Red Fort Capital Invests Rs 120Cr In Parsvnath Office Project

October 25 2010, 12:56:14 IST | MADHAV A. CHANCHANI; VCCircle

Red Fort Parsvnath Towers, coming up in Delhi's Connaught Place area, will have 30 lakh sq ft leasable area.

Delhi-based realty firm Parsvnath Developers Ltd (PDL) is selling a 24.5% stake for Rs 120 crore in its upcoming office complex project in the city centre to Red Fort Capital. The PE firm is taking the stake in 'Red Fort Parsvnath Towers', a state of the art office complex coming up in New Delhi's Connaught Place.

Parsvnath has already executed a concession agreement with Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to deliver the project on built, operate  and transfer (BOT) basis for Rs 99.5 crore. This concession has been assigned to Farhat Developers Pvt Ltd where Red Fort is picking up the stake. Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is likely to construct the project on a turnkey basis and has already been given a letter of intent.

'Red Fort Parsvnath Towers' is expected to be a grade A commercial complex located on a five-acre land, next to the Metropolitan Hotel. It will have 3000,000 sq. ft. of leaseable area with 800 basement parking space.

Red Fort last year invested in a residential project of Parsvnath in New Delhi. The developer raised a total of Rs 115 crore from Red Fort for 22% stake in ‘Parsvnath La Tropicana’, a group housing project of the company in north Delhi.

The share price of Parsvnath was trading at Rs 68 per unit, slightly up by 0.15% at 3 pm today. Earlier this month, Parsvnath raised Rs 270 crore through private placement of shares through a qualified institutional placement.

"New Delhi's CBD currently lacks sufficient grade A office supply, and Red Fort Parsvnath Towers will enable office end-users to upgrade into a modern commercial campus with ample parking and international amenities," said Parry Singh, managing director of Red Fort.

There have been 33 private equity deals with disclosed value of $1,021 million in the real estate sector so far this year, according to VCCEdge. This as compared 20 deals worth $544 million during the same period last year.

Most of the PE action in realty so far this year has been focused on the residential developments, though there is an appetite for well-conceived commercial projects with strong connectivity and good locations. In one of the largest PE deals, IL&FS Milestone Fund picked up a 74% stake for Rs 575 crore in HCC Real Estate's 247 Park, a corporate park located in Mumbai's Vikhroli (West).

Sobha Developers Q2 Net Profit Surges to Rs 58.9 crore -Plans Entry into Gurgaon

Bangalore-based Sobha Developers registered a net profit of Rs 58.9 crore for the quarter ended September, up 114 per cent from the corresponding quarter last fiscal. The company has posted a net profit of Rs 27.5 crore in the second quarter last fiscal. The company’s revenue grew to Rs 431.3 crore as compared to Rs 226.3 crore in the second quarter, up by 91 per cent, according to a company press release.

In terms of half-yearly, revenues grew to Rs 750.3 crore up by 85 per cent compared to first half of last fiscal. Net profit grew to Rs 93.2 crore, compared to Rs 40.2 crore last fiscal, up by 132 per cent. The company sold 744,678 square feet in Q2 FY11, volume up 90 per cent from Q2 FY10.

The company in the 2nd Quarter of FY11 sold 744,678 sq ft as compared to 392,022 sq ft in the same period of FY10, volume was up by 90 per cent. The company in the 1st Half of FY11 sold 1,415,561 sq ft of area, as compared to 642,407 sq ft.
J C Sharma, managing director, Sobha Developers, said: “The performance of the last two quarters clearly shows that demand is back into the market. Not only has our sales increased but also we have been able to launch two new projects. Also, we have done a select price increase in some of our projects.”
“Also during the 2nd quarter we have succeeded in monetising land for Rs 114 crore. With this, we hope to achieve our projected land monetisation of Rs 200 crore for the current financial year. On the contractual front, which is our other vertical, we have seen a growth of about five per cent compared to the 1st quarter of the current financial year and 100 per cent jump during the current quarter compared to the corresponding period of the previous year and a jump of 75 per cent in the top line during 1st Half compared to the corresponding period of the last year,” Sharma added.
Elaborating on the company’s growth plans, Sharma said: “There would be about 6.48 million sq ft of new launches this year. Currently Sobha has ongoing projects in Bangalore, Thrissur, Coimbatore and Pune. Apart from these four cities, we have planned to launch our projects in Gurgaon and Chennai in the current fiscal.”

Sahara Awaits Real Estate Boom to Launch its IPO

Sahara India Group will wait for the market conditions to turn favourable for the real estate sector before taking its realty arm public. Sahara’s real estate company, Sahara Prime City Ltd (SPCL), has been mulling an Initial Public Offering (IPO) to raise funds from the capital market for quite some time. The company had filed DRHP with SEBI last October but did not go ahead with the IPO due to bearish conditions.

“The market is not good for real estate sector at this moment. So we are not taking much interest in this (proposed IPO),” Sahara India Group’s chief, Subrata Roy, told PTI.

