48%). Merely 20% wanted a swimming pool facility.

The survey found that 70% of tenants in Mumbai prefer no brokerage, followed by 16% who find houses through friends or family, 20% who find rental houses through real estate websites and 12% through brokers.

Real estate is the most undeserving of sectors for any largesse. It is one hell of a rigged market

Few sectors in the economy have the kind of positive impact on jobs and livelihoods as real estate. Arguably, few customer segments are more deserving of price relief than homebuyers. However, despite interest rate subventions, tax deductions under sections 24, 80C and 80EE, and tax-free profits for builders who concentrate on affordable housing, urban property is simply unaffordable to most city dwellers. The only two viable options are slums or commutes from distant peripheries.

So, if the GST Council, at its next meeting on 10 January, cuts rates on under-construction properties to 5%, and duties on cement are additionally brought down from an extortionate 28% to 18%, it will help more people buy properties.

However, consider a counterpoint. Real estate is also the most undeserving of sectors for any largesse. It is one hell of a rigged market, rigged by builders, babus and mantris at the state and central levels, because the corrupt hold a lot of their ill-gotten black wealth in real estate. They have a vested interest in keeping prices high, by artificially restricting supplies of land. No sector epitomises the term “regulatory capture” better than real estate, for land and property prices are rigged through opaque mechanisms such as building permits and zoning laws, and control of available land supplies by artificially limiting vertical building and making related infrastructure investment.

So, while there is a strong case for bringing down GST rates in general, including on real estate and its supply chain, if we don’t simultaneously reform the land markets, any tax relief will end up benefiting the wrong parties. Just as farm loan waivers benefit the richer sections among farmers, tax and other benefits for real estate will benefit the undeserving more than the deserving.

If you don’t believe that the land markets are rigged, just look at one statistic: between the last peak in January 2008 and now, the Sensex has risen around 78%; the S&P BSE Realty index, on the other hand, crashed, destroying 86% of its value. If this index value reflects the underlying profits in real estate, we should have seen real estate prices crashing by at least 50-60% over the last 11 years, but that has not happened. The only obvious takeaway is this: real value in real estate is captured outside balance sheets. This is how crooked the business is. So, any relief is going to largely protect the profitability of the builder-politician-bureaucrat conglomerate, not the real homebuyer.

In the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, between 2013 and now, unsold property inventories rose from 140,000 flats to 220,000, according to Anarock Property Consultants. Builders are announcing easy payment plans titled 20:80, 10:90 and even 1:99, where the buyer has to pay only 1% of the sale price upfront. But it is less about the consumer and more about generating short-term cash flows for those stuck with large inventories.

Another bit of data should clinch the argument. Rental yields computed for 14 cities by a property website average just 3%. Even a savings bank account pays more than that. So much for the argument that property is always a good investment.

This brings us to the larger question: why is the property market weak despite all the sops already directed at it by the Modi government? The answer, apart from demonetization, GST, RERA, et al, is that the market is targeted at a very small segment of the upper middle classes and the only way to expand the market to at least 10-15% of the population is to bring down prices, which means the builders, politicians, bureaucrats and “investors” who are sitting on loss-making illegal inventories have to take sharp haircuts of 30-50% at least.

Till this correction happens, whether through formal cuts, or through time-period adjustments facilitated by holding prices for, say, 5-10 years, the housing markets will not be freed. This means that a sector that should create millions of jobs in urban and rural areas is being held hostage by benami owners and investors who control the land markets through their vice-like grip on urban development policies, building permits, and infrastructure plans.

It is also important to mention two other parties with interests in keeping prices high —those who already own properties and have loans pending on them, and banks, which are striving frenetically to expand their retail loan offerings after having burnt their fingers with very large corporate loans that went bad. However, these segments can be protected by giving them some kind of regulatory forbearance on EMIs or easier provisioning against properties whose values may depreciate if market prices of property fall as a result of reforms and greater transparency.

We can’t avoid facing the elephant in the room. It is not possible to create millions of jobs and house our homeless without first reforming the factor market that needs it the most: land, especially urban land. We need to create a proper urban land market, and bring down its prices by adopting sensible policies to increase its potential supply so that our urbanisation is concentrated and capable of optimising commutes and collaborative networks of talented workers. Developing colonies of workers in distant suburbs is not the best way to create smart cities. Smart cities emerge from smart utilization of available spaces, not antiseptically designed satellite towns far away from workplaces.

With so many properties available at different rates, what is the ideal amount that a tenant should spend as rent? We suggest a few guidelines, to ensure that you can manage your rental outgo easily.

The rental housing market has many options, available at various rates. Consequently, it may be difficult for a prospective tenant to figure out how much to spend as rent. The answer to this, depends on one’s salary/income.

“Ideally, you should not be paying more than 30% of your salary towards rent and utilities (such as maintenance/water/electricity expenses). If you consider a monthly take-home salary of Rs 60,000, ideally, your rent should not be more than Rs 15,000,” advises Adhil Shetty, CEO of BankBazaar.com.

Shetty suggests you first determine where you want to live, as well as the security in the region, its accessibility and the commute to your workplace.

“Factor in all these aspects, before taking a call. For instance, you might get a good house in a reasonably-priced locality. However, it might make your commute lengthier and more expensive. So, a slightly smaller but expensive house closer to your workplace, might be a better trade-off,” says Shetty.

Analysing the mistakes and getting rid of his portfolio’s shortcomings set in motion Iqbal Mohammed’s long-term journey

Iqbal Mohammed felt that the engineer in him was getting lost in the typical IT job he held for over 10 years when he decided to go his own way and focus on what he knows and loves best. Semnox Solutions Pvt. Ltd was born in 2008 and is a global revenue solutions provider for the entertainment industry. Even though he was confident of making a success of his business venture, he was not as sure that his financial life was on the right track.

While there was not much to save in the initial years of employment, once his finances stabilised and there was a surplus, like all young people, he gravitated towards the two asset classes with the most bragging rights: equity and real estate. His portfolio was a motley collection of products that were sold to him with no alignment to goals or needs. “There was a lot of needless activity in my portfolio with funds being moved from one product to another without any reason,” said Iqbal.

He was perceptive enough to identify where he was going wrong: there was no disciplined approach to investing and the portfolio was skewed towards risky asset classes. “In hindsight, it feels as though the entire approach was short term. If some of my investments were held till date, I think there would have been tremendous gains on most of them.” With the realisation of the errors came the feeling that his financial situation would be better served with professional management and that is when he got in touch with Naveen Julian Rego, registered investment advisor and certified financial planner.

Iqbal’s brief to Naveen was clear. He wanted to address the risks in the portfolio and set it on a growth path with focus on goals. Iqbal and his wife Sarwath want to provide the best possible education to their two children Sahim, 15, and Shahan, 11, and a retirement with no compromise on their comforts or desires. Iqbal and Sarwath want to give back to society too in a significant way and are still searching for a cause that speaks to them.

Rego did a thorough analysis of Iqbal’s holdings and classified the investments to give Iqbal a good perspective of the risks and shortcomings in the portfolio. “The lack of a coherent asset allocation in the portfolio and significant concentration in asset classes and securities was what struck me immediately,” said Rego.

Rego also focused on de-risking the portfolio from the effects of a downturn in equity and real estate markets and bringing balance.

As a first step, Rego advised terminating a slew of Ulips that were not adding any value either to the protection needs or to the investment needs of the family. The next was to reduce the proportion of real estate and equity in the portfolio and to make allocations to debt to diversify the portfolio and protect downside risks. Since exiting real estate cannot be done at short notice, it was proposed to be done in a phased manner as was the exit from ESOPs to reduce the concentration of equity allocation in the portfolio to a particular security. Rego created a model portfolio that was suited to Iqbal’s financial needs and set in motion a long-term systematic investment that would get Iqbal to his desired allocation.

