Property boom not yet over

Property boom not yet over
Sunday January 13 2008 07:45 IST

Y Maheswara Reddy

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New areas are fertile territory for investment.

BANGALORE: While the stamps and registrations department on Friday gave its official stamp to the real estate slump in the city, realtors indicated a potential boom in areas outside the traditional hotspots like Electronics City and Devanahalli.

And according to the city’s realtors, now is the time to invest.

Prices near Electronics City, Bommasandra and ITPL have gone through the roof and returns on investment here could take long.

“The problem with the sellers in these areas is that they quote unrealistic prices ,” says C Venkatesh, a realtor from Yelahanka.

And for those who have invested huge sums on sites here, the only hope is an up-and-running Bangalore International Airport and the proposed expressway connecting it.

“It is advisable for prospective buyers to now zero in on housing sites at Singapura and its surroundings. Land is available at Rs 1,000 a sq ft adjacent to main the road and Rs 800 a sq ft in the interiors.

So there is no sense is looking at ‘distant’ Devanahalli when cheaper sites are there for the asking closer to Bangalore,” explains C Mallikarjun, a realtor.

And with areas like Chikka Madura, Hesaraghatta, Peenya Dasarahalli, Laxmipura, Abbigere in Bangalore West and Doddaballpur, Vijayapura, Chikballapur, Attur, Singapura in North, the proposed infrastructure facilities will lead to rapid appreciation, say realtors.

“I bought a site at Rs 250 per sq ft two years ago. It can now fetch me Rs 1,000 a sq ft and is only set to go north. I now wish I had bought more sites two years ago. The same can’t be said of Hoody. I bought land at Rs 1,000 a sq ft six months ago. I have no buyer for this property today,” rues B Manjunath of Abbigere.

The scene, it seems, is similar with flats. Again, there must be due diligence before the final decision. Realtors say areas like Kaggadasapura, Vignananagar, Basavanagar, GM Palya and Nagavara, where new projects are coming up, are worth a look.

And with smaller builders, while it is necessary to read the fine print carefully, one can haggle on the price to one’s advantage, says a realtor.