Canada-based NRI billionaire Bob Dhillon is all set to make a foray into India. Dhillon's Canadian real estate company, Mainstreet Equity, which owns more than 6,000 rental properties across Canada, is likely to set up a billion dollar India-specific real estate fund to mark its entry into the Indian real estate market. Dhillon has had talks with Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda showing interest in the state's vast realty market. The CM has also assured that Dhillon would get full support from the state government in case he buys land.
Dhillon, along with a Canadian delegation headed by the Canadian Prime Minister, also had a series of meetings with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia. "With the North American market stagnating, India is now the most attractive market for real estate and we are aiming at almost a billion dollars, which will be deployed in tranches over next three years," said Dhillon.
Mainstreet is planning to raise funds in the form of institutional capital from Canada, and some other markets where it has a presence. But Dhillon, who started selling homes at the age of 19 and became a millionaire at the age of 21, knows that his task is cut out. As a strategy for entry into India, Mainstreet Equity would look at buying distressed assets and an entity level joint venture with an Indian firm. "This is a strategy we have always adopted while entering new markets. We may have a partner for India also and we have already begun our due diligence," said Dhillon.
