Page 18 - Banking Finance June 2020

HOUSING

Across South and Central Delhi, tony have taken a knock. Some apartments Property websites are seeing more
locales such as Sundar Nagar, Golf in BKC's G block, ranging in size from house vacancies in core areas. On
Links, Jor Bagh, Vasant Vihar and 2,900 sq ft to 3,200 sq ft, commanded Quikr.com, a marketplace that also has
Malcha Marg, among others, are wit- a rent of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 6 lakh. These a platform for buying and leasing prop-
nessing a rise in vacancies in the wake are now available at Rs 4 lakh to Rs 5 erty, listings of rental homes in
of the coronavirus outbreak. In lakh. Bigger houses in the complex are Bengaluru increased by 112 per cent
Mumbai, rents for residences in the spread across 11,000 sq ft and com- in June compared to May. "This could
BKC area have plummeted by 10 to 20 mand a rent of Rs 12 lakh to Rs 14 lakh. be because residential property own-
percent. "If there are no takers in the These, too, have seen a reduction of ers and brokers are looking for tenants
next two months, one may witness a about 10-20 percent at Rs 8 lakh to Rs to occupy vacant houses," said a com-
further reduction in rents in the area," 9 lakh and Rs 12 lakh, respectively. pany spokesperson.
said Ritesh Mehta, senior director and Expats in Bengaluru take up properties The average rents for 1, 2 and 3BHK
head, West India, Residential, Jones in Whitefield, the Outer Ring Road or units in the city have decreased. "The
Lang Lasalle India. near the airport. These normally com- average rent of a 1BHK was Rs 6,900

Simply put, these 'dollar' homes have mand a rent of Rs 3 lakh to Rs 7 lakh a in June as against Rs 8,000 in May;
2BHK, Rs 31,000 in June and Rs 48,000
lost their sheen. In pre-pandemic times, month. But brokers say that with some
in May. Even 3BHKs are seeing a dip in
these plush environs housed expatri- expats going home, leasing activity in
ates who shelled out anywhere be- the city has come down drastically. the average rental pricing in the city,"
tween Rs 3 lakh to over Rs 30 lakh as "We would close around two to three according to an analysis by Quikr. Ex-
rent for bungalows and apartments, rental deals a month before Covid-19. perts say rent levels may reduce fur-
which ranged in size from 3,000 sq ft In the last six months, we have done ther if the pandemic doesn't ease and
to over 11,000 sq ft. For landlords, only four and those, too, involve local companies decide to extend the WFH
option for a few more months.
these homes spelt guaranteed dollar businessmen, and heads of manufac-
income. turing and retail companies," said a "Given the current situation of job cuts
broker, who did not want to be named. and salary losses, tenants are also va-
Covid-19 has clearly altered that equa-
cating some properties or demanding
tion, with most expats heading home
to be with their families, and no indi- Covid alters rental housing rent relief. With WFH becoming the
cation on when they will be back or demand in Bengaluru norm, we see a lot of demand from
peripheral areas of Bengaluru due to
whether they will be back. Tariq, the affordability and fresh supply. Going
founder of the website housetrue.com, The demand for rental residential prop- forward, the increase in supply will
points out that a spurt in the number erties in some core city areas has shrunk
because of the changes and disruptions make rentals more affordable across all
of household goods auctions clearly
caused by the coronavirus pandemic, major markets," said Sudhir Pai, CEO
indicates that expats are going back to
while more people are looking for spa- of MagicBricks.com.
their home countries and may not re-
cious homes on the outskirts, say indus- The demand for spacious and afford-
turn in the next six months to a year.
try experts. In many places, rents have able houses is growing on the city's
As Jones Lang Lasalle's Mehta explains: fallen or are being renegotiated, a rare outskirts. "Our recent surveys have
"The rental market in Mumbai was occurrence in the tech capital's other- revealed that the major reason for
robust until Covid-19 happened. The wise thriving rental housing segment. renting a new place now is the need
who's who of the country, such as in- Remote work arrangements and online for a bigger house. Bengaluru West
dustrialists, film stars, diamond mer- classes, which don't require profession- has outperformed other regions, wit-
chants and top stockbrokers would pick als to stay near their workplace or kids' nessing 7 per cent higher average per
up prime apartments in the BKC area school, salary cuts and job losses are day query in June compared to Febru-
as they were assured of immediate among the factors that have triggered ary," said Maneesh Upadhyaya, chief
space take-up by expats. Today, with a reverse migration of sorts. Essentially, business officer of 99acres.com.
expats having returned home, leasing more renters now seem to be search- Saurabh Garg, co-founder and chief
has taken a hit temporarily." ing for accommodation outside the city business officer of Nobroker.in, said

Consequently, the rents in these locales than inside. renters' requirements had changed. T

18 | 2020 | JUNE | BANKING FINANCE