Answer: Yes, NRIs buy commercial real estate/property in India. Under the general permission granted by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), NRIs can buy/acquire property other than agricultural land/farm house/plantation property, provided the purchase consideration is met either out of inward remittances in foreign exchange through normal banking channels,or out of funds from the purchaser’s NRE/FCNR accounts maintained with banks in India and a declaration is submitted to the Central Office of Reserve Bank in form IPI 7 within a period of 90 days from the date of purchase of the property/final payment of purchase consideration.

You have to understand from where the Govt/RBI is coming. The country’s core assets like agricultural land has to be protected from large amounts of foreign capital acquiring large chunks of such land. RBI has no problems for buying regular commercial property in cities. As an NRI, your best bet will be to buy commercial property in India from reputed developers like DLF, IndiaBulls Real Estate, Orbit Corp, Marathon Nextgen etc.

There has been sales slowdown across all real estate asset classes: Residential, Commercial, SEZ/Industry Parks.

Demand in real estate has remained grim, primarily due to low consumer confidence. This can be attributed to a weak economic scenario. High levels of inflation led to the government increasing interest rates. This led to the drying up of liquidity available for businesses to expand, leading to a slowdown in the commercial real estate demand. The increase in the cost of finance also led to a drop in residential real estate demand.

According to a report released by UBS Investment Research in April 2009, unsold inventory with developers in major residential real estate destinations in India is still high at around 18% of the properties being promised for delivery over the next 12 months.

The inventory situation is not limited to the residential space. Recent data from Jones Lang Lasalle REIS on supply and vacancy for office space in Delhi and Mumbai indicates that office vacancy rates are very high. However, analysts and industry experts believe that long term prospects of the Indian real estate sector remain promising.

According to ASSOCHAM, the Indian domestic real estate market is estimated to be approximately USD 15 billion, of which FDI contributions are expected to be less than USD 4 billion.

The share of FDI in real estate is expected to increase manifold in the coming years with the gradual relaxation of ceiling in construction space permitted to foreign investors.

India’s growing young population, rapid urbanization, growth in industry and services and rapid development of tourism are factors that will propel real estate demand in the long term.

A number of reforms introduced by the Government in recent years have contributed to the scorching pace of development of the Indian Real Estate Industry in the past and will facilitate future growth. These real estate reforms include:

• Repealing the Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976 by a large number of Indian States
• Allowing FDI upto 51% in single brand retail outlets and 100% in cash and carry
• In April 2008, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) announced amendments to the SEBI (Mutual Funds)
• Regulations 1996 permitting the launch of Real Estate Mutual Funds (REMFs) in India. REMFs are required to invest at least 35% of the net assets of the scheme directly in real estate (in ready-to-use property that assures rental income and capital appreciation) not stating the maximum investment limit
• Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) have been allowed entry into India. REITs cater to the capital requirement of the real estate sector as it enables the company easy access to funds and preferable exit options

[reference: Annual Report 2009, Peninsula Land]

After the super response to Tata Nano, now the Tata group is coming up with Nano homes under the name Shubh Griha, priced between Rs 3.9 lakh and Rs 6.7 lakh.

When and Where? The first township comprising one bedroom-kitchen flats, to be built by Tata Housing Development Company (THDC) will be in the Mumbai suburb Boisar, in Thane district. This housing project is conveniently located within 5 minutes of Boisar railway station and MIDC. Here’s the location map.

This model will be replicated across several metros, tier II and III cities in the country. To learn more, please visit their site: http://www.shubhgriha.com

Various Players in the Low Cost Housing Market: Tata Housing Development Company joins other developers like Puravankara, Omaxe and Housing Development & Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) that have moved to the affordable housing segment, because that still represents a big market with unmet need. India faces a shortage of 24.7 million dwelling units, with three-fourths of this deficit being in the middle and low-income groups.

