It could be a second innings for special economic zones, especially those held up for years, with the commerce department proposing fresh tax concessions and a cut in the minimum area requirement to a quarter of the present specifications.
The department has suggested that any zone that is not built around the identified 40 million-plus cities and state capitals would be eligible for duty benefits on capital investment for construction of hotels, hospitals, schools and colleges, residential and business complexes and training, leisure and entertainment facilities in what is billed as non-processing area (NPA) infrastructure. Sources said the zones would be eligible for tax concession if built 50-100km from an urban conglomerate, with the facilities for exclusive use of SEZ employees.
In case of SEZs constructed in 123 backward districts, this infrastructure can also be used by those who are not part of the zone, a 48-page note said. At present, the rules specify
that an NPA can’t exceed half the area of an SEZ.
In addition, the department wants to extend the benefits of export schemes already available to entities outside the zones to SEZ units as well. This is aimed at making up for the levy of minimum alternate tax and withdrawal of other tax concessions by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee last year.
Further, nearly half the funding available under Aside, a scheme to build infrastructure for exports, may be allocated for building connectivity and infrastructure in SEZs.
According to the commerce department, since February 2006, 585 SEZs have been approved and 381 have been notified, with a majority of them related to information technology and IT-enabled services.
Realty developer Lodha Group will invest more than Rs 10,000 crore for project development on 22.5-acre land at Wadala in central Mumbai over next 5-7 years.
The proposed investment will include development and construction cost and Rs 4,050 crore as cost of land and interest on it to be paid to ...
Realty developer Lodha Group will invest more than Rs 10,000 crore for project development on 22.5-acre land at Wadala in central Mumbai over next 5-7 years.
The proposed investment will include development and construction cost and Rs 4,050 crore as cost of land and interest on it to be paid to Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority over the next five years.
"The project will be funded through internal accruals and customer advances. We hope to realise around $4 billion in the next seven years from this project," said Abhisheck Lodha, managing director, Lodha Group.
The development will be undertaken in four phases. The first phase will be spread over 1 million sq ft of residential space in two 63-storied towers. Of the total mixed-use development, 70% will be residential, while rest will be commercial and retail space.
In 2010, Lodha emerged as the highest bidder in the biggest-ever land deal in the city at an auction held by MMRDA. Lodha had bid Rs 4,050 crore for the right to lease a 25,000 sq mt plot for 65 years. MMRDA offered them the right to construct up to 4,95,000 sq mt, almost twenty times the plot area to the highest bidder. This bid also included developing a 101-storied iconic tower here on design, build, own, operate and transfer basis. The developer cancelled the plan as it did not get approval from DGCA, sources said.
However, a company official said, "We chose not to build it (101-storied tower) due to potential civil aviation risk. We never approached DGCA for this."
Lodha is awaiting a similar clearance from DGCA for its 117-storied World One project at Lower Parel in central Mumbai. The company has received permission for 90 floors of World One and hopes to receive nod for additional 27 floors soon, said Abhisheck Lodha. Lodha has started bookings for first phase of Wadala project, and has managed to book 280 apartments at base rate of 13,000 per sq ft, company officials said.
Rising borrowing costs and a slowdown in sales is forcing small realtors to look at bail-outs through joint development with larger groups - an opportunity that Godrej Properties hopes to cash in on.
Godrej Properties, the real estate arm of the Godrej Group, is jointly developing a
2.5-acre land ...
Rising borrowing costs and a slowdown in sales is forcing small realtors to look at bail-outs through joint development with larger groups - an opportunity that Godrej Properties hopes to cash in on.
Godrej Properties, the real estate arm of the Godrej Group, is jointly developing a
2.5-acre land parcel in Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai with Jet Airways and is also looking at similar deals, said Adi Godrej, chairman, Godrej Group.
According to the industry trackers, some real estate developers in Mumbai who were faced with credit crunch had approached cash rich developers such as Godrej to buy them out.
"There are certain deals we are discussing and we could be going ahead with joint development," Godrej told HT.
In the joint-development agreement, Godrej Properties takes a percentage in the total profit while the rest is passed on to the group company. Godrej Properties would add 8% of the total profit to its bottom line said Godrej.
Godrej Properties is also developing excess land within the group, held by other group companies with land parcels typically measuring 100 acres or more.
As part of this, it will develop a residential township on one of the biggest land parcels - a 120-acre plot - in Bangalore belonging to Godrej Agrovet.
