Home Buyers Should Carry Out Due-Diligence Before Investing In A Project, Advises Godrej Properties CMO

Established in 1990, Properties Limited, has grown to be one of India's leading names for building innovative living spaces. With more than 110 million sq ft of development under-construction, the company has upcoming projects in 12 cities across India.

In a recent effort to promote and simplify home buying, the developer in collaboration with India's leading real estate advisory, PropTiger.com, launched 'The Big Happiness Festival' on September 7.

The festival promoting online home sales, showcases Properties' projects across major real estate hotspots such Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Gurgaon, Kolkata, Mumbai and Pune. What's more? Buyers can also enjoy some lucrative deals such as free open parking, modular kitchen, and discounts of up to Rs 17 lakh, along with assured gift vouchers worth Rs 40,000, on home purchases.

In an interview with Thufail PT, Properties Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Girish Shah shares his views on the changing dynamics of real estate and how the developer strives to offer the best-in-class homes to its modern-day customers.

PropGuide: How do you see India's real estate market as a growth area?

Girish Shah: We believe that the real estate in India is a sunrise sector and one of the strongest pillars of India's growth story. And, with a thrust on urbanisation and overall infrastructure development by the Centre and state governments, this sector will continue to grow at an unprecedented pace. Thus, making it an attractive sector for investors.

PropGuide: Tell us about the new projects.

Girish Shah: We have a diverse portfolio that spreads across various real estate segments, including residential, commercial and township projects. The focus is, however, on residential developments. Some of our current projects are: Godrej 101, Gurgaon; Azure, Chennai; Prana, Pune; Godrej 17, Bengaluru; Godrej Aria, Gurgaon; Central, Mumbai, and Godrej Icon, Gurgaon. Additionally, we have upcoming projects in Mumbai's Badlapur, Chembur, and Byculla, apart from Pune and Bengaluru.

PropGuide: What is the unique selling point (USP) of your projects and why should home buyers invest in them?

Girish Shah: We strongly believe in designing and building projects, keeping in mind customers' interests and needs. This is achieved by continuously innovating our products and processes. We ensure to deliver homes that offer quality, space and sustainability to buyers, for whom simple comforts of life are key when making a purchase decision.

PropGuide: How has the change in customer needs, over the years, changed the amenities offered in your projects?

Girish Shah: Over two decades, we have seen customers and their needs evolve. Young working professionals in the age group of 32-38 years, look for homes that match their aspirations. These potential home buyers are well-educated and well-travelled, hence, aim to have a wholesome living experience. Landscaped gardens, swimming pools, gymnasiums, security devices, which were once considered luxury, are now a must for contemporary living space. Most projects today provide such amenities.

PropGuide: What should be the criteria for choosing a location?

Girish Shah: Earlier, the criteria of choosing a location was restricted to factors such as convenience and short distance between home and workplace. Today, customers look for a holistic-living experience. This includes infrastructure of the location and its accessibility to major central business districts (CBDs), airports and railway stations. There is also a growing demand for projects that provide infrastructural amenities such as schools, restaurants, malls, hospitals, libraries, large parking spaces, along with other regular amenities.

PropGuide: How do you achieve well-designed and well-constructed projects?

Girish Shah: At Properties, we strongly believe that collaboration is the essence of excellence. For every project, residential or commercial, we work with some of the best designers, architects and contractors across the globe, to deliver innovative and sustainable spaces. With this team, Properties works to create projects that are futuristic, sufficing the needs of each and every resident.

PropGuide: Has the slowdown in the real estate sector affected Properties' projects?

Girish Shah: The dynamics of Indian real estate market vary from location to location. One cannot say that a slowdown trend in some areas could be a country-wide phenomenon. In fact, we received good response for our projects launched in past few months in Mumbai, Pune, Gurgaon and Bengaluru, cities which otherwise have had a challenging market condition. Given our brand equity and projects that will be launch in the second half of this year, we look forward to some really exciting times ahead.

PropGuide: What is your advice to the home buyers?

Girish Shah: Buying a home is a decision of a lifetime for many. My advice for every home buyer is to carry out due-diligence before investing in a project.

PropGuide: What is your take on real estate as a sector purely for investment?

Girish Shah: Market conditions keep on changing. It is difficult to bet on a single asset class for investment. The ideal way to invest would be to spread your risks across different asset classes such as stock markets, real estate and commodity markets. However, in real estate, the volatility is relatively low and we always see property prices appreciate in medium to long-term. The other advantage of investing in real estate is easy mortgage and rental income, if one chooses to rent out the property.