The Trend is strong: Others entrepreneurs including Mphasis founder Jaithirth Rao, NGO Janaagraha founder Ramesh Ramanathan and Bangalore based CSC Constructions are also said to be interested into entering this segment and are drawing up their housing projects.

Here’s a question from Tushar Roy: If my monthly take home pay is Rs.12,000, then how much Home Loan amount can I get when it will be for 15 years?

Answer: Please use this Home Loan EMI calculator

http://wealth.moneycontrol.com/emi_calculater.php

You should take EMIs on the lower side of your affordable income because if situation turns difficult with job loss or business loss, then you can still manage to clear the EMIs.

So we are seeing many people getting ready to move away from ICICI Home loans and HDFC Home loans to SBI.  Some people have reported that ICICI is charging 11% to 15% even after RBI’s reduction of rates. So in this case, that decision to move to SBI makes good logic, if ICICI or HDFC are not willing to match the 8% interest rate. You should not pay 3-5% more interest than the lowest rate in the market.

Please check with your bank ASAP on what is they best rate they can offer you. Its a good time to negotiate some decrease in interest rate.

Of course, there is some paperwork needed, and you have to check the specific exit terms and conditions of your current Home Loan.Switching a loan from one bank to another bank is subject to approval of the original bank, and not many existing borrowers with private sector banks may be keen to shift. In fact, a customer may have to give 2% of the loan amount as “prepayment charges” which can be a big deterrent for existing home loan borrowers to shift from their bank.

According to Rajiv Sahni, partner at Ernst & Young (real estate practice): “Following RBI’s cut of major rates such as repo, most banks were pressed by the government to pass on benefits to customers. SBI’s recent rate freeze at 8% for new home loan customers is one such example. Other public sector banks are expected to follow suit. While this may see a marginal shift of customers to PSU banks in the immediate future, private banks are likely to follow suit if they see a positive trend in customers’ reaction to such rate cuts.”

Real Estate Developers believe that the current interest rate reduction by SBI (and other PSU banks) will draw attention of all the home loan borrowers in these difficult times. Sunil Bedi of JMD Group fees that this step by SBI is bound to lead people from private banks to shift to PSUs. It will help save around 3-4% of the interest cost, which will be huge.  And R K Mittal of CHD Developers feels that consumers will definitely want to move to PSU banks due to lower interest rates.

*And now, here’s our view*

If you are looking to buy a new home, remember that Real Estate developers are undergoing huge liquidity crunch, and and no price is non-negotiable. If the property price is R50 lakh, ask for Rs 40 lakh. Those real estate developers who are keen to survive this credit crunch period will respond positively to your message, because they will be glad to sell some of their inventory, and reduce their interest burden.

Remember that our Real Estate developers are currently having huge interest burdens, often at rates above 25%. In general, the property prices should correct further downward in the coming 2-3 months.

Question by Mr. Narendran: We are Bangalore based real estate company and we are inviting foreign individual investors/institutes to invest in our residential projects across India. We are basically a marketing company and we have now stepped into our own property development in India. Can NRI’s invest through ETFs or ADRs? Kindly comment.

Answer: Thanks for asking your question. Please see the following posts for relevant inputs:

RBI Guidelines for FDI and ECB in Indian Real Estate

How can USA residents invest in India Real Estate through ETFs/ADRs?

So, can NRI’s invest through ETFs or ADRs? The simple answer is Yes in most cases. You should double check that your specific “residential projects” don’t have any regulation constraint from either Central Govt (RBI) or State Govt (I believe some state govts have added clauses to Central govt rules). Since you are already operating in India, you would have a good understanding on these aspects.

One more point from our experience is that if you are looking to attract FDI from NRIs for Real Estate Projects in the form of ETFs/ADRs, then you should tie-up with a company that has existing relationships with NRI investors, so that your offering gains more credibility.

You can contact us if you want help in connect with such companies. Feel free to ask any other question.

