Property prices soften by 1 pc in Delhi-NCR: Report

Property prices fell by an average one per cent in the Delhi-NCR during October-December period compared with the previous quarter on higher supply, according to a report.
The average capital values in Noida, Greater Noida and Delhi dipped minimally by a per cent each. Gurgaon's housing market emerged as the worst-hit zone with a drop of 2 per cent in property prices in the last quarter of 2015 over the preceding one, as per the property portal 99acres.Com.
While the demand-supply mismatch has long been impacting Delhi NCR's real estate sector, factors such as delay in completion of infra projects further worsened the situation.

The portal said that popular realty hubs such as Gurgaon and Noida continued suffering on account of unsold inventory, but Greater Noida stayed strong on availability of affordable homes and proximity to office space.
Commenting on the report, Narasimha Jayakumar, Chief Business Officer, 99acres.Com, said, "Although Delhi NCR has a grim real estate story to narrate at present, the lethargy will be dispelled as soon as the market bottoms out."
The developers have already begun purchasing land parcels to build their inventory and are entering into JVs to improve liquidity, awaiting the opportune moment to launch projects when homebuyers re-enter the market, he added.

IT/ITeS firms continued to lead office transaction

activity, accounting for about 54 per cent of the deal closures.
Besides the IT/ITeS sector, BFSI and Engineering & Manufacturing were the other sectors driving demand for office space. Both these sectors accounted for about 10-11 per cent share each in quarterly space absorption, mostly led by transactions closed in Mumbai and Chennai.
Meanwhile, office supply rose by about 9 per cent on quarterly basis and 29 per cent on year-on-year basis.
Mumbai and Chennai together accounted for almost 65 per cent of the new supply completed during the quarter, followed by Kolkata (16 per cent).

This was the second quarter in the year in which Mumbai and Kolkata dominated supply additions across key cities.
In line with the trend observed during the previous few quarters, non-IT developments continued to lead supply with a share of more than 40 per cent of new space completed, followed by IT buildings that accounted for a share of about 30 per cent.
"India continues to be a key outsourcing location among global corporates and this is reflective in the steady growth in demand for prime office space. A recent trend that has been noted is the increase in demand for small to medium sized office space, not just in the metros but also in smaller cities," said Ram Chandnani, MD ( Transactions Services), CBRE South Asia.

Additionally, the increasing buzz around REITs, better alignment of developers with compliances under the RERA Act (which also covers the commercial segment) and trends in the global outsourcing industry are also likely to impact the commercial real estate sector in the coming quarters, he added.