As home sales continue to dip, real estate developers are tapping the luxury home segment by targeting non-resident Indians and high net worth individuals keen on buying that exclusive villa in India. The move also seems to be backed by pure market play as demand in the luxury home segment is growing sharply, bucking the trend seen in other areas of the industry where exposure to high-risk borrowers has tightened loan flow from banks.
Real estate players whom ET spoke to said these 'nouveau riche' were now moving up the chain and extending their possessions to luxury homes with ultra sophisticated amenities like personal swimming pools, jogging tracks, health clubs and personal gardens.
Leading real estate developers like Sobha Developers, DLF, Kalpataru, Nitesh Estates, Unitech, Omaxe, Royal Palms, Lodha Developers and Marvell Realtors are currently developing projects in cities like Mumbai, Delhi Pune, Goa, Bangalore and Kerala, with the price of an average luxury home varying between Rs 3 crore and Rs 50 crore. The price of the luxury home depends on the city it is built in and the range of amenities it offers.
"Our customers typically belong to the top management in various corporate firms while some are overseas Indians," says Nitesh Shetty, chairman of Nitesh Estates which has priced its luxury home products in Goa, Bangalore and Chennai in the range between Rs 5 crore and Rs 8 crore. The Bangalore-based firm is currently marketing its projects in the overseas market by hiring sales executives and participating in property exhibitions.
