The lockdown exemptions have enabled the city's real estate sector to resume business, builders, and developers are carrying out work with the workforce. At the same time, real estate stakeholders hope that new measures will be enforced by the Center to bail out the sector from the current crisis. The real estate experts expect the Central Government to announce more incentives to revive and make it easier for the real estate sector to bounce back more quickly.

Realtors Hope for Kicking of Industry After Lockdown

Though lockout has been extended and several large-scale building projects have come to a standstill, property developers are hopeful that Hyderabad 's lucrative real estate market will pick up once the restrictions have been lifted. They are hoping the lockdown's negative effect will last for no more than six months after that the sector would bounce back. In this period, the governments of the Central and State would encourage people to buy property without hesitation.

CII Telangana, Convener for Infrastructure and Real Estate Committee, C Shekar Reddy said the banks would have to lower interest rates on housing bank loans. He also stressed the need to provide manufacturers of raw materials such as cement and steel to lower the prices, for soothing the impact of overhead costs of lockdown on developers. The state government should reduce the registration fee during this time, and the central government should reduce GST on residential land, besides providing incentives to home buyers during the festive year-end season.

An individual looking to buy a property after the lockdown is lifted, this would be a good time as some developers who need some liquidity may lower prices by 5 to 10 percent to boost sales. Real estate experts believe such a situation never existed before, but they are sure things will be set right within six months of the lockdown being lifted. Both real estate developers are also focusing their hopes on Hyderabad as a production hub and absorbing office space. There are theories that the attention of the world could turn to India as a manufacturing destination after a post-COVID pandemic.

The government has already made some announcements like an extension of RERA deadlines and CLSS extension till March 2021. The State government is extending a lot of support to the industry to ensure the availability of raw materials and to implement TS-bPASS from June. These measures have given some relief to the real estate sector during this period. 

However, the Central government would come up with some more measures such as decreasing the rate of bank interests for a limited period for buyers to increase their buying sentiment and reducing GST. Apart from cash flow into the market, these measures will boost the real estate sector and pay dividends to the government in the form of taxes.

By: Shailaja K