NRIs prefer farmhouses. Penthouses, villas and farmhouses —
is now the hottest item in the real estate business

  • Expected growth pegged at more than 30 per cent.
  • High-salaried professionals are going in for home loans over Rs 1 crore.

NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 12, 2004
BONITA BARUAH
TNN

Buying a house? Don’t settle for that cramped three-bedroom flat, go instead for a penthouse or farmhouse in the suburbs — complete with landscaped lawns, tennis court, swimming pool and gymnasium. At least that’s what upwardly-mobile Delhiites are doing.


High-end housing — penthouses, independent villas and farmhouses — is now the hottest item in the real estate business, with expected growth pegged at more than 30 per cent.

And it’s not just NRIs and businessmen driving the market; professionals are going in for home loans over Rs 1 crore.

"Farmhouses in Mehrauli, Chattarpur, Vasant Kunj and Bijwasan are in demand. In the last two years, there’s been a shift in demand for them," says Sanjay Verma of Cushman & Wakefield.

While NRIs prefer farmhouses, others are focusing on prime apartments and penthouses, he says.

While in 2003-04, it was the NRI who made a big splash in the market, investment today is more widespread. High-salaried individuals and the self-employed account for a bulk of disbursals over Rs 1 crore, say financing companies and this has been growing steadily.

In 2000, the number of outstanding home loans by commercial banks exceeding Rs one crore was 279; in 2001, it was 109, in 2002, 124 and in 2003, it had shot up to 1,690.

Also, the average value of disbursements is also rising — by 10-15 per cent across the industry.

The average value of housing loans disbursed by HDFC was Rs 3.3 lakh in 2002; it increased to Rs 4.5 lakh in 2004. ICICI Bank disbursed loans from Rs 4.5 lakh to Rs 6.5 lakh.

Developers are scrambling to cash in and are vying with each other to build plush villas and housing complexes. Omaxe Construction is setting up an exclusive NRI City at Noida near Delhi.

The company has also launched a $24.2 million project for high-networth Indians, both resident and non-resident. Named ‘The Forest’ and adjoining a 132-hectare green belt, the project has 105 ultra-luxury apartments priced between Rs 1.4-2.8 crore, complete with personal health club, high-tech security and glitzy glass and metal facades.

High-end living for the rich and not-so-famous

•Luxurious penthouses and farmhouses in the suburbs are the in-thing for upwardly-mobile Delhiites.

• Expected growth is pegged at over 30%.

•High-salaried professionals are going in for home loans over Rs 1 crore.