A good income and prudent spending habits of Sarwath and Iqbal meant that the household did not have to cut back on current expenses to find the savings for the goals. Mutual funds are the preferred investment vehicle for equity and debt investments, though there are some direct equity investments being made too.

“He spoke less about returns and more about building wealth over a long run by appropriate asset allocation. It was simple to understand and yet had the maturity and wisdom,” said Iqbal about Rego’s approach. All investment decisions are mutually decided between them after discussions in two reviews each year.

“It is important to get good financial advice early in life and someone in the family can play the role initially,” said Iqbal. “Knowing that my finances are in professional hands gave me peace of mind. I feel secure in the hands of an able advisor,” said Iqbal.

While the civic body’s GIS-enabled property tax information system has identified 19 lakh properties in its limits, only 11.5 lakh properties pay the levy.

BENGALURU: Owners of two out of every five properties in the city continue to avoid paying the stipulated property tax promptly, according to BBMP officials.

While the civic body’s GIS-enabled property tax information system has identified 19 lakh properties in its limits, only 11.5 lakh properties pay the levy. If every property is tax compliant, then the BBMP can mop up over Rs 4,000 crore, officials said.

The BBMP is racing against time to meet its tax target of Rs 3,100 crore. With less than three months left in the financial year, the agency has collected Rs 2,220 crore in taxes. Parks, playgrounds, shrines, BBMP properties and traffic circles are not assessed for property taxes. BBMP commissioner N Manjunatha Prasad told TOI: “A large number of properties, especially vacant plots in new BBMP areas, are regular defaulters.”

Falling prices should ideally lead to production cuts by high-cost producers, bringing equilibrium to the market.

Even as the stimulus by China is yet to take effect, concerns are being raised about its impact and the possible support it can provide to commodities, especially metals.

Some brokers, including CGS-CIMB Securities International Pte. Ltd, are even advising investors to stay away from steel stocks for the next two years. “Falling steel prices in the domestic market, rising steel production in China, depreciating CIS currencies which make exports viable at much lower US$ prices and entry of new players in the Indian steel market are some of the headwinds for Indian steel players. It is not too late to sell steel stocks, in our view,” CGS-CIMB said in a note. CIS is Commonwealth of Independent States.

The impact of the price erosion could reflect in the December quarter earnings. Jefferies India Pvt. Ltd forecasts a significant contraction in earnings of the metal companies on a sequential basis. Worryingly, the earnings contraction is projected to continue through the current quarter (Q4 FY19) as well, as the firms face the full impact of the fall in prices. “Full impact should come through in 4Q. Domestic HRC (hot rolled coil) prices are around ₹2,800 per tonne below 3Q average. With domestic ex-mill prices at a premium to import parity and mill inventories rising, further correction is likely. Aluminium LME is down 5% versus 3Q average,” Jefferies said in a note. LME is London Metal Exchange.

Panvel has emerged as Navi Mumbai's key real estate market, on account of its comparatively affordable prices, infrastructure development and prospects of good future returns, by way of appreciation.

Recently, Navi Mumbai was graded the second-best city to reside, in the ‘Ease of Living Index 2018’, launched by the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban affairs (MoHUA).

Also, JLL India, in their report ‘Livability Quotient – A Paradigm Shift in India’s Emerging Cities’ had identified Navi Mumbai as one of the best satellite towns, offering relief from the growing densification problems of Mumbai. This reinstates the fact that Navi Mumbai is a well-planned and managed city, at par with international and national standards.

Navi Mumbai was developed with an intent to decongest Mumbai and one node in Navi Mumbai that is developing in a similar manner, is Panvel.

“Paucity of land and rapid urbanisation in Mumbai, are resulting in a roll-on effect and directing investors to turn towards emerging areas, which could ‘peak’ in the coming years. As more locations continue to go out of the reach of a certain cross-segment of buyers, Panvel is emerging as a favourite for buyers. The government has already taken several initiatives, to build quality infrastructure in Navi Mumbai, especially in and around Panvel. This has helped developers to set up projects here,” says Navin Makhija, MD of the Wadhwa Group, which is bringing quality affordable homes to Panvel with an integrated township project, to be developed in multiple phases.

When it comes to the temple or prayer area in a home, there are several Vastu Shastra guidelines that should be followed, to ensure maximum positive effects for the home’s inhabitants. We examine the dos and don’ts

The temple at home, is a sacred place where we worship God. So, naturally, it must be a positive and peaceful place. The temple area, when placed according to Vastu Shastra, can bring health, prosperity and happiness to the house and its occupants. Although a separate puja room would be ideal, this is not always possible in metropolitan cities, where there is space crunch.

The temple area, should be a zone of tranquility that is full of divine energy, says Mumbai-based Nitien Parmar of VastuPlus. “This is a space where one surrenders to the Almighty and gains strength. If one does not have the space to allocate an entire room for the temple, one can set up a small altar on the east wall, towards the north-east zone of the house. Avoid placing the temple in the south, south-west or south-east zones of house,” adds Parmar.

More cities are looking to opt for online property registration. The latest attempt to consider the online route was in Noida.

“In an endeavour to make property registration and related services more transparent and efficient, the Noida Authority has decided to completely get rid of the manual process. Earlier, consumers had the option of taking the online route of property registration since November 2018, or take the offline route. But from 2019, all property registrations and transfers of properties can be done only online. All payments must also be done solely online,” said Anuj Puri, chairman, Anarock Property Consultants.

According to experts, online transaction indicates transparency.

“Undoubtedly, there will be greater transparency and efficiency, provided the website is up and running and the process is user-friendly,” said Puri.

However, the implementation is unlikely to happen anytime soon. According to Sunny Katyal, director, Investors Clinic, Noidabased property brokerage firm, like RERA and GST, in case of online property registration there is still no clarity.

“There is no formal communication yet from the authorities on how to implement it in terms of website or transaction process. I don’t think it is even practical to go the online way because the paper work is complicated for real estate. Also execution is difficult due to lack of communication,” said Katyal.

In fact, online registration has not been successful in other parts of the country. Tamil Nadu, for instance, implemented online registrations but there were several critical issues which ultimately forced buyers and sellers to visit the registrar office.

“Thus, for them the online route was far more inconvenient than the offline one. Having said this, any new major overhaul does have initial teething issues which ultimately get resolved over time. Moreover, this move will make it much more convenient for property consumers as they will have the convenience to finish this uphill task from home. Earlier, it was a tedious task which could take up a major chunk of a working day,” said Puri. Even for builders, it could bring in some respite as far as time and convenience is concerned.

“Also, the bribes often given to officials at the registrar office for easy commencing of the registration process can be done away with. To all these effects, this process will be far better and a smoother ride for property buyers and builders alike. While there are talks of this process spreading its wings in the entire country, it is still largely the prerogative of the respective states to implement it in letter and spirit,” said Puri.

A few states such as Tamil Nadu and Punjab have already started online registrations and if we go by the reports then online property registrations are seeing a major rise with time.

However, at the moment going fully online for property deeds is farfetched.

Satellite towns, which started emerging around 15 years ago, to ease the mounting pressure on major Indian cities, are fast turning into real estate hotspots. We list some of the major satellite cities in the country, which are worth investing in.

The most important aspect that encourages the development of satellite towns, is the presence of good connectivity. Once easy accessibility is in place, other things like infrastructure, amenities, residential areas, etc., tend to follow. During the growth phase of satellite towns, property rates are lower than the prime areas and when the satellite towns themselves become prime areas, the rates increase.

