Amdavadi end-users find properties in city unaffordable
Home seekers rush to GIHED property show but return disappointed as many fail to find houses in their preferred area or within their budget.
Property prices in Ahmedabad might be on the lower side compared to other tier-II cities such as Pune and Bengaluru, but they are still too high for many end users in the city.
Unaffordable realty prices coupled with paucity of choices at the property show organized by Gujarat Institute of Housing and Estate Developers (GIHED) at Thaltej crossroads on SG Highway from September 30 to October 2, left many aspiring buyers disappointed. This despite the fact that GIHED had made considerable effort to provide buyers from each segment of the realty market with a large number of choices at the property show.
When DNA checked the ground reality on the basis of potential property buyers’ budgets and the price range of the property available at the show, it found an affordability gap of around 20-30%. Interestingly, the gap was higher in the case of service class people compared to businessmen or self-employed people.
“I own a 4BHK bungalow in Ranip area and am looking for one of the same size in the range of Rs1.20 crore on Science City road, but the properties displayed at the show are in the range of Rs1.7 crore to Rs2 crore,” said KC Patel, a visitor on the first day of the three-day property show. He feels that the gap of around Rs50 lakh to Rs80 lakh is too much and he can’t afford to buy property at this rate.
Similar is the case of Mukesh Moradiya who wants to sell his 2BHK flat in Bopal and buy a new one in the same range. However, his budget falls short by around Rs10 lakh to buy a new property.
Some of the visitors at the GIHED property show were disappointed as they could not find options in their preferred area or within their budget. In the case of Gulzar Gangawani, an entrepreneur engaged in export-import business, options are available within his budget in his area of second preference but not in the first. “I want to settle in Ahmedabad in Sardarnagar area but there were no options available at the show from this area. However, I have options to settle down in Nikol,” he said. Rushabh Patel, president of GIHED, said that there might be an affordability gap of around 10-15% but it could be because of a hike in interest rates, inflation and higher commodity prices. “Recently two hikes in petrol prices have burnt people’s pockets. However, in the long run this will not impact aspiring home buyers’ decisions in a big way,” said Patel.