“Moreover, if you get permission (from SEBI), then you get limited time to hit the market,” Roy added. SPCL through its wholly owned subsidiary owns and operates Sahara Hospital and through another subsidiary operates the Sahara Star hotel in Mumbai. Besides Sahara, other real estate developers such as Lodha Developers, Ambiance, Supertech and Emaar MGF also have plans to come out with public issues and waiting for opportune time.

Thai realtor Pruksa Lunched Residential Project in Bangalore

Thai real estate developer Pruksa Global plans to invest Rs 1,000 crore in projects in India and launched its first residential project in the country at Bangalore on Wednesday. The company has incorporated a wholly-owned subsidiary in India, Pruksa India Housing, which announced a 26-acre villa and row house project in Bangalore.

“Continuing our growth in Thailand, we want to invest in opportunities in other countries too. And India will be our first country outside Thailand,” said Thongma Vijitpongpun, CEO, Pruksa Real Estate.

The project, located at Budigere, off Old Madras Road, will develop 438 units in all — 238 villas and 200 row houses. Villas of about 1,632 sq ft will be priced Rs 59 lakh onwards, while row houses ranging between 1,232 sq ft and 1,249 sq ft will be available from Rs 39 lakh onwards. As an introductory offer, the company announced a Rs 2 lakh discount on the base price, and the offer will be available till November 14.

The company plans to launch 5-6 projects in Bangalore over the next four years, and is also planning launches in Chennai and Mumbai. It would enter into joint-venture agreements with developers in Chennai and Mumbai, company officials said.

FIIs cross US$ 20 billion mark

New Delhi: Net foreign institutional investor (FII) inflows crossed the US$ 20 billion mark on October 5, 2010, surpassing the US$ 17.7 billion high recorded in 2007, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) data.

Significantly the data illustrated that while the bulk of the inflows—US$ 15.3 billion—came through the secondary market route, US$ 5 billion was invested in the country through initial public offerings (IPO), qualified institutional placement (QIP), rights offers and other equity issuances by Indian companies to foreigners.

Additionally, the net FII inflows in the debt segment also crossed the US$ 10 billion mark on October 5, 2010, as per SEBI data, which was also reported as a new yearly high. putting up a new high figure. The global investors increasingly believe in the India’s growth story.

Jaypee Group in Association with Concept Tree to Organise Indian Property Show at Auckland

Indian property has seen a phenomenal growth in the recent past and it is now looked upon as one of the best investment options. With the festive season around the corner, this is probably the best time to invest in properties back in India. Auckland will witness an Indian property show at Alexandra Park, Epsom on October 30 and 31. The show is being presented by the renowned Jaypee Group in association with Concept Tree.

The Jaypee Group is a Rs. 10,000 crore well diversified infrastructure conglomerate with a formidable presence in engineering, construction, power, cement, real estate, hospitality, expressways and education. Builders like Jaypee are offering various discounts for Diwali for NRIs to avail of special offers. The real estate division of Jaypee Group – Jaypee Greens is a pioneer in the development of India’s first golf centric Real Estate at Greater Noida consisting of a Greg Norman 18-hole championship golf course.

The project is spread of over 452 acres & with 85% of green and open areas, it also features a 9-hole golf course, a world class integrated sports complex, a 60 acre nature reserve park and multiple social clubs along with premium residential options. Jaypee Greens also launched its second project – Jaypee Greens Wish Town in Noida in November 2007 amassing over 1162 acres. This is an integrated township featuring high and low end residential options, commercial spaces with IT parks and shopping malls, a five star hotel, over 40 schools and colleges, a 450 bed super speciality hospital and various recreational facilities like an 18 and a 9 hole golf course, multiple social clubs with swimming pools, health clubs and sporting options.

The group also launched India’s first Sports City amassing over a massive 5000 acres of land. Sports City will feature India’ first Formula 1 track being built by the Jaypee Group. The first race is scheduled for 31st October 2011. Concept Tree is an Australia based Indian real estate advisory, providing end to end support in buying property in India. It offers a range of services including Indian real estate property research, home loan assistance, complete support with paper work and property management services.

India to grow at 9.7 per cent in 2010: IMF

IBEF, New Delhi: India's growth projection has been revised upwards by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to 9.7 per cent for 2010, from the earlier estimate of 9.4 per cent. It is the third straight revision of IMF's growth projections for India.

The economy was projected to expand by 8.8 per cent, earlier. IMF's projection for India is the highest among those made by several agencies. The government and Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have estimated gross domestic product (GDP) growth at around 8.5 per cent for 2010-11.

RBI pointed out in its latest Macroeconomic and Monetary Developments Report that IMF's growth projections were for GDP at market prices, which includes the trend in indirect taxes net of subsidies.

The upward trend in indirect tax collections has continued. According to the latest data released by the Ministry of Finance, April-August 2010 witnessed the increase in these taxes by approximately 46 per cent to over US$ 28.05 billion.

