A survey on current scenario on country’s real estate sector reveals that 34 per cent of demand in residential segment is in the price bracket of Rs 5-15 lakh; 26 per cent in the bracket of Rs 15-25 lakh; 22 per cent in the range of Rs 25-40 lakh; 12 per cent in the range of Rs 35-50 lakh. In luxury house segment with properties costing above Rs 50 lakh the demand level is just six per cent, the Ficci survey shows. Interestingly, the survey reveals that parking funds in affordable housing projects has emerged as safest bet for developers followed by developing demand based commercial spaces. Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and retail segment are expected to be the least preferred asset class to drive the sector towards recovery. Although real estate sector has started to show some signs of revival a majority of the industry experts expect the residential segment to recover by the end of 2009 with a 25-30 per cent renewal in demand. The commercial segment expected to pick up after the third quarter of 2010. Realotrs believe that retail segment will revive only marginally by end of 2009 by approximately 10-12 per cent rise in demand and will recover only by the last quarter of 2010. Developers now seem to concentrate on high volumes and lower margins as against low volumes and higher margins and have shifted focus towards affordable housing segment, the survey reveals. As per the findings the stimulus packages and interest rate cuts have to an extent eased accessibility for bank finance for the developers. However, banks are still cautious in lending and prefer lending for projects nearing completion to lower risk. Most respondents feel that there is an urgent need for a real estate regulator (RER) that would not only act as a nodal agency for all real estate developments but also quell the concerns of consumers as well as the real estate industry as a whole. The Ministry of Urban Development has already floated a Discussion Paper in the public domain on the need for setting up a RER. A survey on current scenario on country’s real estate sector reveals that 34 per cent of demand in residential segment is in the price bracket of Rs 5-15 lakh; 26 per cent in the bracket of Rs 15-25 lakh; 22 per cent in the range of Rs 25-40 lakh; 12 per cent in the range of Rs 35-50 lakh. In luxury house segment with properties costing above Rs 50 lakh the demand level is just six per cent, the Ficci survey shows. Interestingly, the survey reveals that parking funds in affordable housing projects has emerged as safest bet for developers followed by developing demand based commercial spaces. Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and retail segment are expected to be the least preferred asset class to drive the sector towards recovery. Although real estate sector has started to show some signs of revival a majority of the industry experts expect the residential segment to recover by the end of 2009 with a 25-30 per cent renewal in demand. The commercial segment expected to pick up after the third quarter of 2010. Realotrs believe that retail segment will revive only marginally by end of 2009 by approximately 10-12 per cent rise in demand and will recover only by the last quarter of 2010. Developers now seem to concentrate on high volumes and lower margins as against low volumes and higher margins and have shifted focus towards affordable housing segment, the survey reveals. As per the findings the stimulus packages and interest rate cuts have to an extent eased accessibility for bank finance for the developers. However, banks are still cautious in lending and prefer lending for projects nearing completion to lower risk. Most respondents feel that there is an urgent need for a real estate regulator (RER) that would not only act as a nodal agency for all real estate developments but also quell the concerns of consumers as well as the real estate industry as a whole. The Ministry of Urban Development has already floated a Discussion Paper in the public domain on the need for setting up a RER.

