Friday, November 20, 2009

Mahindra offers premium homes in Chennai -GST

Mahindra Lifespaces has recently launched a marketing campaign to sell their new development inside Mahindra World City. Investors and end-users have to do their homework before jumping in on the Mahindra brand-name. There is no doubt that Mahindra's have the vision and they started work on MWC before anybody else and their success is a testimony to their vision and execution. There are a large number of companies and MNC's within MWC and the number will increase as time goes by.
However the pricing of Aqualiy is what should be of interest to the buyer. As per their press release a 2200 sq ft twin home si priced at 90L, a 4000 sq ft villa at 1.7cr and a 1800 sq ft apt at 45 L.
Now if one goes to look for plots around MWC, one can easily get a ground (60x40) 2400 sq ft at 600 rs per sqft, within 2-3 kms of MWC. Now given a construction cost of 1200 per sq/ ft for premium construction one can easily get a 2400 house for 1800 x 2400 = 43 L. Why should anyone spend 3 times more for land on a 99 year lease. Yes, the Mahindra World City land is on a 99 year lease from the government of Tamil Nadu.
Mahindra World City is a landmark and will continue to do so, however investors/end-users should look to land around this area rather then pay a premium to Mahindra for living in this area. Ofcourse the community aspect of Lifespaces cannot be replicated by an individual house on a plot, however does it a warrant a premium of 45L ? That is the million dollar question.

Mahindra Group, has launched a premium residential project — Aqualily — that would be developed within Mahindra World City near Chennai.

“Aqualily is being developed as a gated community spread over 55 acres and will involve construction of 1.5 million sq ft of living space, comprising around 760 residential units. The project is being implemented at a cost of Rs 400 crore,” said Anita Arjundas, managing director & chief executive officer, Mahindra Lifespace Developers. The project will have about 10 acres of green lawns.

Aqualily will offer a mix of villas, twin homes and luxury apartments, with a built-up space up to 4,000 sq ft. The company has now launched the villas and twin-homes in the first phase, apartments will be launched a couple of months later.

While twin-homes, starting with 2,200 sq ft, will cost Rs 90 lakh, 4,000 sq ft large villas could cost up to Rs 1.7 crore.

The apartments will vary from 1,200 sq ft to 1,600 sq ft and priced at Rs 45 lakh, said Rajendra Joshi, vice-president (marketing) of Mahindra Lifespace Developers.

According to Joshi, about 150 units will be villas and twin-homes, while 610 units will be apartments. While villas and twin homes are likely to be completed by the end of 2011, the apartments will be ready for occupation six-eight months thereafter. Four banks, including HDFC, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank have already approved the project for home loans.

The project offers two clubhouses equipped with all modern amenities and several play areas.

“We envisioned Mahindra World City as a complete ecosystem where work, living and learning spaces would coexist to offer an enhanced quality of life to its residents. We have achieved significant milestones in this pursuit by creating work spaces for companies like BMW, Infosys, Wipro and lifestyle amenities and facilities like Mahindra World School, Apollo Clinic, as well as enhanced bus and train facilities,” said Arun Nanda, executive director, Mahindra and Mahindra, and vice-chairman, Ma­hindra Lifespace Developers.

“Aqualily represents a significant endeavour in offering international living in a picturesque environment and will ensure a nature-friendly living environment,” Nanda added. The project is being executed by Mahindra Residential Developers, a joint venture between Mahindra Lifespace and Arch Capital, the real estate fund of the Philippines-based Ayala Group.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

RIL mulls entry into low-cost housing

After successfully dabbling in organised retail in 2006, Mukesh Ambani, chairman of India’s largest private sector company, Reliance Industries (RIL), has now set his eyes on no-frills, low-cost housing.

RIL holds a land bank of 5,000 hectares in Haryana through Reliance Ventures, a subsidiary of RIL created by forming a joint venture with Haryana State Industrial Investment Development Corporation and over 4,840 hectares through the Navi Mumbai SEZ, in association with Cidco (the Maharashtra government’s industrial and township development arm).

“RIL is sitting on a huge land bank with regard to its special economic zones (SEZs) in various locations. It could be putting that to commercial use for mega housing projects in the no-frills category,” said an analyst from a Mumbai-based broking firm who tracks RIL closely.

“Entry of corporate houses like RIL will be good for the market, as it will uplift the real estate sector into an industry. Every business house that enters the sector, be it Godrej, Mahindra, Piramal, Tata and now RIL, will help in making the procedures in the sector more transparent,” said Rajeev Talwar, Group Executive Director, DLF.

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