Uncertainty haunts Hyderabad realty

A survey by industry body Ficci revealed that Indian real estate sector would need one to two years to come out of the damage caused by Covid-19. KPMG India, a financial advisory services major, said in its recent report that the housing sector would see weakened sales and muted demand with significant reduction in the new launches

The real estate sector in Hyderabad, which suffered a lot for a few years before 2015 thanks to the uncertainty prevailing at that time, had a kind of golden run, witnessed huge jump in sales and enjoyed rapid rise in land prices in the last four years or so. That way, it was the boom time for the Hyderabad real estate even as the sector suffered sluggishness and slowdown in India's other key metro cities including Mumbai, the country's commercial capital, and New Delhi, India's political capital.

That way, the key sector in the City of Charminar entered the New Year 2020 in a celebratory mood and with high expectations. But that optimism did not last long as India, like all other countries, landed in an unprecedented health crisis triggered by Covid-19, the deadly pandemic caused by a novel strain of coronavirous that originated in China and engulfed the world. Realty sales in the city came to a virtual standstill after the Modi government declared a 21-day national lockdown on March 24 to contain the spread of Covid-19. Works at under-construction real estate projects also stopped due to the lockdown. This might lead to delay in the completion of projects. That way, it is double whammy for the real estate developers in the city.

With ample chances of the lockdown which is scheduled to be over on April 14, getting extended till April end and beyond, the pain of the city's realty is set to continue. As practicing social distancing norm is imperative to keep Covid-19 at bay, site visits by customers are unlikely to happen for quite some time even after lifting of the lockdown. So will also be the sales. "The world is going through a toughest period we have not seen in our lifetime. Every sector is now in doldrums. Real estate is no exception. It's too early to say what is in store for the sector. We can't say anything until the lockdown is lifted and normalcy is restored. Then only, we can say something about the impact of Covid-19 on the Hyderabad real estate," a leading developer in the city told The Hans India.

The developer further said that companies should be prepared for the worst. "Most of the developers in city started from the scratch. They have seen many ups and downs. So, the sector will bounce back. But it may take some time though," he added.

A survey by industry body Ficci revealed that Indian real estate sector would need one to two years to come out of the damage caused by Covid-19. KPMG India, a financial advisory services major, said in its recent report that the housing sector would see weakened sales and muted demand with significant reduction in the new launches.

"We are assessing the impact of Covid-19 on the Hyderabad realty. There will be demand and supply side issues. However, we have seen resilience and positiveness among developers who are assessing what will be the worst case scenario," said a senior executive of a real estate consultancy. He further mentioned that developers in Hyderabad are actively preparing for a comeback . "Developers in the city are cautiously optimistic and they want to respond to any challenge," he said.

However, it is going to be a long, tough battle for the developers and real estate companies which enjoyed a golden run in the city till a month ago, as the sector has once again landed in an uncertainty territory, thanks to corona crisis. Will the realty sector in the city bounce back quickly? Only time will tell.