Sale of low-cost housing units brings cheer to real estate sector

As the year winds down, the real estate sector in Pune has reason to cheer as it saw an increase in both sales and launches this year. Most of the sales were in the low-cost housing sector which, over the last few years, has seen considerable investment. While last year, 30,735 tenements were sold, this year the number — 33,805 — is almost 10 per cent higher, reveals research by real estate firm Anarock Property Consultants. The downturn in the IT/ITES and manufacturing sectors had hit real estate sales and launches in Pune, with fewer people investing in property over the last four years. In 2017, sales in the real estate sector had dipped after June, but this year, every quarter has registered a growth. Barring the last quarter of the year, new launches have also seen a steady trend in 2018. Many builders, meanwhile, have focussed on low-cost housing projects. This sector has also received an impetus from the central government under the Pradhan MantriAwasYojana and other schemes. “One of the major factors that helped boost sales in Pune was the robust implementation of MahaRERA, which increased consumer confidence and put the real estate market here on a steady path to recovery,” said AnujPuri, chairman of Anarock. But Sachin Kulkarni, managing director of low-cost housing firm Vastushod, termed 2018 the toughest year in his career as a builder since 1984. “New laws and the banking crisis in the sector have taken a toll. Also, buyers are not yet back in the market,” he said.