According to Sunil Aggarwal, associate dean and director, RICS School of Built Environment, “Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru have benefitted the most, from the emergence of satellite towns. However, there is a need to utilise the land within cities more effectively. There is a lot of good quality land within cities that is either unutilised or underutilised and this has to change.” Given below, are some of the prominent Indian satellite cities that property investors can consider.

A single GST rate of 12% would work if the centre and states share 1/6th of this with local bodies, leading to an urban revolution.

By all accounts, Indian economy today is on a growth turnpike, not very different from the growth miracles experienced by Asian tigers as well as China in earlier decades. India has consistently accelerated its growth rate over the last three decades. Our country has not looked back since 1991 and has, in fact, become one of the best growth performers in the world economy.

The deep determinants of this remarkable growth experience of ours have been institutions, demographic transition, modern technology and accumulation of both human and physical capital. In my view, the most important of these factors has been our democratic framework, a key foundational institution. Our democracy has proved to be sine qua non for effectively formulating key economic policies and conducting policy reforms in a country that is so diverse.

It is also of fundamental importance for maintaining social harmony. I cannot overemphasize the need for maintaining continuous vigilance to safeguard social harmony in our highly diverse society. In this endeavour, the “majoritarianism” will need to be eschewed. As the proverb goes “United we stand and divided we fall.”

In a country as beautifully diverse as ours, federalism as an organising principle is clearly the only way to succeed. In the analytical literature, “coming together” and “holding together” are the recognized forms of federalism. United States is the classic illustration of the first whereas the erstwhile Pakistan or Yugoslavia perhaps could be seen as illustrating the second.

The Delhi HC in December 2015, ruled that a daughter can be the Karta of a Hindu Undivided Family (HUF). We look at the implications of this ruling, on the property rights of daughters in paternal properties.

In December 2015, the Delhi High Court gave a decision, stating that a daughter can be the Karta of an HUF (Hindu Undivided Family). The root of this decision lies in the amendment passed to the Hindu Succession Act, 1956, in 2005. The Hindu Succession Act is applicable to Hindus, Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists. The amendment drastically changed the rights of daughters in the property of the parental HUF.

If you are able to identify good mutual funds yourself that consistently beat the benchmark by at least 3 to 4 percentage points, it is worth your time to search for and invest in these schemes.

What would your face look like if you realised that your retirement corpus will lose about a third of its value due to the costs you’ve paid your mutual fund? You’ve begun to invest in mutual funds and collectively are pouring more than ₹1 trillion a year into equity mutual funds through SIPs. A mixture of reasons including successful awareness campaigns, low returns on real estate, gold and fixed deposits, better access through fintech and a big regulatory push towards making mutual funds safer for you caused you to invest almost ₹8,000 crore a month in these funds.

Most of you hopefully understood the magic of compounding and are committed to staying the long haul with the investment, but what you need to know is that compounding can multiply returns as well as costs causing very different outcomes for your money. A quick update on the costs you pay in a mutual fund: you don’t pay any commission on sales to an agent and a ₹100 investment goes to work fully. Unlike a traditional insurance plan, for example, where ₹60-65 goes to work and the rest as commission to the agent, a mutual fund is allowed to put all its costs under one head called the expense ratio and the regulator puts a limit on how much a mutual fund can charge. These expense ratios, therefore, range from about 10 basis points (one-tenth of a percentage point) to about 2%. It matters very much if you are invested in a mutual fund that costs you 10 bps or 2%.

A 10 bps cost over a 10-year period will reduce your total corpus by less than a percentage point. Over a 20-year period, it will reduce your money by just over a percentage point. And over a 30-year period, it will cost you almost 2% overall—in other words a ₹10 crore retirement portfolio will be ₹9.8 crore. Run the same numbers using a 2% cost per year, and your money reduces by 9% over 10 years, 20% over 20 years and a huge 32% over 30 years—or the ₹10 crore corpus will be worth just ₹6.8 crore due to the higher cost.

We know that an exchange-traded fund or an index fund are cheaper mutual funds that mimic an index. Since there is no cost of stock analysis and trading, mutual funds are able to whittle costs down to a wafer thin 10 bps or even lower. But what you get is the index return—say the Sensex or the Nifty. Managed funds, or funds where the fund manager takes a call and picks stocks cost higher—around the 2% mark. But unless they are able to beat the benchmark and give you at least 2 percentage points over the index, they cost you more than they benefit you.

So should you rush into index funds or ETFs? No. Because compounding works both ways. If your fund is able to give 4 percentage points over what the index fund or ETF gives, then over a 30-year period you will have more than double the money you would have had in an index fund. Indian fund managers have done quite well in beating the indices over the past 20 years. However, the extra return that fund managers are able to get in large-cap funds is coming down, but is still quite good in other categories of funds. Don’t look at one-year returns, but at least five-year returns to see the extra return over the benchmark.

If you are able to identify good mutual funds yourself that consistently beat the benchmark by at least 3 to 4 percentage points, it is worth your time to search for and invest in these schemes. Or if you work with a planner, ask to see the returns over time and compare these to the benchmark. Ask to see the pre- and post-cost returns. If you cannot do any of these, then you are better off in an index fund or ETF that just mimics an index. You can build a portfolio that has several kinds of ETFs to give the benefit of diversification. At the minimum, you will have a broad market index-linked fund, a mid-cap and a small-cap-linked fund. Remember to give a larger allocation to the broad market index fund and use the mid- and small-caps as a returns kicker. And do look at the expense ratios carefully—they matter.

If you are already paying the EMI on an existing home loan and need more money, you can opt for a top-up loan. Here’s a look at the eligibility criteria, tenure and how you can take this loan

When a person buys any property, it generally involves taking a home loan and also exhausting a substantial amount of one’s savings, to fund the margin money. Moreover, home buyers also try to avail of the maximum possible loan amount, to get the best home. Sometimes, a situation may arise, where you need a substantial amount of money, while you are also servicing an existing home loan. There is an option called a ‘top-up home loan’, to deal with such situations.

To provide relief to the hassled home buyers residing in flats built by the embattled Amrapali Group, the Supreme Court has indicated that it may allow them to register their residences with the authorities concerned.

The Supreme Court, on January 16, 2019, observed that the flat buyers of Amrapali Group were not able to register their flats with the authorities concerned, as they did not have the completion certificate and if the need arises, it may invoke powers of extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 142 of the constitution, to direct for registration of the flats.

“Amrapali home buyers should not suffer due to want of completion certificate and ongoing litigation. We may direct the authorities to register their flats, on payment of proportional amount to the Noida and Greater Noida authorities. If the need arises, we may invoke Article 142 of the constitution, to issue directions,” a bench of justices Arun Mishra and UU Lalit told the counsels appearing for the home buyers and Amrapali.

It asked the parties to give their legal suggestions on the next date of hearing, so that directions could be passed to the authorities. Advocate ML Lahoty, appearing for the home buyers, said that it will be a big relief to the flat owners and they would submit the legal suggestion on next date of hearing.

IIFL AMC, which is targeting up to ₹1,100 crore corpus for its Category II AIF, is expecting another ₹50-100 crore from some institutional investors, says CEO Prashasta Seth.

Mumbai: IIFL Asset Management Co. Ltd (IIFL AMC) has raised Rs 950 crore for its IIFL India Private Equity Fund, a senior executive said.

Mint reported in May about the launch of the first private equity fund from IIFL, which manages several funds under its alternative assets platform.

The fund is a close-ended Sebi-registered Category II Alternative Investment Fund.

While the firm has closed active marketing of the fund, it is still in talks with a few institutional investors who are looking at investing in the fund, said Prashasta Seth, chief executive at IIFL AMC.

“We have done bulk of the fundraise that we wanted to do. From an active high networth individual’s marketing point of view, we have closed the fundraise. But we are keeping it open for a few institutional investors that are looking to come into the fund,” said Seth.

