Indian realty mart elicits interest among Saudi NRIs

A real estate exhibition organised recently in three Saudi Arabian cities has found that non-resident Indians (NRIs) based there are keen to invest in a wide range of residential and commercial properties in select Indian cities.

While the overall demand for real estate from Saudi Arabia-based NRIs is vast and untapped, entry barriers such as rigid visa procedures and the need to strictly comply with local rules and regulations are major deterrents for event managers wanting to reach out and market Indian properties there.

The property show was organised from December 12 to 19 in Dammam, Jeddah and Riyadh by Chennai-based Priya Publications, publishers of real estate magazines, in association with HDFC-Rezayat Trading Company.

The maximum demand for real estate among Saudi Arabia-based NRIs is for south Indian cities such as Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kochi.

Priya Publications managing director V Nagarajan said, "Enquiries are there for Mumbai, Pune and Delhi and some other cities in northern and western India. Incidentally, south Indian hill stations such as Kodaikanal and Ooty continue to draw the attention of investors who prefer holiday homes during their visit to India."

Moreover, a few high net worth individuals and financial institutions are keen to make large-scale investments in pre-released commercial properties that offer scope for better yield on investment, he added. According to Nagarajan, this was the first ever held property show in Saudi Arabia on a large scale.

Nagarajan said, "While leading builders from various Indian cities displayed a wide range of residential and commercial properties at the show, HDFC offered a special home loan rate of 7.75 per cent to NRIs irrespective of the tenure of the loan.

A special NRI advisory cell was set up during the show to offer free advisory services to NRIs keen to invest in real estate in India.