NRI’s property investment doubled post pandemic

Real estate market in India, more specifically South India, is registering a remarkable surge in investments hinting towards a market revival, according to reports.  The investments by NRIs have particularly grabbed a notable share in market. Multiple factors are attracting the potential customers from abroad, including low home loan rate, great offers, availability of houses in market and attractive pricing.  When pandemic struck the world, mass lockdown led to slowing of domestic market with businesses closed down and economy taking a hit. While sales levels witnessed an all time low, lower prices led to some fluctuating performance in real estate market as some opportunistic buyers took advantage of low market.  But a remarkable phenomenon was noted during this period – investment by NRIs (Non Resident Indians) has doubled in Indian real estate market. A recent study backs the finding that percentage of recently booked properties in India have been done by NRIs.  NRIs have always been a high-value customer segment. But the real estate purchases by them were primarily for investment purposes in the past – they would sell the properties after their market values would appreciate or would drive the property into rental space. But Covid-19 pandemic presented an entirely new perspective to the investing scenario by NRIs in India.  As pandemic struck and lockdowns were imposed across countries, people had to stay inside and isolate themselves. This is when urge to own a property in their home country surfaced among NRIs. It is undeniable that owning a house in one’s own country has an emotional tangent and provides a safety net as a long term investment.  This was evidently visible as investments by NRIs doubled during pandemic in India. Furthermore, increased medical expenses in foreign countries while staying away from support of families may also have triggered a desire to have home in country of origin.  To the fact that, recently Casagrand had launched its project Casagrand Galileo in Bengaluru’s KR Puram, comprising 104 exclusive high-rise apartments, the community is nestled amidst 1.6 acres with 17,000 sq ft of lush green landscape. The fact that project was sold out on the day of its launching speaks scores of the market presence and value of Casagrand.  Similarly, many projects of Casagrand in Chennai and Bengaluru are on verge of being sold out. Projects like Casagrand FirstCity, Casagrand Athens, Casagrand Utopia, Casagrand Zenith in Chennai, Casagrand Orlena, Casagrand Boulevard in Bangalore, Casagrand Cosmos in Coimbatore etc. are receiving good responses from the NRI homebuyers.  These projects are located at prime locations and provide best ROI, offers plethora of features and amenities. According to a recent report, a real estate search portal noted that there has been an increase of 254% in inquiries for ready to move in homes from the NRIs since March 2020.  There has been a surge in interest in ready-to-move-in projects offering various amenities and that are re-designed according to today’s requirement of work-from-home. While selecting properties in India, NRIs are now more inclined towards selecting credible real estate developers that have a healthy and proven track record of delivering quality projects on time. South India has always been the hub of investments in real market due to prime location of IT sector, that further opens avenues for higher rental yields, on time projects completion, reasonable pricing and housing options across segments. Dynamic professional class well developed corporate ecosystem and a favorable investment market are other reasons for an increase in investments in the region by NRIs.  NRIs are further seen drawn towards investing in real estate in Indian market for many reasons, prime being an emotional factor. Owning a home in own country provides a feeling of having safety net to NRIs looking for investments, especially during current era of pandemic.  The fact that Indian currency has seen recent depreciation is one big reason along to invest in Indian real estate market. NRIs don’t have to shell out a fortune now to secure a property in India. Drop in prices, more transparency and a more regulatory system has created an apt timing for NRIs to invest in Indian real estate market. Source: Trade Arabia News Service