IIFL was targeting to raise around ₹1,000-1,100 crore for the fund, he said.

“We have raised ₹950 crore and we are expecting another ₹50-100 crore from some institutional investors,” he added.

The private equity fund focuses on backing professional entrepreneurs and has the ability to invest across multiple life stages of a business.

“We will back professional entrepreneurs from this fund. We can come in at multiple stages right from the inception stage to series A. We have the ability to commit multiple rounds that will help fund across the life cycle of the business which will enable entrepreneurs to focus on the business and not be worried about fund raise every 6-12 months,” said Seth.

The fund has already announced one investment so far.

It is investing around ₹100 crore in Tamil Nadu-based Kadaieshwar Homefin Pvt. Ltd, founded by C. Ilango, former managing director and chief executive of mortgage lender Can Fin Homes.

“We have a couple of more investments which are in different stages and will be done in the next two to three months,” said Seth.

IIFL plans to deploy the fund over the next three years and is looking to build a portfolio of around a dozen investments.

“We will make between 12-15 investments through the fund. We will invest between ₹50-100 crore in these companies. We expect to deploy the fund over the next three years,” said Seth.

The fund will focus on the financial, consumer, healthcare and technology sectors, he added.

IIFL’s alternative assets business is currently managing several funds across various asset classes.

IIFL has raised close to ₹4,700 crore since 2012 across various real estate funds under Sebi’s (Securities and Exchange Board of India) alternative investment fund regime.

With students enrolling for higher education in the country growing at a rate of nine per cent annually, we examine the potential of the student housing segment and whether it can emerge as a viable real estate asset class.

Mobility of students in India is increasing and it is common to see students moving to different cities, for higher education. However, there remains a dearth of good hostels and other amenities, to accommodate this floating population. Consequently, student housing, as a real estate asset class, is slowly gaining importance. “The paying guest (PG) market in India is unorganised, with barely any uniform standard in place. Students are searching for places to stay, without wanting to get into the hassle of renting a flat or an apartment. Hence, there is a high demand for co-living spaces and student housing, unlike before,” says Nikhil Sikri, co-founder and CEO of Zolo.

While student housing co-living spaces are already big segments in the real estate markets in the US and Europe, investors are

now looking at student housing as the next big trend in India.

“Some of the student-centric cities like Bengaluru, Pune and Chennai, cannot accommodate the rising student population. Moreover, students do not want to worry about food or housekeeping. They care about being economical and being a part of a friendly community. This makes co-living spaces or student accommodation the perfect choice, as it provides well-facilitated, serviced spaces, catering only to students and young professionals,” adds Sikri.

Buyers must read this document carefully as the terms and conditions mentioned will help to ensure that your rights are protected and you get what you have paid for.

The builder-buyer agreement is a very important legal document for home buyers. It is a contract which contains all the terms and conditions which have to be complied by both the buyer and the builder. While buying property, whether for personal use or as an investment, the builder-buyer agreement is important from the legal perspective as well. Buyers must read this document carefully as the terms and conditions mentioned will help to ensure that your rights are protected and you get what you have paid for. This agreement can empower you to stand up for your rights at any legal or non-legal forum.

To what extent are Vastu Shastra norms important, if all the other aspects of a property meet the home seeker’s requirements? We look at the Vastu principles and remedies, to help buyers arrive at a decision.

Consider this scenario: after a prolonged search, you get an unbelievable offer on a property. However, you find that the property does not conform to Vastu norms. Should you drop the offer? This is a dilemma that many home buyers face. While some home seekers may persist and purchase a flat despite Vastu faults, others may reject it outright. The question is, to what extent should one heed Vastu norms?

Vastu Shastra is a ‘science of architecture’ and its principles have been followed in India for centuries. It incorporates many Hindu beliefs and the designs are intended to integrate the functional aspects of structures and geometric patterns, with nature and forces like the sun and wind.

“Vastu holds an enormous importance in our culture. While we must check the basic Vastu compliance while buying a home/property, we must also understand that not all the principles of Vastu may be satisfied in any property. However, the science is such that there are modifications and solutions, available for most of the conceivable problems,” says Ricky Doshi, founder of ARD Studio.

Actress Jennifer Winget, who bought a weekend home in Goa, feels that it is the perfect place to relax and buying the home has been one of the best decisions of her life.

“For many years, I wanted to buy a home in Goa. Whenever I went there with my family or friends, I enjoyed my stay. I love the place for its natural beauty, its beaches and the food. Goa makes me feel relaxed. It is an ideal place for a weekend home,” says actress Jennifer Winget, who bought a home in Goa last year.

Winget was hunting for a home for two years and finally zeroed in on her house in Reis Magos, north Goa. Her house is barely 15 minutes away from the beach.

“When my agent showed me this new property, I liked it instantly. There was something positive about this place. It is a contemporary and charming house, with a blend of traditional elements and a small garden too. I called my parents and in just one week, the deal was done. It was one of the best decisions of my life. It is a dream come true,” says the actress, who is currently seen in the television show Beyadh and has also acted in Saraswati Chandra, Karthika, Kumum, Kasuti Zindagi Ki, Kya Hoga Nimmo Ka and also in the movie Phir Se.

The scheme may have a detrimental effect on real estate prices due to the blockage of input tax credit.

A ministerial panel headed by Gujarat deputy chief minister Nitin Patel will look into the possibility of rationalisation of GST rate for the real sector besides formulating a composition scheme — a preferential scheme under GST extended to consumer centric sectors or industries. The move follows the GST Council meeting on January 10 that referred matters pertaining to the sector to the Group of Ministers due to lack of consensus.

The GoM will now decide on the issue of reducing the current GST levied on real estate which is 12 percent to five percent.

Tax experts say that while composition schemes may look attractive, one needs to do a thorough analysis to weigh whether a reduced GST rate of 5 percent without input tax benefit is better than a standard rate of 12 percent with full input tax credit.

At present, GST is levied at an effective rate of 12 percent (standard rate of 18 percent less a deduction of six percent as land value) on premium housing and effective rate of eight percent (concessional rate of 12 percent less a deduction of four percent as land value) on affordable housing on payments made for under-construction property or ready-to-move-in flats where completion certificate has not been issued at the time of sale.

However, GST is not levied on buyers of real estate properties for which completion certificate has been issued at the time of sale.

“If the government reduces the eight percent GST rate on affordable housing to five percent without extending the benefit of input tax credit, sale prices may increase and real estate developers may pass on the burden/increase in price of apartments for most low and middle income projects. This may impact the government’s affordable housing scheme,” says Harpreet Singh, Partner, KPMG.

Builders are hoping that the government will allow input tax credit on under-construction residential properties even after reducing the GST rate to five percent.

Hyderabad has emerged as one of the best cities in India, in terms of quality of life. We look at what's on offer in the real estate market in this city and whether it makes sense for a home buyer to invest here.

Hyderabad has always been known as a price-conscious metropolitan city in India. Hyderabad has held the top spot, among all Indian metros, in Mercer’s Quality of Living survey, for four years in a row. The city has also scored well across other aspects, including a relatively low crime rate, good schools, good hospitals, low pollution levels and a flourishing job market. With the increase in the number of jobs being created, there is a corresponding increase in the demand for housing and infrastructure.

The market value of a property that has been encroached upon or is under litigation, may be significantly lower than its ready reckoner value. We examine the options for buyers and sellers, in terms of computing the capital gains on such properties.

Capital gains under the income tax laws, are computed by deducting the cost of acquisition of the property from sale consideration of the same. Depending on the holding period of the property, one is allowed to enhance the cost of acquisition, by using the cost inflation index notified by the government every year. The sale consideration, as mentioned in the agreement, may not always be considered for income tax purposes. The income tax laws have elaborate provisions to determine sale consideration with respect to land and buildings.

