First Time in 7 Years Haryana Affordable Housing Rates Increased

For the first time in seven years, the Haryana government revised the rate of affordable housing projects, increasing them by ?200 per sqft. According to the new directions, the rate of affordable housing flats in hyper potential zones will now be ?4,200 per sqft, in high potential zones, the rate will now be ?3,600 per sqft, while in other areas, the rate will now be ?3,200 per sqft. The cost of a balcony in affordable flats, which was earlier fixed at ?500 per sqft, has been increased to ?1,000 per sqft. The affordable housing policy was launched in 2014 with fixed rates, which are being revised for the first time, officials said. The Haryana government has divided districts into hyper potential zones, high potential zones, medium potential zones, and low potential zones based on demand and rates. Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) officials said that the rates were revised due to an increase in the prices of raw materials and labour. “The decision to increase the price has been taken across the state, keeping in view the change in the cost of input,” said Sanjeev Mann, senior town planner. In another move, the government has also linked 75% of the payment to the status of the construction of the project. The license of an affordable housing project can now also be renewed after four years, which was not allowed earlier, the notification by DTCP said. Real estate expert say that the price increase will have an only nominal impact on the buyers as the area of affordable flats is between 400 and 800 sq ft. The price rise will be somewhere between ?1 lakh and ?1.60 lakh per flat. Buyers can still easily afford these flats. Developers who build affordable projects welcomed the move, but said that they had expected more from the government.