While the IMF's World Economic Outlook report does not spell out its methodology, the agency's estimates put India’s growth estimates next only to China. It has said the India growth story was led increasingly by domestic demand. "Robust corporate profits and favourable external financing will encourage investment," it said. The report further added that low reliance on exports, accommodative policies and strong capital inflows have supported domestic activity and growth.

Also, IMF listed India among economies that are growing above potential. Among the policy prescriptions, the report listed out fiscal consolidation as a priority area.

Furthermore, IMF expects the recovery to continue and the world economy is projected to expand by 4.8 per cent, compared with 4.6 per cent estimated earlier. For 2011, the projection has been retained at 4.2 per cent, with Asia leading the recovery.

Indian Real Estate Developer to Invest $130 million in Bahrain

Bahrain Bay Development BSC, the $2.5 bn landmark waterfront community on the north shore of Manama, has announced that its Indian Third Party Developer, the Ajmera Mayfair consortium, intends to invest up to $130 million in residential development within Bahrain Bay.
“The Ajmera Mayfair Group are making great progress on their ambitious project, which will form an important part of Bahrain Bay when it is completed. We are very pleased that Ajmera Mayfair chose Bahrain Bay as their first real estate investment outside of India,” said CEO of Bahrain Bay Bob Vincent.

The Ajmera Mayfair consortium plans to build a twin towered residential development within Bahrain Bay. The project, which is being designed by architect firm Skidmore Owings & Merrill (SOM), will offer state of the art freehold high-end residential apartments. Ajmera Mayfair Group officials provided an update on their project’s progress, besides announcing the completion of its land payment and the transfer of title from Bahrain Bay to Ajmera Mayfair.
“We feel that Bahrain and Bahrain Bay is the right place to be investing for long term returns,” said Nayan Shah, CEO of Mayfair Group.

“This is our first investment outside of India and is one of great importance. Bahrain Bay is an excellent master plan development and offers significant benefits to developers, such as land parcels complete with infrastructure as well as a world class living and working environment,” he added.
Ajmera Mayfair consortium has an annual turnover of over $250 million and $1 billion in assets. Currently engaged in over 30 mega projects, the Group joined the Bahrain Bay team after seeing the visibility of real estate investment in Bahrain and learning about Bahrain’s Vision 2030.

NHB Set to Tighten Rules Governing Affordable Housing

The housing regulator plans to tighten the rules governing affordable housing as it looks to ensure that projects built on subsidised priority loans are actually delivered. The National Housing Bank is working on a proposal that seeks to make it mandatory for such projects to get rated by credit rating agencies such as Crisil and CARE . “We are yet to work out the details,” said RV Verma, chairman and managing director of National Housing Bank, a housing finance institution owned by the Reserve Bank, which also functions as the sector regulator.

“We will hold discussions with the real estate industry, financial institutions, government bodies and other stakeholders before finalising the guidelines,” he said. There are over 25 developers across seven states in urban India, which offer good-quality low-cost housing in the range of Rs 3-7 lakh.

The move to get ratings is aimed at bringing in transparency and discipline into the market and enhancing allround confidence. “Better and credible information will be available in the market, which will benefit all stakeholders,” Mr Verma said. If the proposal sails through, the financing institutions will be in a better position to provide lending to real estate projects, both directly and indirectly.

“Ratings will provide us with the comfort that loan to such groups or buyers in that project will not turn into non-performing assets,” said a senior official with the country’s largest lender, State Bank of India . The ratings will also be a useful indicator of the quality of the project and the developer. It will also provide information on the current standing of the project. The move has also found favour with other government arms. According to an official with the ministry of housing and urban poverty alleviation, credit rating will encourage builders as they’ll also be sure of credit being made available to them.

Banks and Realtors Collaborate to make India a ‘Slum Free Country’

Seeking viable solutions to make India slum-free, Government on Monday invited banks, other financial institutions and the real estate sector to use its interest subsidy scheme for construction of affordable houses for urban poor. “There is a need for credit enhancement through appropriate fiscal, legal and institutional mechanism to ensure the flow of capital to realise the vision of slum free India,” Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Minister Kumari Selja said here on the occasion of World Habitat Day.

“I invite all the stakeholders particularly the banks, financing institutions and the real estate sector to come forward to make use of the opportunities offered by our schemes such as Interest Subsidy Scheme for Housing the Urban Poor and the Scheme for Affordable Housing in Partnership and to work hand-in-hand to find viable solutions which make a positive lasting impact on our cities,” she said.

Urban population is expected to increase manifold in the next two decades. In the absence of proper homes, people are forced to reside in inhabitable and often unsafe places. According to the ministry, the total urban housing shortage was 24.71 lakh as on 2007.

Seeking ways to deal with housing shortage, she said, “the housing deficit cannot be addressed only by government programmes. A strategy is required which converts the housing shortage into a market opportunity and mobilises private investments.” Lamenting that urban poor face financial exclusion, she said, “financial institutions are reluctant to lend to the lower income segments in view of perceived credit risks, lack of credit history and difficulties in foreclosure of loans. This outlook requires a change.”