With the real estate sector facing the problem of high inventory, low liquidity and high input cost, we look at some of the top issues that one hopes the interim budget will address, for a revival of the sector.

The Indian economy is expected to remain one of the fastest growing economies in the world. This is possible, only if India’s realty sector performs well, as it contributes a significant portion to the GDP. Hence, there are hopes that the government will address several challenges faced by the sector, in the interim budget 2019. Some of these pertain to taxes, funding and liquidity, rental housing and project approvals. Experts also maintain that while the affordable housing segment has been granted infrastructure status, it would help if this was extended to other segments of residential housing, as well.

While Section 18 of RERA Act clearly states that a homebuyer can seek refund and ought to be compensated for ‘undue’ delays in a project, experts said a withdrawal by a handful should not jeopardise completion of an entire project

On January 9, MahaRERA set aside the plea of over 10 flat buyers who had wanted to exit from a project in Mumbai, stating that bulk withdrawal from the project may mean ‘jeopardising completion of the project’ and impact the remaining 500 home buyers.

The 13-odd buyers had booked units worth Rs 7.5 crore each in the 65-storey Island City Centre project in Dadar constructed Bombay Realty, an arm of The Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing Company, way back in 2012. They had alleged that the builder had made ‘false assurances regarding amenities and made changes to the carpet area and overall layout of the project’.

"Keeping in mind the larger interest of approximately 520 allottees of the said project, allowing bulk withdrawal from the MahaRERA registered project to so many complainants at this stage would mean jeopardising the project completion. Money for the refund will have to be taken out from the separate account, which is meant specially for the completion of the project and would eventually slow down the progress of the project work especially at a stage where the project is nearing completion with more than 800 of the super structure work completed," the order said.

In October last year, the Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (HRERA) had directed Supertech to refund the amount taken from the buyers of a housing project for cheating the buyers by accepting pre-launch booking before obtaining licences and not handing over the possession of the units on time.

The HRERA bench had ordered that the funds received by the respondent from the complainant by way of advance be refunded along with interest at the rate 10.45 percent per annum as 'he has cheated/defrauded the innocent buyers'.

Interestingly, Chairman of Gurugram Haryana Real Estate Regulatory Authority (HARERA) KK Khandelwal had also made it clear at a later date that in projects where construction is 40 percent complete, refund may not be allowed to ensure that the project is completed.

The purpose of RERA is to balance the interests and protect the rights of the key stakeholders: builders, buyers and agents. "But our first priority is to ensure that home buyers get possession of their homes."

While homebuyers are of the view that they are not responsible for pledging their money with the developer 'indefinitely' and that they have every right to seek a refund if the project has been ‘unreasonably’ delayed, builders are of the opinion that refund should not be ‘allowed’ to a few buyers, especially if construction is on, as that would harm the interests of other buyers and make the project ‘unviable’.

Problems between the co-owners of a property, such as the divorce of a couple, have several ramifications on the ownership of the property. We examine the implications on home loans, the division of the property and ways to resolve the issue amicably.

Buying a home involves several legal and financial obligations. To distribute the burden of buying a home, people often opt for joint ownership, with relatives, especially the spouse. “The general view, is that it is a good idea to buy a home in co-ownership. However, each person can enjoy the tax benefits, only if they have separate and genuine sources of income. Also, if any legal dispute arises over the property, then, all the co-owners will be involved in the case. So, home buyers should evaluate all such possibilities, before making a final decision,” cautions Jeevan Kumar KC, head – investment advisory services at Geojit Financial Services. For a house which is under joint ownership between a husband and wife, problems may arise if the couple opt for a divorce. In such situations, it becomes necessary to determine who will get what portion and how the loan responsibility will be distributed.

The Bombay HC has ordered a temporary stoppage of work on a casting yard being constructed for the Bandra-Versova Sea Link project, following a PIL that alleged that the construction was being done without requisite permissions.

The Bombay High Court, on January 25, 2019, restrained the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) from carrying out any work relating to a casting yard, being constructed for the Bandra-Versova Sea Link project in Mumbai, for two weeks. A casting yard is a confined place where concrete structures like segments, parapets, girders, beams and boundary wall panels, are manufactured.

A bench of chief justice Naresh Patil and justice NM Jamdar, gave the direction while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL). The plea claimed that the MSRDC was constructing the casting yard on the Juhu Koliwada beach and in the process, was illegally reclaiming a portion of the beach. The petitioner, activist Zoru Bhatena, told the court that the state-run corporation was carrying on the construction without requisite permissions.

His counsel, advocate Gayatri Singh, told the bench that in the process, the MSRDC was dumping mud on the beach, thus, not only reclaiming the area but also restricting the sea water supply to the mangroves in the area.

Around 7.9 hectares of the beach area was being affected due to the casting yard work, the petitioner said.

The MSRDC, however, denied the allegations and said it had all the requisite permissions for the work.

The bench, however, directed the authorities to stop all work for two weeks and directed the Santacruz police station to ensure the court’s order was not violated.

The Centre on Tuesday moved the Supreme Court seeking its permission to return the 67-acre acquired land around the disputed Ram Janambhoomi Babri Masjid site to original owners.

In a fresh plea, the Centre said it had acquired 67 acres of land around the 2.77 acre disputed Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid site.

The plea has said that the Ram Janambhoomi Nyas (a trust to promote construction of Ram Temple) had sought return of excess land acquired in 1991 to original owners.

Earlier, the apex court had ordered that the status quo be maintained with regard to the acquired 67 acre of land around the disputed site.

The central government in 1991 had acquired 67 acre land around the disputed site.

Fourteen appeals have been filed in the apex court against the 2010 Allahabad High Court judgement, delivered in four civil suits, that the 2.77-acre land be partitioned equally among three parties -- the Sunni Waqf Board, the Nirmohi Akhara and Ram Lalla.

The Supreme Court had on Sunday cancelled the hearing scheduled for Tuesday in the title dispute case due to non-availability of Justice S A Bobde, one of the five judges of the Constitution bench.

The Income-Tax Department has said that it has attached and confiscated properties worth more than Rs 6,900 crores so far, as part of its drive against benami properties.

The Income-Tax (I-T) Department has confiscated assets worth Rs 6,900 crores till now, as part of its action under the anti-benami transactions law, the agency said in a public advertisement on January 29, 2019. The message issued in leading dailies, said people who ‘abet and induce’ benami transactions, benamidar (in whose name the benami property is standing) and beneficiaries (who pay money consideration) are prosecutable and may face rigorous imprisonment of up to seven years, besides being liable to pay fine of up to 25 per cent of the fair market value of benami property.

“The Income-Tax Department has already attached and confiscated benami properties worth more than Rs 6,900 crores,” the message said. The message added that people who furnish false information to authorities under the law (Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 2016) are prosecutable and may be imprisoned up to five years, besides being liable to pay fine up to 10 per cent of the fair market value of the benami property.

“We urge every conscientious citizen to help the government in eradicating it,” the message added. “Do not enter into benami transactions. It’s illegal and punishable,” the message said and added that action under the new law will be in addition to the I-T Act, 1961.

According to estimates, the Amrapali group, which alone has to deliver 43,000 apartments, has vacant land and available floor space index for construction of about 10,000 new houses.

NEW DELHI: The Centre and the Uttar Pradesh government are looking to tap the unutilised land available with developers of delayed projects in Noida and Greater Noida, as well as setting up a dedicated fund to release stress and speed up delivery of nearly three lakh apartments.