"We have already announced a joint-venture development on a 35 acre plot a year ago. We are planning to have similar joint ventures with other Godrej group companies and we are waiting for permissions," said Godrej. "There are many land parcels in Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bangalore measuring 5-acres, 10 acres and one of 120-acres," he said.
Many conglomerates, especially the old business houses that have huge excess land surrounding their factories and offices, are now developing this excess land.
Sachin Dave and Tejeesh N S Behl, Hindustan Times
Mumbai, October 11, 2011
GREATER MOHALI AREA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (GMADA) launches Eco City Phase-I New Chandigarh (Mullanpur).
With practically no limitations or limits to its expansion and being virtually extension of Chandigarh, the state capital, Mohali has naturally come to be the hub of modern urban growth of Pun ...
GREATER MOHALI AREA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (GMADA) launches Eco City Phase-I New Chandigarh (Mullanpur).
With practically no limitations or limits to its expansion and being virtually extension of Chandigarh, the state capital, Mohali has naturally come to be the hub of modern urban growth of Punjab. With clean air, canal water and ample sunshine Mohali region is endowed with all the nature’s gifts for a healthy living.
It is not just chance that this region witnessed one of the earliest civilizations on earth 5000 years back and today has one of the most admired examples of urban planning in the country with easy grid layout of roads, well planned markets and open areas and has a Cricket Stadium that is known world over.
With International School of Business, Indian Institute of Technology(IIT) at 35 kms, Indian Institute of Science and Research, Biotech Park, National Institute of Biotechnology, Quark, Dell, Semi Conductor Complex to name a few and the upcoming International Airport, Mohali region is only regaining the glory due to it. With a current population of 2,50,000 and a rapid pace of in-migration comprising of professionals and those seeking good education for children and Punjabi diaspora cherishing a nest back home, Mohali is fast becoming the shining star of the region.
Eco City, is being developed by GMADA, North of Chandigarh in the Greater Mohali Region in New Chandigarh (Mullanpur). New Chandigarh is master planned as a spread out, low population density settlement for 400,000 persons eventually, with only 100 persons inhabiting an acre. Set in the picturesque backdrop of Shivalik Hills at 6kms from Madhya Marg Chandigarh, Eco City promises to be a spacious, calm abode promoting health, creativity and prosperity of its inhabitants.
LONDON: Visitors to London during the 2012 Olympics could have to pay up to 10 times the usual rate for a hotel room.
With one year to go until the start of the Games, hoteliers in the city have begun taking advantage of an anticipated influx in visitors from home and abroad.
Although the ma ...
LONDON: Visitors to London during the 2012 Olympics could have to pay up to 10 times the usual rate for a hotel room.
With one year to go until the start of the Games, hoteliers in the city have begun taking advantage of an anticipated influx in visitors from home and abroad.
Although the majority of hotels have not yet released their rates for the period covering the Games - July 27-August 12 - those which have are quoting prices well in excess of what they would usually be at that time of year, the Telegraph reports.
A double room at the Sheraton Park Tower this month, for example, costs 209 pounds a night. The price quoted for a stay in August next year is 605 pounds.
A night at the W London costs around 290 pounds this August. The same room during the Games will cost over 500 pounds.
Even bigger increases can be found at the Berjaya Hotel, where room rates typically range from 89 to 199 pounds. For every day of the Olympics, the price is 999 pounds a night.
Even the Youth Hostel Association's Earl's Court property has nearly doubled its rates from 15.65 to 30.65 pounds per night.
There are many families where the children are working abroad. However, the parents stay back in India. Having made a good amount of money, many of these non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origin (PIO) intend to come back to India later.
Also, they see India as a safe and good inv ...
There are many families where the children are working abroad. However, the parents stay back in India. Having made a good amount of money, many of these non-resident Indians (NRIs) and persons of Indian origin (PIO) intend to come back to India later.
Also, they see India as a safe and good investment option. Investing in property here is always a preferable option. But how can they do it? Can they invest in property in India? Are there any restrictions? How can they fund the investment?
First and foremost, thanks to the liberal policies of the government, NRIs and PIOs can purchase property in India. However, one needs to comply with the requirements of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). So, if your children are NRIs, they can buy property in India. It could be a residential property or a commercial property.
To add to it, there is no restriction on the number of properties they can purchase in India. Neither you nor they require any Reserve Bank of India (RBI) permission. However, they cannot buy agricultural land, plantation land or a farm house in India.
