The real estate market in the state has started showing signs of recovery, ending years of
sluggishness since the economic recession of 2008. DC takes a look at the emerging scene.

Builders are looking visibly relieved as apartment and villa buyers are making a steady comeback in the market this year.

The rise in demand is pushing up property prices, which have shot up by 10 to 15 per cent since last year, but builders blame it on escalating costs.

In the state’s commercial capital, Kochi, caution continues to rule where the average buyer is concern-ed.

The signals seem positive, nevertheless, as Tata Realty And Infrastructure Limited has begun work on its Tritvam high-end residences and duplex apartments at a cost of over Rs 550 crore.

Another market leader, Mather Group, too has begun work on its Rs 480-crore first integrated tow-nship project at Kakkanad and is also investing Rs 400 crore this year in building waterfront villas in Panangad and Aluva in Ernakulam district.

The city is seeing the entry of big players from outside like Puravankara and DLF, indicating that Kochi is now in the major league. Asset Homes has already commissioned a few projects in and around the city.

The development of an Infopark, housing major IT companies, and the proposed SmartCity project are all set to give the Kakkanad construction industry a boost.

Anticipa-ting the creation of one lakh software jobs in the near future with employees earning an average salary of between Rs 40,000 and Rs 50,000 a month, realtors are getting active in and around Kakkanad, says Raffi Mather, head of the Mather Group.

But it is more mature buying today, says Moha-mmed Saleem, managing director of Asset Homes. Nearly 25 to 30 per cent of the NRI investments in the housing sector leads to unoccupied homes as they are for the long term, according to him.

Interestingly, the major players are also venturing beyond the big cities. Asset Homes, for instance, has ventured into Kottayam and Payyambalam in Kannur and Noel is about to launch a project in Tiruvalla.

Meanwhile the real estate market in Kozhikode app-ears to be passing through a phase of consolidation and expansion after remai-ning slightly dormant over the last two years.

The city did not see a slump like Kochi did, say industry insiders, explaining that the systematic development of the market here helped the sector withstand the pressures of economic slowdown.

In Thiruvananthapuram, the “City of babus,” NRIs, businessmen and employees in the banking and private sectors constitute the biggest chunk of buyers.

With builders in the city offering flats for between Rs 2,500 per sq. ft and Rs 6,500 per sq. ft, even the middle income groupss are now making a beeline for them.

And while a couple of years ago flats were mainly purchased for investment, they are now occupied by the owners themselves. “The demand was mainly from NRIs till recently.

But after we launched more affordable projects there has been good response from middle level employees, mainly from the banking and private sectors," says K. Shiju, ma-rketing manager of Artech.

Nearly 40 apartment projects are in various stages of construction in the city and its suburbs. But the high cost of land and construction material is a serious concern.

Paucity of land within the city is forcing many builders to move out to places like Aakulam, Vattiyoorkavu, Thirum-ala, Peyad and Karakulam, which are emerging as the new hotspots.

Kozhikode is seeing a steady growth mainly due to the presence of real buyers instead of speculative investors, says K.P. Naush-ad, director of Hi Lite, a major real estate group in the city, which is seeing a subtle change in the profile of buyers and their preferences.

“We are seeing an increasing number of people under 40 buying apartments,” says Naushad, adding that they are mainly professionals with a clear idea of what they want in terms of housing.

Builders can no longer get away with the usual glib talk, says N. Subramanian, vice president, Superstone Propert-ies Ltd floated by a group of entrepreneurs based in Dubai and Hong Kong.

The company is promoting the 26-storied Riviera Grand with condominiums, garden villas, sky villas and penthouses, all priced in the Rs 2 to Rs 6 crore range.

That a group like Suprestone Properties, with real estate projects in places like Dubai, Hong Kong and Brazil, is promoting a project in Kozhikode, is itself proof of the depth of the market here, he adds.

The demand for houses in Thrissur is seeing a steady rise thanks to a burgeoning middle class mainly of businessmen.

The Thrissur chapter of the Builders Association of India (BAI) says the property market is doing quite well in the city both in terms of demand and prices.

“The rates have jumped by nearly 15 per cent over the last one year, but the growth of the working class, well supported by availability of credit, is helping the market revive after a brief lull,’’says Vijay Hari of Lord Krishna Builders, Thrissur.

For high rise apartments, the average price per sq.ft is around Rs 3,000 here on account of the high the land price, which acco-unts for nearly 50 per cent of the overall project cost.

The concept of integrated townships and villas has many takers in the district given the huge presence of non-resident Keralites in the region.

“The least you need to shell out for a villa here is Rs 90 lakhs but the segment is still witnessing a robust growth of around 20 to 30 per cent,’’ says Renjith Roy, managing partner, MRG Builders.