Thanks,
Shankar on behalf of India-Real-Estate.org

Question by Mr Prasad: Could you be kind enough to tell me if we can bring FDI in debt form in India in real estate sector under current RBI Guidelines under automatic route and if you can suggest few names to whom we can contact for this for detailed procedures and documentation etc?

Answer: I think when you say FDI in debt form, you meant to say: External Commercial Borrowing (ECB), because FDI (foreign direct investment) stands for investments rather than debt.

The finance ministry allowed External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) in Indian real estate projects (in 2005) involving integrated townships of 25 acres or 50,000 square metres of more. However, the RBI’s position has to be checked on a project by project basis. Its not right to give a general answer on this website – so that other readers don’t take wrong conclusions.

As per our understanding, the RBI allows ECB in real estate projects involving integrated townships of 100 acres or more.

As you maybe aware, in real estate projects, significant capital is required upfront for land acquisition, which is classified as working capital. But end-use restrictions like not allowing ECB money to be used for working capital mean that Foreign funds (as debt) can’t be applied everywhere in Indian Real Estate.

RBI guidelines are often related to type and scale of the project. So if you are planning a large infusion of debt capital then please check RBI guidelines at a micro level.  Our team of legal real-estate experts could offer detailed help on specific cases. Feel free to contact us or ask any other questions.

According to shareholding data available on BSE, the domestic financial institutions and banks have increased their inevstment in Unitech Ltd by over 1.5 percentage, while Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have reduced their stake.

In the case of Parsvnath, there were marginal changes in the institutional shareholding (mutual funds/UTI and financial institutions and banks) within the non-promoter category, even as the ‘individual’ holding rose by just less than a percentage point.

“The FII stake in Parsvnath had almost doubled between June 2007 and December 2007, but came down subsequently, in line with market trend,” a market observer said.

In the case of Unitech, the stake held by various mutual funds and UTI stood at 0.51 per cent on June 30, 2008 — a bit higher than 0.25 per cent in 2007.

According to market sources, while FIIs have trimmed their holding in Unitech, the shares sold by them may have been picked up by private Indian insurance firms.

So there is capital in the market that is willing to pick-up whatver real estate equity becomes available. Whether the current Indian Real Estate Stock P/E is good for buying now, is the big question.

Obviously, different people are seeing things differently!

• Cost of real estate has risen considerably over the last 10 years. In fact, Investment in a property has turned into a productive option for majority of people. In most cases, the prices have only gone up.
• We’ve got property developer billionaires in this cash rich sector. The driving force behind this Indian real estate boom is the steady extension of ITES, BPO, KPO, and Outsourcing services and the subsequent development of the middle class status.
• Both commercial and residential growth are running at a marathon pace.
• The most favoured cities for investors are Bombay, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Madras, Gurgaon, New Delhi, Pune, Chandigarh, Calcutta and Jaipur.

Reasons for Growth

One of the main reasons for this boom is that in the year 2006, Indian government give consent to 100 percent foreign direct investment. This has enabled foreign residents maximize their profits through bidding for Indian real estate along with their local associates.

The growth may be also attributed to several factors such as economic reform and liberalization, increased globalization, increase in business opportunities, heightened equity market activity, increasing demand, enhanced transparency, legitimized funding and favourable demographics.

Real Estate Venture capital funds have propelled Indian Real Estate industry to become one of the highest investment generating avenues. Also the fact that India’s seven Real Estate powers like DLF and Unitech are their in the Forbes list of 54 Indian billionaires crystallizes the sector’s strength. Industry was able to attract significant interest from domestic and foreign investors keen to be a part of the real estate growth

The Future Trends

The real estate industry is estimated to reach $60 billion by 2010 with a growth rate of 30 per cent. The industry entered the Dalal Street in a big way and floated 12 public issues in the year, making it a leading sector in terms of fund raising. Currently, private property developers are largely focusing on constructing housing units for middle class and poor. Rising disposable income and the trend towards nuclear families are the significant factors pushing the demand for residential properties in the country.