Funding the purchase
A NRI or PIO can pay either through funds remitted to India from abroad through regular banking channels or out of the balance in their NRE, NRO or FCNR accounts. One can take a loan from a bank to purchase the property. Banks provide housing loans to NRIs to buy a house. The purpose of the loan, margin money and the quantum of loan will be on par with those rules applicable to housing loans to residents.
Repayment of the loan should be made out of inward remittances or out of funds held in the investor's NRE, FCNR or NRO account. It can also be done out of rental income from such property or by the borrower's close relatives in India.
They have to purchase the property by way of a registered conveyance deed. In case the NRI is not present in India at the time of registration, he can execute a power of attorney in favour of someone, who can then execute the documents on his behalf. This person with the power of attorney should preferably be a relative of the NRI, father, brother etc.
The normal processes of registration and stamp duty apply even in such cases. It is advisable to either purchase jointly with a family member resident in India, or to give a power of attorney to some family member who is resident in India to deal o n behalf of the NRI
Does it make sense for NRIs to purchase property in India? Let's assume your son is working in the US and earning USD 8,000 per month. His family is in the US with him. He can save about USD 2,000 per month after paying all taxes and other expenses including rentals etc in the US. He wants to invest ...
Does it make sense for NRIs to purchase property in India? Let's assume your son is working in the US and earning USD 8,000 per month. His family is in the US with him. He can save about USD 2,000 per month after paying all taxes and other expenses including rentals etc in the US. He wants to invest this money safely. He is jittery about the uncertainties of the stock markets.
Moreover, the interest rates in the US being low, he does not want to park his money in bank deposits. Also, he plans to come back to India after a few years. So, he wants to invest in a secured asset in India.
One safe option is to repatriate the money to India and invest in property. Property investment options here are many. He can either go in for an under-construction property or for a built-up property.
In case of a under-construction property, it is advisable to go in for an upcoming area, where there is higher potential for price appreciation. In case of a built-up property, one should look for a developed area, as he can start getting immediate rental income.
So, let's say he shortlists a property by a reputed builder in a premium residential area of Bangalore. The cost of the two-bedroom flat is Rs 90 lakhs. He has been able to save and build a corpus of about Rs 30 lakhs in his NRE account in India. As the property is already built-up he needs to arrange for the balance Rs 60 lakhs plus another Rs 10 lakhs for registration and installing necessary fixtures and fittings.
He can pay off Rs 30 lakhs from his NRE account. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulations permit this. For the balance Rs 70 lakhs, he can apply to a bank for a home loan.
Most banks provide home loans to NRIs. Most of the conditions applicable to residents apply to NRIs as well. The bank also verifies, the current job profile, past experience, period for which he will continue to be abroad for the loan tenure, chances of servicing the loan in case of return to India, local income etc. One can meet the margin money requirement, around 25-30 percent through direct remittances from abroad. He can use the balance in a non-resident account in India too.
The bank will also consider his local income, if of a stable nature, in arriving at the loan eligibility. The document requirements are the normal ones, salary details, tax details, appointment letter, PAN card, if any, ID details, bank statements, passport copy, visa copy, a general Power of Attorney (POA) in favour of a local person, local income tax returns etc. Interest rates for NRI loans are almost the same as for residents.
Property documents required include the usual documents:
Original title deeds tracing the title of the property
Encumbrance certificate Agreement of sale or construction
Approved plan
MUMBAI: Jet Airways and Godrej Properties today signed a deal to develop one of the two plots owned by the airline in the premium Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) central business district here.
The deal involves Godrej Properties, the real estate development arm of the diversified Godrej Group, makin ...
MUMBAI: Jet Airways and Godrej Properties today signed a deal to develop one of the two plots owned by the airline in the premium Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) central business district here.
The deal involves Godrej Properties, the real estate development arm of the diversified Godrej Group, making an upfront payment of Rs 135 crore to Jet to compensate it for the expenses it had already incurred, besides taking on the Rs 350-crore debt the airline has on the 2.5-acre at C-68, G-Block, BKC plot.
The Naresh Goyel-promoted airline has another 1.5-acre plot in the BKC, but it is locked in a legal dispute with the Sahara Group. The Jet-Sahara case is pending at the Bombay High Court, which will come up for final hearing next Monday.
During a conference call with analysts after the release of first quarter results late last month, the airline had said it would sell off this plot once the court verdict was out.
That apart, Godrej Properties will also sell to Jet Airways 1,61,460 sqf of carpet area at development cost, where the Naresh Goyal promoted airline will move its headquarters on completion, the developer said in a release here.
