Covid gave a fresh lease of life to the otherwise flat marketplace for getaway properties in India as a increasing quantity of NRIs, HNIs and higher-earnings pros are exploring luxury pads inside driving distance of metros and nearby vacation destinations such as Lonawala, Panchkula, Alibaug, Panjim, Karjat, Kasauli, Shimla and Dehradun, amongst other folks. Analysts opine that Covid left a deep impression on the properly-off home owners in metros, who are reviewing their alternatives about investing in getaway properties in smaller sized towns for living and working from there for lengthy durations, devoid of compromising on work or family members life.
DLF’s chief marketing and advertising officer Karan Kumar attributes the demand for vacation properties getting fuelled by HNIs, NRIs and C-suite corporate pros. Especially with respect to NRIs, the financial uncertainty amid Covid helped genuine estate emerge as a resilient investment asset amid diminishing returns from mutual funds and stock marketplace. “While Dehradun, Kasauli and Shimla have always been popular for quick getaways from Delhi NCR, cities close to these hill stays have also got a major boost, for example New Chandigarh, Panchkula, etc,” he added.
Ashish R Puravankara, managing director of Bangalore-based Puravankara, agrees that Covid altered people’s behaviour and perception. “Be it hills near Delhi, Lonavala near Mumbai or Goa. These hill stations and coastal destinations have seen a surge in demand for homes. As markets eased back into action, there has been a surge in customers looking to buy a second home for vacations and weekend getaways. We at Puravankara saw this with our marquee project in Goa, Adora De Goa. In the past six-eight months, we sold close to 100 units,” he noted.
Boutique developer Silverglades, which has luxury projects close to Gurgaon and Kasauli, mentioned getaway properties are right here to keep. “Our Kasauli project is an exclusive luxury project with 40 units. We have had enquiries for 20-30 units and have sold 12. The price is in range of Rs 2-5 crore,” Silverglades CEO Anubhav Jain mentioned. In the company’s Tarudhan Valley golf resort (Manesar), which provides farm homes and villas, the enterprise sold two farms and 3 villas. “States like Goa, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are increasingly preferred for stacation homes,” Jain explained.
Pointing out trends in getaway properties, Anarock Property Consultants vice-chairman Santhosh Kumar mentioned numerous favor to acquire such properties inside driving distance of their major unit so that travel restrictions (inter-state) do not play spoilsport. “Many now prefer green and salubrious environment with ample open spaces, dedicated work station, larger space to accommodate family needs and wi-fi connectivity, among others,” he added.
Square Yards’s co-founder & head (NRI business enterprise), Anupam Rastogi mentioned prepared-to-move-in and close to-completed properties are on the want list, with transactions closing in mere 35-40 days which earlier took 4-six months. “Developers have become more rational in their pricing to rein in this demand and increase cashflow. Peripheral locations are the focal point for second-home buying owing to huge growth potential and possibility of capital appreciation of 8-10% in the next four-five years,” he added.
DLF’s Kumar adds that with competitive costs getting provided by developers and low-interest prices on residence loans, non-metros have come to be a preferred selection of investment for second-residence purchasers. This is steadily attracting even the travel-savvy upper-middle-class, who earlier enjoyed annual holidays.