Top reasons to invest in properties in Pallavaram

Investing in the real estate market in Chennai has always been a safe bet. The realty sector here remains fairly untouched by speculation which is very rife in the northern markets of the Delhi National Capital Region or even Mumbai. The real estate slowdown which plagued the entire country did not give the city a skip though the market here was shielded to a certain extent from its impact. 
The areas of growth are located in the northern part of the city and along the Grand Southern Trunk Road. With the saturation of the markets in the southern and central parts of the city the focus is moving towards other parts of Chennai. 

The markets along the GST Road have been making real estate waves for some time now. The GST Road is an arterial road which is well connected to most parts of Chennai. The area has emerged as the manufacturing hub of the city and has a fair smattering of Special Economic Zones as well. Some of the markets which fall along this stretch are: Guindy, Alandur, Meenambakkam, Tirusulam, Pallavaram, Chromepet, Tambaram, Perungalathur, Vandalur, Urapakkam, Guduvancheri, Potheri and Kattangulathur. Areas such as Vandalur, Guduvancheri and Kattangulathur are quickly catching the fancy of buyers. 

Some of the more established markets in this stretch are Tambaram, Guindy, Chromepet and Pallavaram. Pallavaram is located at about 17 km from city and is a part of the Kanchipuram district. The area has been in existence for Paleolithic Age and is a place of historically significance. 

In modern times, the real estate of this micro market has been in demand. The going rate presently for apartments for sale in Pallavaram has been averaging at INR 4900 per square feet. This price bracket puts properties located in this micro market in the affordable range. The asking price for apartments for sale in Pallavaram shot up to INR 7000 per square feet on average in the third quarter of 2013. But since then the prices have fallen and have been ranging between INR 4500 and 4900 per square feet on average in the following quarters. 

The area is not only well connected to the micro markets along the GST Road, it is also well connected to the micro markets along the Old Mahabalipuram Road. This fact has contributed to the rise of real estate demand in this area as the OMR belt houses some of the most important Information Technology and Information Technology Enabled Services companies. This is one of the reasons why properties such as plots for sale in Pallavaram are popular among property seekers. 

There is maximum demand for small sized 2 BHK flats in this area. The budget range which most buyers seem to want to spend here falls between INR 30 to 40 lakhs. There is some presence of social infrastructure here. The area though not without its fair share of problems is predicted to do well once some infrastructural changes which are planned here taken shape. Hence investing in properties such as flats and apartments for sale in chennai might just fetch higher returns in the future.


Sulabha is a real estate expert and consultant from NCR. She deals with analyzing trends in the market of residential apartments in noida and commercial properties in Greater Noida

Affordable housing projects become the popular investment choice in Chennai

Chennai has somehow turned out to be a pricey real estate market over the years. Luxury segment and mid segment home are mostly out of reach by many. The market for luxury and mid segment apartments in Chennai has been very slow. And sky high pricing has created a gap between the demand and supply here. Buying an independent house in Chennai is definitely out of bounds for many, and a very restrictive percentage of the population can invest in residential properties of this kind. Things seem very slow in these two sectors, but Chennaiites have more to look forward to. Affordable housing sector might just be the next big thing that would revive the real estate market in the city.

Suburban Chennai is what will see the most real estate activity in the next few years. Builders have already started looking for large parcels of land in the outskirts to build affordable housing projects in the city’s suburbs. There has been an increasing demand for smaller housing units of under INR 20 lakh. However builders over the years have failed to cater to the needs to this demand generated. High cost of construction and even higher land prices in the city has compelled the builders to charge much higher for apartments in Chennai suburbs in comparison to its counterpart like Bangalore or Hyderabad.

The concept of affordable housing across the country is flawed in many ways. For example, affordable price band in different cities mean different things. This is because housing is affected my several factors like land prices, cost of construction etc. Land prices in different cities vary to a large extend. Affordable or low cost homes in Mumbai and its suburbs will be nothing less than INR 40 lakhs. Similarly, you can buy low cost homes in cities like Hyderabad for as less as INR 25 to 35 lakhs. This creates a lot of disparity and takers of these projects suffer on the financial end of it. In Chennai the concept is catching up and we are yet to see where it goes. This segment has been much ignored by builders is now all set to see a revival. “Identifying developable land at the right price in the right place is the key to success of a budget housing project,” said a builder from Chennai. “All developers doing big projects in the suburbs are stuck owing to poor sales and they are looking at alternatives to sustain the business”, said Rajesh Babu, of Recs Group, a Chennai-based realty firm.

“Going by the experience of developers who promote budget housing projects, they are by and large cash-surplus projects as long as the promoter sticks to medium sized developments in the range of 2-3 acres.You can raise funds from the market (customers) and do projects. As long as the budget housing segment is treated as a separate entity and the money collected for it is used for the same project, it will work. But if the money is diverted to service bad loans or to complete other stuck projects, then things will miserably go wrong,” said Sarita Hunt, MD- Jones Lang LaSalle.