UK-based NRI business conglomerate, Hindujas, which is expanding its commercial vehicle manufacturing in the country, has not ruled out the possibility of making cars. The Hindujas' flagship company, Ashok Leyland, which presently makes 85,000 commercial vehicles annually at its various plants pan-India, has already announced expansion plans including manufacturing of one lakh LCVs at a Greenfield facility being set up near Chennai at an investment of around Rs 2,600 crore. It is also expanding its manufacturing facility at Ennore and Hosur in Tamil Nadu in at an investment of around Rs 1,500 crore. The company has plants in Chennai, Hosur, Bhandara (near Nagpur) and Alwar in Rajasthan. It is constructing a plant at Pantnagar which will be commissioned next year. To a pointed question why Hindujas were not interested in making cars, the group's Chairman, Srichand Hinduja, said that "we are not averse (to making cars) and are open to investments in that sector." "There is a slowdown in the market - who knows, we could look at acquisitions in this segment," he said, without elaborating. The Hindujas' flagship company, Ashok Leyland, which manufactures about 85,000 commercial vehicles annually at its various plants pan-India, had announced its expansion plans including manufacturing one lakh LCVs at its Greenfield facility being set up near Chennai at an investment of Rs 2,600 crore. It would also invest Rs 1,500 crore to raise output at Ennore and Hosur in Tamil Nadu. The company has plants at various locations including Chennai, Hosur, Bhandara (near Nagpur) and Alwar in Rajasthan and constructing a plant at Pantnagar which will be commissioned next year. The group had announced a $50 billion investment across sectors - power, automotives, IT, hospitality, real estate, healthcare, financial services, oil and gas, media and entertainment in 2004. Also mulling to make a foray into the power sector it had chalked out plans for setting up 4,200 MW unit and proposes to take raise the output up to 10,000 MW. After the Indo-US nuclear deal the company is also looking at nuclear power generation. "Energy and infrastructure are the two key areas of focus," Hinduja said adding that the Government should hasten the reforms process to attract investment. The group, which has promoted IndusInd Bank in India and owns Amas Bank in Switzerland, is also looking at the financial sector for big-ticket investment. "We will be looking at insurance and other financial services," Hinduja said. On the current inflationary trend he said, the slowdown in the economy on the back of recessionary trends globally, may be temporary. Inflation is a matter of concern and the cash crunch is beginning to surface, he said, adding that he expected this situation to last for some more time.

India leads the pack of top real estate investment markets in Asia for 2010, according to a study by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and Urban Land Institute, a global non-profit education and research institute. The report, which provides an outlook on Asia-Pacific real estate investment and development trends, points out that India, particularly Mumbai and Delhi, are good destinations. Residential properties are viewed as more promising than other sectors and Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore top the pack in the hotel ‘buy’ prospects as well. The study is based on the opinions of over 270 international real estate professionals, including investors, developers, property company representatives, lenders, brokers and consultants. Since the global economic meltdown, asset markets in the Asia-Pacific region have been holding up surprisingly well compared with their peers in Europe and the US. While pricing and rentals in the region fell steeply in 2008 and early 2009 in line with those in the West, markets across the region were boosted in the second half of the year by the remarkable resilience of the Chinese economy, which was buoyed by a series of fiscal and monetary stimulus measures. As a result, many Asian markets have begun to flash positive signals toward the end of 2009. Transaction volumes have rebounded, although from a very low base, led overwhelmingly by China, the report said. “The relatively stronger fundamentals and the lack of dependence on foreign demand are seen as key advantages as India has managed to mitigate the severe recession that has hit most other Asian countries. “The recapitalisation by players in equity markets across Asia has been successfully replicated by some Indian developers, which has helped ease the liquidity stresses,” said Mr Gautam Mehra, India Leader for Real Estate Practice, PriceWaterhouse Coopers. Unlike the US and Europe, distress sale in Asia had been relatively minimal. This was due to several factors, including a relative abundance of liquidity; low loan-to-value ratios, leaving borrowers less vulnerable to loan servicing problems when the prices declined, the report said. Further, Asian banks remain well-capitalised, having experienced few major losses from derivative investments and also because of the ability of many large investment institutions to recapitalise via the capital markets, (particularly in Australia and Singapore) allowing them to pay down debt. Despite the recent bullish atmosphere, rebounds in most Asia-Pacific markets (with the exception of China) appear tentative and fragile. Although Asia-Pacific governments will probably be able to sustain high rates of liquidity for the foreseeable future, their near term prospects are probably tied to developments in the West and in particular the US, where de-leveraging is far from over. “The idea that the recession is likely over gives rise to the widespread notion that global economies will now revert gradually to the same trajectories as in the past, which is normally what happens when recessions end,” said the ULI Chief Executive Officer, Mr Patrick L. Phillips. He said the aftermath was likely to be different because the imbalances that led to the global downturn remain embedded in the system and could not be quickly eliminated. Moreover, with spending by the Western consumers no longer acting as the primary engine of global economic growth, a new driver was needed to boost the world’s economy, and, in turn, the global real estate industry