The issue of setting up a stress fund for the sector was discussed at a meeting between Piyush Goyal, who is officiating as finance minister, and public sector banks on Monday where housing secretary D S Mishra was also present, sources told TOI. Though the corpus of the stress fund is yet to be worked out, the seed capital could be anywhere between Rs 1,000 crore and Rs 2,000 crore. The housing ministry, NBCC and banks have been asked to work out a plan that can be implemented quickly.

The other option is to use undeveloped land parcels with developers by transferring them to agencies such as NBCC, the construction PSU, which can leverage them to raise resources or develop them and finance the construction of flats, some of which were booked a decade ago.

The real estate industry has been through several transformations, over the past few decades. We look at how home automation could well usher in the next transformation and how it will impact home buyers and developers.

A few decades ago, a home seeker would have been content with any home that was available within his/her budget. It is also likely that this home seeker would have worked for years, to accumulate the funds for the house. Home buying then, was a luxury that very few could afford. The availability of home loans and defined EMIs, in the 1980s, augmented the growth of real estate in the country, especially in the metropolitan and tier-1 cities, as it brought home ownership within the reach of most tax-payers.

With increasing consumer demand and growth in the real estate sector, developers began experimenting, by offering value-added lifestyle amenities like swimming pools, club houses, gymnasiums, imported fittings, Italian marble floorings, video door phones and concierge services, to create stronger demand for their products. With time, such amenities soon became a standard part of their offerings and consumers expected these, as a part of their lifestyle quotient.

With the real estate sector facing the problem of high inventory, low liquidity and high input cost, we look at some of the top issues that one hopes the interim budget will address, for a revival of the sector.

The Indian economy is expected to remain one of the fastest growing economies in the world. This is possible, only if India’s realty sector performs well, as it contributes a significant portion to the GDP. Hence, there are hopes that the government will address several challenges faced by the sector, in the interim budget 2019. Some of these pertain to taxes, funding and liquidity, rental housing and project approvals. Experts also maintain that while the affordable housing segment has been granted infrastructure status, it would help if this was extended to other segments of residential housing, as well.

According to Niranjan Hiranandani, co-founder and MD of the Hiranandani Group, the government should focus on the following concerns, in the interim budget 2019:

1. “Incentives for rental housing, to meet the acute shortage.

2. A clear policy roadmap for the creation of rental housing stock and exemption from the burden of tax on notional rental income.

3. Rationalisation of GST in case of under-construction properties – the GST should be pegged at either eight per cent with an input tax credit or five per cent without the input tax credit.

4. Focus on financial re-engineering concepts, to overcome the NBFC crisis and the challenge caused by the IL&FS default.

5. Incentives for new asset classes in real estate, like affordable housing, warehousing and logistics, co-working spaces, co-living spaces and light industrial spaces.”

We look at the advantages of the design and build model of executing projects and whether it is likely to become a preferred route for corporates, for their office fit-outs.

‘Design and build’ is a globally popular corporate fit-out delivery method, where both, the design and execution, are entrusted to one single agency. The model has been in existence, as a preferred procurement route for projects of various sizes, in the western and middle-east countries for quite some time. In India, this model has taken time to become a preferred mode of delivering corporate fit-outs. As per an industry research, globally, 85 per cent of interior fit-out projects, with a value of less than USD 57,00,000 are procured through the design and build model.

What is a REIT (Real Estate Investment Trusts) and how to invest in one

Real estate investment trusts are intended to enable more people to invest in the Indian property market and boost funding in the sector. How does it work and why haven’t more people flocked to this investment avenue? We examine.

The Indian real estate sector has been lucrative for savvy investors over the last decade, but it has not been without accompanying uncertainties. The introduction of real estate investment trusts (REITs), will provide a platform that will allow all kinds of investors (even those with smaller budgets) to make safe and rewarding investments in the Indian property market.

With REITs, investors can start with as small a sum as Rs 2 lakhs, to secure units in exchange.

The REIT platform has already been approved by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and like mutual funds, it will pool the money from all investors across the country. The money collected from the REIT funds, will subsequently be invested in commercial properties to generate income.

A REIT will need to be registered via an initial public offering (IPO). REIT units will have to be listed with exchanges and consequently, traded as securities.

The interim budget 2019 has offered some unexpected benefits for owners of property. We look at the three main announcements that are likely to bring tax relief to home owners.

1. Exemption of notional rent on second self-occupied property:

Tax payers who own and occupy more than one house have to pay tax on notional rent, which the property might fetch. This used to put many tax payers under undue monetary pressure as these tax payers may have a second house in a native place or one that is used by their parents for which no rent is received. Until now, they had to pay notional rent on the second property, as one can claim only one owned house as self-occupied. Now, tax payers will be able to claim two owned houses as self-occupied, without having to pay any tax on such notional rent, provided the same is/are not let-out.

2. Exemption on long-term capital gains when the same is invested in two houses:

Presently, you can claim the tax benefits with respect to long-term capital gains on the sale of residential house, if the indexed long-term capital gains are invested for buying or constructing another one residential house, within the period specified. The interim budget 2019 proposes to expand this benefit to buying or constructing two residential houses, for the purpose of claiming the exemption under Section 54, provided the amount of capital gains does not exceed Rs two crores. Once a tax payer claims the exemption for buying or constructing two house, he cannot claim the exemption for the same year or the subsequent years.

3. Increase in TDS limit for rental income:

The third benefit for property owners is by way of increased limit for rent on which the lessee will deduct tax, before paying the rent to the landlord. Against the present limit of Rs 1.80 lakhs, the lessee will now have to deduct TDS, if the annual rent exceeds Rs 2.40 lakhs. The tax is required to be deducted, if the lessee is other than an individual or an HUF. An individual or an HUF lessee will deduct tax while paying you rent, if and only if he is engaged in business or profession and their books of accounts were subjected to tax audits in the previous year.

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had sent them several reminder notices and disconnected services for not paying the tax.

MUMBAI: Property tax defaulters in the city will now not be able to sell, transfer or take a loan against the property. Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had sent them several reminder notices and disconnected services for not paying the tax.

Earlier this week, its assessment and collection department created a charge on property tax cards of defaulting premises. Civic officials said the first charge on property card of a defaulter for a vacant plot in Deonar.

Officials said they approached the district superintendent of land records and a request was made to the city survey officer of Ghatkopar division, as Deonar falls under it. With this, any financial transaction, such as purchase, sale, transfer and borrowing against property will be unlawful. “Deonar Industrial Premises Co-Op Society owes the civic body Rs 2.18 crore as property taxes. Despite repeated notices, they failed to make the payment, so the assessment and collection department of M/East ward executed the warrant of attachment and sought to create a charge on the property card,” said assistant municipal commissioner (assessment and collection department) Devidas Kshirsagar.

Civic officials said they had to take this step as the total outstanding is Rs 13,000 crore. Kshirsagar said out of this, Rs 3,500 is recoverable, which means it is not stuck in any legal dispute.

“The remaining Rs 9,500 crore will be a challenge for us to recover. Similar action is proposed against other defaulters,” he said.

BMC’s property tax collection till January-end for the existing financial year has picked up. Officials said that till January 31, 2019, the property tax collected has been Rs 3,495 crore, while last year, in the same period, the amount was Rs 3,457 crore.

BMC had set a target of Rs 5,400 crore for collection of property tax for the year. Officials said extra efforts would be needed to meet the target.

While the government has brought in laws such as RERA, over 80 percent of consumers are of the view that there has not been much change in the property buying experience.

The Indian real estate sector is expected to contribute 13 percent to the country's gross domestic product (GDP) by 2025, according to the 'Indian Real Estate and Construction: Consolidating for growth' report by National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) and Asia Pacific Real Estate Association (APREA).

In 2017, the realty sector contributed about 6-7 percent to India's GDP. The sector is expected to touch $1 trillion by 2030, becoming the third largest globally.