Many eminent foreign builders like Dubai-based Emmar Properties have shown keen interest in Indian real estate and have joined hands with Indian constructors for investment. Other major foreign players in Indian realty market includes Japan’s Kikken Sekkel, UK’s High Point Rendel , Cesma International and Lee Kim Tah Holdings from Singapore, etc. It is expected that all these foreign investors will exercise latest technology, management skills and regulation policy to make it big in Indian real estate market

Another factor that plays a critical role in the current trend in the Indian Real Estate industry is the development of physical and social infrastructure. Residential, commercial offices, retail and hotels have their own place in the market. The presence of real estate majors from within India as well as abroad have ensured constant supply of capital which is absolutely necessary for the large scale of development that has been undertaken, especially in the infrastructure expansion of roads, airports, ports and SE’s that require large funding India’s biggest realty developer, DLF continued its supremacy over others. The firm launched the a mega IPO of over Rs 9,000crore, followed by HDIL’s Rs 1,700 crore and Puravankara Projects’ Rs 850 crore.

About the Author: Rahul Boss is working as an architect in India has developed trustworthy commercial apartments.

The aim of India Real Estate.org is to help Indian real estate investors across the globe, in learning about good opportunities, and reliable builders/developers. Indian companies are more resilient than ever to a global downturn these days, with lower borrowing costs and healthier debt-equity ratios.

Now coming to the point….Mumbai real estate is among the most expensive in the world – more than that of Tokyo or New York – and there is no shortage of those who can afford to pay. The city also attracts millions of low wage workers every year, and there are ever-expanding slums that house more than half of the city’s population.

Mumbai real estate is a multi-billion dollar market on a daily/weekly trading basis. In addition to sea view penthouses on Marine Drive, Worli, Juhu etc, there are luxurious duplexes across the city….with many new residential projects to fully furnished offices and ‘built-to-suit’ commercial spaces including upscale multi-family apartment communities.

Some analysts say that Mumbai real estate has started seeing a slide in property prices; others may witness the decline gradually. Some experts believe that over the next three to six months, the liquidity crunch will have its full impact on property prices.

Market estimates say many people who had purchased property for investment purposes had a big exposure to the equity market, which is currently 25% down from its high levels in Dec 2007. This means, the turmoil in the stock market may lead to drying up of available free cash, leading to default in paying installments.

That said, Mumbai real estate market has pockets of attractive opportunities even at high P/E levels. Investors have many good reasons to invest in Mumbai property market. Mumbai is the India’s business capital, and the most populous city of India.

Investors and HNIs have been investing in various pre-leased properties having insurance, banking, IT/ ITES, residential and retail sector occupants. Investors should be cautious about any and all stock recommendations and should consider the source of any advice on stock selection. Various factors, including personal or corporate ownership, may influence or factor into an expert’s stock analysis or opinion.

Another interesting trend is the remodeling of commercial spaces to retail spaces. The property values for commercial spaces are touching skies and developers are finding it difficult to sell their commercial/office property. Hence, many of them are positioning their property as retail space in a hope to find more takers.

Investors are targeting Navi Mumbai because the prices here are on the increase. It is a newly developed area just across the harbor.

Unitech, India’s second largest developer, was involved in two such land deals. It snapped up 1,750 acres in Vizag for Rs 3,350 crore last year and won 340 acres in Noida for Rs 1,582 crore in 2006, while India’s biggest real estate developer DLF clinched a 38-acre land deal in the national capital for Rs 1,675 crore. Unitech is expected to close FY08 with revenues of Rs 4,350 crore and a net profit of Rs 1,650 crore.

Developers are constructing properties with facilities and amenities at par with international standards. Yearly appreciation on commercial real estate market across the Indian metro ranges from 9 to 11%. So there are many opportunities there at all levels: residential and commercial real estate.

About the Author: Shankar AVSB of 7Avenues Private Equity, who is an investor in Indian Real Estate. He believes that Mumbai real estate presents great opportunities in both bullish and bearish market sentiments. He is based in London.