A Few Thoughts
The past few months have not been great for India, for that matter many parts of the world. Exception seems to be United States whose economy has seen substantial recovery in recent times. US being the largest economy in the world, brings a ray of hope to the rest of the countries, including India. There is a lot of turmoil in Europe due to the migrant crisis & terrorism, and they are busy grappling with the problem. While low oil prices have benefi tted oil importing countries like India, it has created problems for several oil producing countries in the Middle East, South America and Russia. All this is bound to result in continued economic uncertainty witnessed across the world during the last few months.
While the Indian economy is in a relatively better shape with 7% plus GDP growth, it is likely to become a case of missed opportunities to reach double digit growth in spite of its huge potential. Other than creating the much needed positive sentiment, the single party majority government at the Centre hasn’t succeeded in kick starting major infra projects, in implementing majors policy changes and living up to the election promises made. It is rather sad that opposition parties have unfortunately blocked important initiatives like GST which could have had far reaching positive impact on the Indian economy and its GDP growth rate.
Even at the State & Civic authority levels, the progress in introducing policy improvements is painfully slow. Bangalore, which is internationally recognized, contributes more than 2/3rds of Karnataka State revenue. But, the State does not invest adequately to take care of the milch cow resulting in poor infrastructure, traffi c & garbage issues and inability to cope up with urban growth. Citizens can only hope that before it becomes too late (and allowing it to go down like Kolkata) the decision makers will wake up and act. It is too hurtful to witness the negative publicity our beautiful City gets in the national media.
Brigade Group is not a mute spectator and a critic. In recent times, we spent crores of rupees to make neighbourhood improvements - restored the 23 acre Sitharampalya Lake in Whitefi eld; developed a 3 acre citizens park & a 5 acre playground in Malleswaram; and installed a pedestrian bridge with escalators in Rajajinagar. It gave us immense satisfaction. These signifi cant eff orts were recognized recently by All India Real Estate Developers Association - CREDAI National - when they conferred the National Awards to BRIGADE in two categories - one for Environmental Impact and the other for Social Infrastructure.
Real Estate Management Bill, which was in the offi ng since 2013 should become a reality soon. It is bound to protect the customers by answering their concerns and regulate the way business is conducted by the Developers. It is pro long term players and anti ‘fl y-by-night’ operators. Even then, developers fear that it will add time & cost to launch projects and may become one more window to face harassment, as the Bill contains several draconian clauses for non-compliance.
With excess stock and a ‘status quo’ economy, real estate prices are depressed in general and stable in few cities like Bangalore. For a prudent investor, it is a good time to buy. With deposit rates coming down, Bank deposits are not attractive; with US Dollar gaining strength, Gold is losing its luster; with Stock market being very volatile, it has become too risky for a non- professional operator.
Whatever may be the external factors, hope is what keeps an optimist going. Let us hope 2016 will bring us cheer!
Wishing our readers the Very Best in the year ahead - 2016.