Apart from its contribution to India's GDP, the growth of this sector holds significance as it is the third largest employer, after agriculture and manufacturing, in the country and presently employs over 50 million people.

When it comes to investing in a property, most buyers think of putting their money in an apartment. We look at whether it may be financially more prudent to invest in a plot, rather than an apartment.

Purchasing a house is an important financial decision, particularly for first-time buyers. Home buyers have to be careful as they invest their hard-earned money for a secure future. Nevertheless, a good investment can earn handsome returns. As explained in the words of Russell Sage, “Real estate is an imperishable asset, ever increasing in value. It is the most solid security that human ingenuity has devised. It is the basis of all security and about the only indestructible security.”

One has to bear in mind that any erroneous or hasty decision while making a big-ticket purchase, for example, during the course of purchasing a property, might yield results that one could regret. Moreover, investors may also be faced with the dilemma of having to decide whether one wants to invest in a plot of land or opt for an apartment, to reap better returns on investment.

Buying an apartment is not the same as purchasing a plot of land. Although both the asset classes are highly lucrative in nature, there are several pros and cons dividing the two types of purchase. Here are some key merits of investing in a plot of land, which could help a buyer to arrive at a final decision.

The developers are facing problem as they cannot market their project without procuring a RERA registration number as per the law.

JAIPUR: The state government is continuing to sit on the proposal of constituting authority and appellate tribunal of the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA), Rajasthan much to the chagrin of home buyers and developers.

Almost one year and 10 months after the RERA was enacted, home buyers and builders still do not have a clear road map.

The RERA was introduced with an aim to bring more transparency in the existing system and protect the interests of home buyers. However, in absence of half-hearted attempt of the state government to implement the law, both developers and buyers are facing inconvenience.

Government of India had enacted the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act 2016 and all the provisions of the Act came into force on May 1, 2017 in Rajasthan. However, as the state government failed to constitute full-fledged committee over 650 complaints related to issues over flats and housing schemes in Rajasthan are waiting to be heard.

A senior official at RERA said, “Since May, no case was heard at RERA. Rajasthan government had earlier appointed additional chief secretary (ACS) of urban development and housing (UDH) department as the head the RERA. But as per the act, it is mandatory that after one year complaints can only be heard after constituting full-fledged authority and appellate tribunal,” he said.

It was informed, that court on December 18 has directed to constitute RERA authority in two months and tribunal in three months. The deadline is approaching nearer, however, constitution of authority is no where in sight.

With this , the developers too are facing problem as they cannot market their project without procuring a RERA registration number as per the law.

Gopal Das Gupta, chairman, CREDAI, Rajasthan, said, “The developers cannot give advertisement to sell their project without registering with RERA. We have appeased the minister about the issue and submitted the memorandum. To provide relief to the developers process should be started soon,” he said. As per the mandatory provision, the developers have to register themselves on RERA website.

Once details of all the ongoing projects are uploaded on the website, the aggrieved consumers can register their complaints at RERA office. However, in absence of appellate tribunal that was proposed adjudicate disputes, consumers continue to wait for relief.

For any architectural structure to be sustainable, it should take into consideration its surroundings, the people it caters to as well as its purpose, explains architect Yatin Pandya, founder of Footprints E.A.R.T.H.

Architect Yatin Pandya, the founder of Footprints E.A.R.T.H. (Environment Architecture Research Technology Housing), is a multi-faceted personality. The author, activist, academician and researcher, has to his credit urban design, mass housing, architecture, interior design and conservation projects. Pandya, who holds a masters in architecture from McGill University at Montreal, Canada, worked with the Vastu Shilp Foundation for Studies and Research in Environmental Design as an associate director, before starting Footprints E.A.R.T.H. in 2008. “Today, we are a team of about 18 colleagues pursuing, research, practice and publications. Environmental sustainability, socio-cultural appropriateness, timeless aesthetics and economic affordability, are the key principles of our work,” says Pandya.

How will the linking of Aadhaar with immovable properties impact the property market?

What will happen if the government mandates the linking of Aadhaar numbers with immovable properties? We examine how it will affect property owners and whether it will clean up benami transactions.

Whether it is your bank account, life insurance policy, mutual fund investment, demat account, or mobile connection, linking them with one’s Aadhaar number, is becoming all pervasive. The government, in a bid to deal with the menace of corruption and black money, has hinted that it may consider linking immovable properties with Aadhaar numbers, as well. If such a move is implemented, it will have widespread ramifications and make the implementation of the benami transaction law easier. The Benami Transaction Act was notified in November 2016, at almost the same time as the announcement of the demonetisation drive. This law is administered by the Income Tax Department. After the benami law came into force, the I-T Department has attached around 475 properties worth Rs 1,600 crores, till date.

The benami transactions law has wider ramifications for real estate investments, than other investments. The requirement to link your Aadhaar number with your immovable property, may cover the transactions of registrations that are undertaken after the law comes into force. It may also require the furnishing of the Aadhaar number, for immovable properties already owned by you.

In fact, Maharashtra has announced that homebuyers who would use their Aadhaar Card for property registration would not have to produce two witnesses to carry out the transaction. Those who appear at the sub-registrar’s office without the Aadhaar Card would, however, have to come along with two witnesses.

NEW DELHI: Housing demand and supply were higher in Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad as compared to sales and new launches in the north and west regions, property consultant Anarock said.

According to a report, housing sales in the main southern cities collectively rose by 20 per cent as against 18 per cent rise in the north and 15 per cent in the west.

New housing launches increased by 77 per cent in 2018 to 67,850 units over the previous year. National Capital Region (NCR) saw an increase of just 16 per cent in new supply while the main west Indian cities of Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune, together, saw a mere 17 per cent jump in new residential supply.

Anarock also found out that the collective unsold stock in these southern cities is a mere 19 per cent of the total 6.73 lakh unsold units across the top seven cities. NCR alone has nearly 28 per cent of the total unsold stock.

“This clearly indicates that the housing markets in the southern cities are exceptionally resilient, and were quick to recover from the overall slowdown in the Indian real estate sector,” said Santhosh Kumar, Vice Chairman of Anarock Property Consultants.

The housing market in southern cities are driven by end-user demand, particularly from people working in IT/ITeS sector, while the NCR market is backed by investors, he said.

During all the ups and downs that the Indian real estate market has witnessed in recent years, the southern cities have displayed remarkable strength and resilience even in the worst phases.

“Year 2018 was a mixed bag of highs and lows for the Indian real estate sector. The initial pangs of policy alterations seemed to fade away with each region seeing visible signs of recovery across segments,” Kumar said.

Not only housing, Anarock said the retail and office segments of the real estate sector also increased activities in southern cities.

As per company data, the main southern cities saw collective office space absorption of nearly 21 million sq ft as against just 6 million sq ft in entire NCR.

“All in all, the southern cities had a very clear edge across sectors in real estate activity in 2018. Their inherent advantage stems from the more professional and organised approach to real estate - not just post RERA (new realty law) implementation but also in the pre-RERA years,” Kumar concluded.

Real estate, gold, bullion, bonds and shares are few examples of capital assets. Any gains that you make from the transfer of these capital assets are known as capital gains and attract income tax.

The tax liability depends on the assets and the period for which that asset was held by the seller.

For instance, in case of real estate, if it was held for less than two years, then gains (sale minus purchase price) from the transfer will be considered short-term capital gains (STCG). It gets added to the seller’s other incomes and is taxed at the applicable slab rate.

If the property was held for more than two years, then the gains are considered long-term capital gains (LTCG) and taxed at 20% with indexation.

Similarly, in case of equity shares, if shares are held for less than a year, gains would be considered as STCGs and in case they were held for more than one year, gains are considered as LTCG.

