Although sustainable real estate is still in a nascent stage in the country, India is actually one of the leading counties when it comes to green buildings development. In fact, India ranks only second after the U.S. in terms of the number of green technology projects and built-up area.
No practitioner of brand management would today refuse to be a proponent of social media, but the role of social media is effective only when one makes use of a prudent media mix, including the traditional media, television and social media.
Some call it market intelligence and not due diligence where the focus should be more on the micro markets than general trends which could be misleading. However, there are many grey areas where in the absence of proper research and reliable data even the assessment of ground realities is not feasible.
The new regulatory regime is largely about steps, which include streamlining approval processes, simplifying taxation (GST), building institutional capacity, as also introducing urban planning and real estate-related reforms (RERA and REITs).
The prevailing sentiment among the home buyers is quite negative. The developers have definitely failed to identify the strategic and operational challenges that can goad the sector to adopt the best practices. There is no specified industry standard that can be widely accepted as best practice and the industry bodies are seen as builders’ lobbies.
During the CREDAI national convention few years back, a miffed real estate seemed to settle scores with the then Union Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath. Displaying stiff opposition to the proposed real estate regulator, the builders’ body went critique to say it is not actually a regulator bill, but builders’ harassment and public amusement bill.
The developers are by and large living in denial. The deep rooted psyche is that once the market conditions improve the buyers have no choice but to run for an asset class that is not only need-based but also a business where the demand far exceeds the supply. This medieval thought process is in fact the biggest roadblock in the way of best practices gaining ground in the Indian real estate.
A section of home equipment suppliers even admit that over-dependence on builder contracts that ensure bulk buying, going overboard on commitments and under-utilisation of retail network are the major reasons why they are trapped in a vicious circle today.
It is not just about the way the Indian builders operate with media, more often than not, being forced to be a cheer leader, rather the subject itself does not excite the largest contributors in this space – the youth. The kind of creative avenue that they have while writing on various others subjects, like travel to food and fashion to lifestyle is something that the brick & mortar business does not provide them. After all, the bloggers would not necessarily enjoy travelling to project site as the look & feel of most of the projects is identical.
Crowdfunding in the property market, the world over, is mostly associated with the commercial real estate segment. The most common forms of crowdfunding in the developed property markets are debt and equity.