Mumbai Grahak Panchyat (MGP), the consumer rights group, has raised 52 objections to draft rules framed by Maharashtra government under central government’s Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act and criticised them as anti-consumers and builder friendly. Though the Act is passed by the Parliament, the Act allows states to frame ... Read More »
All one needed to be in the real estate sector was political connect and muscle power. Money and skill sets were least of the concerns for an entrepreneur. Skill sets were available off the shelf or as in most cases outsourced to a developer who would design and erect the ... Read More »
Year 2016 was a mixed year for developers and discerning buyers, though the announcement of the Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA) brought a huge cheer to the industry in 2017. It has been a year for the end-users, while investors have largely kept away from the market. A lot of ... Read More »
The government’s decision to withdraw notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 was intended to attack the black economy. A natural corollary to this was a likely hit to the real sector, which, for long, has been considered a refuge for unaccounted money. The trends so far suggest some immediate ... Read More »
If the U.S. economy is to hit escape velocity in 2017, you can expect the real estate sector to serve as its rocket fuel. At its most broadly defined, housing can be counted on to compose 15% of GDP. It hasn’t done that much heavy lifting lately, however. That’s because ... Read More »
The year 2016 began with mixed reactions from the realty sector towards the Real Estate Regulation and Development Act (RERA) followed by the Goods and Service Tax (GST) Bill seeing light of the day. GST aims at elimination of dual taxations and at creating a hassle-free home buying experience. The ... Read More »
The year 2016 was significant for the real estate sector due to the number of reforms that were initiated in the period. These include the Goods & Services Tax (GST), clearance for Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), relaxation of foreign investment norms and the implementation of the Real Estate (Regulation ... Read More »
When it was announced, demonetisation was expected to boost government revenues through better disclosure of income by individuals and businesses. That, in turn, was expected to increase government and lead to creation of more jobs. But six weeks into the demonetization drive, the calculations appear to have gone awry. There ... Read More »
In theory, the lack of physical cash — the erosion of cash-linked sales — should hurt real estate prices, creating a negative wealth effect that hurts consumption. The nuances of dynamic: a) almost every developer, mortgage broker and equity/debt investor we spoke to expects weakness. This consensus could in itself ... Read More »
With stress on liquidity and no cash to pay for basic utilities, the initial effect of demonetisation drive has been a knee-jerk reaction to a wait-and-watch policy mode. More than a month has passed for the demonetisation exercise, and yet, it’s ongoing process continues to disorient the society which has ... Read More »
For many buyers, the joy of receiving possession of their homes is fast turning to dismay as they cannot rustle up the finances for relocation – that too in cash. Builders too are citing demonetisation and the subsequent labour crunch as reasons for delay in projects getting completed on time. ... Read More »
Buildings and real estate projects, between 20,000 and 300,000 sq. metres, will no longer need to be assessed for their environmental impact, by the Centre. From now on, States can integrate the clearance process of such projects into their building by-laws to streamline environmental clearance to a significant chunk of ... Read More »