STCGs on shares where security transaction tax (STT) is paid are taxed at the rate of 15% plus cess.

On the other hand, LTCGs of up to ₹1 lakh in a year from shares or equity investments is exempt from income tax, whereas any gains above ₹1 lakh in a year is taxed at the rate of 10%.

Taking strong exception to two prime properties of the embattled Amrapali Group finding no bidders, the Supreme Court has said that it looked like ‘cartelisation is at work’ and sought to know whether banks were a part of the cartels.

The Supreme Court, on February 11, 2019 said that it was ‘shocking and disturbing’ that bankers were not coming forward to finance two prime properties of the embattled Amrapali Group, which remained unsold at an auction. A bench of justices Arun Mishra and UU Lalit said that it was earlier worried over undervaluation of the properties but strangely in the auction held on January 31, 2019, no bidders came to buy the prime properties. “It seems there is a systematic effort that properties go unsold, as no bids have come forward in the auction. Involvement of unforeseen hands cannot be ruled out. Prime facie, it appears that cartelisation is at work. Are the banks part of the cartel?” the bench said.

The top court said that banks are ready to finance projects for National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) but they are not coming forward to finance the Amrapali properties, being sold by the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) in an auction. A five-star hotel ‘Amrapali Holiday Inn Tech Park’ constructed in Greater Noida and prime land in Vrindavan in Uttar Pradesh, were put up for auction on January 31, 2019, by the DRT but no bidder had come forward to bid.

The court allowed the NBCC to issue advertisement for the unsold flats of two Amrapali Projects – Eden Park and Castle – being constructed by it, so that funds could be raised. It said that interests of the home buyers is at the receiving end, as they are the ultimate sufferers. “There were newspaper reports recently that banks are ready to finance the projects constructed by NBCC but they are not ready to finance the bidders, who wanted to buy the Amrapali properties,” the top court said after being told no interested party came forward to purchase the properties worth hundreds of crores, as banks were not willing to finance them. The bench said that it cannot leave the situation like this and if necessary, it can pass necessary orders.

The court-appointed forensic auditor Pawan Kumar Aggarwal told the bench that he had identified 5,229 unsold flats from where around Rs 6,000 crores could be raised, by selling them. Aggarwal told the court that the Amrapali Group’s liability towards Greater Noida Authority was Rs 3,200 crores, around Rs 1,900 crores towards the Noida Authority and around Rs 2,000 crores towards banks. The bench asked the counsel for the Amrapali Group as to how they were planning to settle the liabilities, as unless they cleared the outstanding, nobody would be coming forward to put their money in the projects. “Home buyers’ interest is supreme. You (Amrapali) also have outstanding towards the home buyers, which you will have to pay. You have taken everything from them,” it said.

The forensic auditors also pointed out that multi-national firm JP Morgan Real Estate fund, which had invested Rs 85 crores in Amrapali Zodiac in 2010 by purchasing its shares and later selling them to the sister companies of the realty firm, had violated several then existing norms. Aggarwal pointed out that the shares purchased and agreement of JP Morgan Real Estate fund and Amrapali Group, were in violation of the provisions of law, as out of Rs 85 crores money received for the Zodiac project, Rs 60 crores was transferred to other projects.

“The shares purchased by JP Morgan were later purchased for Rs 140 crore by Amrapali’s two sister companies – Neelkanth and Rudraksh – which were floated by a peon and one office boy, who were working in the office of the statutory auditor of the Group,” he said.

The bench asked the forensic auditors who was the actual beneficiary in the transaction, as prima facie it did not appear to be a bona fide transaction. The auditors replied that they have written to the JP Morgan but they have not yet shared the name of actual beneficiary. The counsel for JP Morgan said that they could submit the name of the actual financier, who had invested in the Amrapali Group to the court but could not share it with other parties, as it was prohibited under the US laws. The bench listing the matter for further hearing to February 14, 2019.

In a major boost for the National Clean Air Programme, the government has announced that it will collaborate with The Energy and Resources Institute and Bloomberg Philanthropies, which will offer technical assistance on air quality issues.

The Environment Ministry, on February 12, 2019, found supporters in international organisation Bloomberg Philanthropies and Delhi-based think-tank The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), on resolving air quality issues under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). An initiative launched at the World Sustainable Development Summit (WSDS), organised by TERI, would help mitigate air pollution – both at the national level and in a group of Indian cities – a press note issued by TERI said.

The government has collaborated with the TERI, Bloomberg Philanthropies and Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, aiming to bring together research and civil society organisations, to offer technical assistance on air quality issues in support of the NCAP. “The joint project will help address and mitigate air pollution, both, at the national level and in a group of Indian cities, by working to develop better understanding and awareness of the sources of air pollution, through emissions inventories and source apportionment studies,” the statement said. It added that the initiative would formulate policy recommendations and action plans, to address air pollution on the basis of data, evidence and consultations and increase capacities of key stakeholders to address the challenge through exchange of experiences and good practices.

Speaking at the event, CK Mishra, secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, said, “We are delighted to be working with Bloomberg Philanthropies, TERI and other partners, on the National Clean Air Programme. Air pollution is a difficult and multi-dimensional challenge and we need to work together across the government, multiple stakeholders and citizens to address this.” Michael R Bloomberg, UN special envoy for climate action and founder of the Bloomberg Philanthropies, said, “Air pollution is one of the biggest global problems of our times. India has the unique opportunity to leapfrog and follow a sustainable development pathway, demonstrating solutions to the air pollution challenge that can have relevance all over the world.”

The initiative will work in tandem with the NCAP that was launched in January 2019, with the goal of reducing particulate matters by 20-30 per cent by 2024 from 2017. Lauding the initiative, TERI director-general Ajay Mathur said, “Region-specific actions are needed and this initiative brings together the interested groups to accelerate these actions.” Bloomberg Philanthropies works in 480 cities in more than 120 countries around the world, in areas including arts, education, environment and public health, the press note said.

On the very same day Amazon concluded its long, highly publicized search for a second headquarters, placing part of it in Long Island City, Goldman Sachs quietly finalized a deal to provide $83 million for a massive new apartment complex less than a mile away.

The district administration has allotted Rs 4.70 crore for reconstructing 485 houses. In the first installment, each house owner would be getting Rs 95,100.

14,453 plots having sizes of 200 sqm, 300 sqm and 1,000 sqm were cleared for allotment under the Residential Plot Scheme 1 in 2009 in YEIDA sectors 18 and 20.

Asset Homes MD, V Sunil Kumar said that the scheme offers an opportunity to exchange current apartment, house or land for a new premium flat or villa of Asset Homes.

The central government last week took a decision to delegate powers to local bodies to ensure compliance of environmental conditions for projects between 20,000 and 50,000 square metres.

Cracking whip on the embattled Amrapali Group, the Supreme Court warned the developer to reveal, by December 3, details of all its properties in the name of directors, their family members, relatives, chief financial officers and statutory auditors. The top court made it clear that Amrapali Group is required to disclose "in clear terms" every activity involving transfer of money since 2008. It asked the Amrapali Group and its officials to comply with all its directions. The case relates to non-delivery of flats to around 42,000 homebuyers.

The central government last week took a decision to delegate powers to local bodies to ensure compliance of environmental conditions for projects between 20,000 and 50,000 square metres.

In 2000, Singapore-based scientific researcher Lata Raman, invested in a 1300sq.ft. apartment in Chennai for her parents. Settled abroad for the last two decades, she narrowed down on the apartment for the primary reason that she had other relatives who had purchased apartments in the same complex and it was a safer bet for her ageing parents. “As a Non-Resident India (NRI) I did not have any trouble making the purchase back then, but that was because I had the help of my relatives. But today, I would not want to invest in India again since the rules can be quite confusing," says Raman.