Jet Airways' senior vice-president for finance Shiv Kumar could not be contacted for comments.
Godrej Properties will develop an approximately 1 million square feet of office space on the plot which will be completed in three years, the company said. Godrej Properties and Jet will share profits from the development in 50:50 ratio, the release said.
Leading architects Skidmore, Owings, & Merrill, which has designed many outstanding developments across the world, including the world's tallest building the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, has been signed on as lead architect.
Tax-free returns are enticing an increasing number of Indian investors into Dubai's property market according to independent real estate company, DAMAC Properties. Attracted by Dubai's world-class infrastructure, secure investment environment, tax-free returns and tightly regulated property market, ...
Tax-free returns are enticing an increasing number of Indian investors into Dubai's property market according to independent real estate company, DAMAC Properties. Attracted by Dubai's world-class infrastructure, secure investment environment, tax-free returns and tightly regulated property market, Indian investors are increasingly looking to invest in Dubai's prime real estate market, With potential capital appreciation and tax-free rental yields ranging 7-12 per cent, according to CBRE, premium properties in Dubai offer a safe and lucrative long-term investment. Niall McLoughlin, Senior Vice President, DAMAC Properties said, "At DAMAC Properties, we have witnessed a significant increase in enquiries about our Dubai portfolio from Indian investors looking to capitalise on favourable conditions in a secure market. Indian investors are weighing up the impact of property taxes at home, and deciding that Dubai is a more attractive market for sustainable long term investment." Dubai's property market appeals to Indian investors because there is zero tax on rental returns, and no capital gains tax. This is compared to India which demands tax on rental income as well as capital gains tax of about 20 per cent.
Shaikhani Contracting, a part of the Shaikhani Group, an international business conglomerate with interests in real estate development, trading, manufacturing and IT is planning to open its office in Abu Dhabi. The UAE capital has rapidly emerged as one of the Middle East region's most important con ...
Shaikhani Contracting, a part of the Shaikhani Group, an international business conglomerate with interests in real estate development, trading, manufacturing and IT is planning to open its office in Abu Dhabi. The UAE capital has rapidly emerged as one of the Middle East region's most important construction markets, according to a statement issued by Shaikhani Contracting. Abu Dhabi is currently witnessing an influx of new construction and development projects, which ably demonstrate the emirates, move towards meeting the goals set in the 'Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision.' The decision to open office in the UAE capital is part of its current move to reinforce its market presence in the region and to remain closer to partners and customers who are involved in different projects in Abu Dhabi. An industrial report released by Ventures Middle East, one of the region's leading communications and research firms, shows that a total of $39.8 billion worth of new projects will be coming up in Abu Dhabi during 2011.
A new visa system meant for property owners is going to be introduced in Dubai. Authorities are discussing ways of granting owners of properties in the emirate, residence visas based on transparent rules and legislation. According to experts, the new visa regulation has the capacity to give a fresh ...
A new visa system meant for property owners is going to be introduced in Dubai. Authorities are discussing ways of granting owners of properties in the emirate, residence visas based on transparent rules and legislation. According to experts, the new visa regulation has the capacity to give a fresh fillip to the stagnant real estate sector in the city, with many foreigners coming to the UAE. However, many realtors are extending a note of caution due to the costs involved, including maintenance and ownership fees, to register a property under the new rule. The new mechanism suggests that property owners to establish a company in the free zone and then the company will own the property which will let the property owner who owns the company to obtain a residence permit on the basis of ownership of the company, not the property, the official added. The residence visa will be valid as long as the ownership of the company is valid.
It could be a second innings for special economic zones, especially those held up for years, with the commerce department proposing fresh tax concessions and a cut in the minimum area requirement to a quarter of the present specifications.
Realty developer Lodha Group will invest more than Rs 10,000 crore for project development on 22.5-acre land at Wadala in central Mumbai over next 5-7 years.
The proposed investment will include development and construction cost and Rs 4,050 crore as cost of land and interest on it to be paid to ... 
Rising borrowing costs and a slowdown in sales is forcing small realtors to look at bail-outs through joint development with larger groups - an opportunity that Godrej Properties hopes to cash in on.
Godrej Properties, the real estate arm of the Godrej Group, is jointly developing a
2.5-acre land ... 
GREATER MOHALI AREA DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (GMADA) launches Eco City Phase-I New Chandigarh (Mullanpur).
With practically no limitations or limits to its expansion and being virtually extension of Chandigarh, the state capital, Mohali has naturally come to be the hub of modern urban growth of Pun ... 
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