Actor Namratha Gowda inaugurated ‘Living Spaces Property Expo 2024’ at Chandra Sagara Conventional Hall, Jayanagar, Bengaluru, on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: SUDHAKARA JAIN
Bengaluru’s realty market has been witnessing additional traction in the last couple of quarters with both individuals and businesses from across the country and overseas increasingly wanting to have a share in the market, as per industry players and financial institutions.
The trend was evident at ‘Living Spaces Property Expo 2024’, a two-day annual property exposition opened by The Hindu here on Saturday.
Sajid Hussain, Deputy General Manager, Customer Acquisition Centre, Punjab National Bank, said, “We are seeing an increased demand for homes in Bengaluru compared to other metros. Delivery from realty developers is also better here. More people are coming to the city wanting to own homes here. Bengaluru, being the tech hub and start-up capital, is a magnet that attracts people and companies from all over today.”
Impact of Act
Echoing similar sentiments, A. Venkat Ramana, Assistant General Manager, GBV-Head, Punjab National Bank, said the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act has brought a lot of sanity to the industry and in turn enhanced customer confidence. “Home and office space segments are big within a 100-km radius around the city,” commented Mr. Ramana.
According to Hemanth J., Regional Marketing Manager (Karnataka and Tamil Nadu), IIFL Finance, the home loan segment has been growing steadily as spending patterns and comfort preferences of people have hugely changed after the pandemic. “This year especially we are seeing steady demand for loans from individual home buyers and builders alike,” he said.
Casagrand, a realty developer which has five completed projects, eight ongoing projects and 10 projects in the pipeline, has reported traction across segments. “We are seeing movements in all categories ranging from ₹48 lakh to ₹2.5 crore,” said S. Purushotham Naidu, Brand Manager, Casagrand.
Women push home segment
According to Namratha Gowda, an actress and model in Bengaluru who inaugurated the expo, ‘Living Spaces’ is an ideal place to visit for people like her who want to save and invest in branded real estate properties, farmland, and house plots.
“The fact is, realty never depreciates and investments only grow. It is the right time to buy a home, and it is important to invest in Bengaluru. Our young working people should save and invest in real estate instead of wasting money on cars and expensive lifestyle products,” the Bigg Boss Kannada Season 10 participant opined.
She said girls generally tend to work hard to save money to buy jewellery and to fund their extravagant weddings. “I don’t think women should continue to do such things, instead, they should save money and try to own a place, that is real freedom.”
Confirming the trend was Kundavaram Mohan Rao, Marketing Officer, Central Bank of India, who said, the bank’s newly introduced Cent Grih Lakshmi, a home loan scheme for women, has received a significant response from the market. “This year we raked in housing loans of some ₹500 crore in Karnataka and ₹300 crore of these came from women homebuyers under Cent Grih Lakshmi.”
Rental farming
Rental farming is a new concept that is likely to emerge and catch up soon across Karnataka, said Tilak D.P, Director, Krushika Farming Community, an agricultural cooperative in Bengaluru. “There are a lot of people who are interested in farming but cannot afford to buy farmland or manage them round the year. Such individuals and families can explore farm rental options. This is an emerging segment in realty,” he added. He said community farming was a sustainable model.
The ongoing expo at Chandra Sagara Convention Hall near Ashoka Pillar, will on Sunday have Karthik Mahesh, film actor, model and Big Boss 2024 Season 10 winner, as the special guest.