Gachibowli among eight realty hotspots in India

Prices of residential properties in this prime locality are expected to soar in future P Madhusudhan Reddy Hyderabad: Gachibowli, which is home to several global IT biggies such as Microsoft and Amazon, is rated as one among the eight real estate hotspots in the country, thanks to its close proximity to the Hitech City which is slowly getting saturated. A recent report prepared by industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Jones Lang LaSalle India (JLL) on 'Emerging Investment Hotspots - Mining Opportunities from the Complex Real Estate Terrain of India' which named Gachbowli in the coveted list, said prices of residential properties in the prime locality would soar in future. Other locations that have found in the hotspots list include Thane, Navi Mumbai, Noida and Greater Noida in the National Capital Region, Whitefield (Bengaluru), Southern Suburbs (Chennai), Viman Nagar and Nagar Road (Pune) and Rajarhat (Kolkata). Situated just five kilometres away from Hitec City, Gachibowli has gained global prominence as Indian School of Business (ISB) is also located there. Besides being home for University of Hyderabad, this area houses several Indian IT giants such as TCS, Infosys and Wipro. Realty major DLF is also developing an IT park in this locality. The report explained the residential prices in the Gachibowli increased from Rs 3,800 per sft during January-March, 2012 to Rs 4,000 during January-March, 2013, registering a growth of 5.1 per cent. "The prices will further go up in coming months. The area will also see spurt in new launches as it is endowed with excellent infrastructure," it stated. "In the environment of uncertainty, returns through capital appreciation and security of the invested capital are obviously prime concerns. The pertinent question of where to invest needs to be answered. This report seeks to do just that," said Anuj Puri, Chariman and Country Head, JLL India. Puri, who is also the chairman of CII Real Estate Summit, further said: "With lower price levels and high expectations for capital appreciation in near future, these eight emerging locations have a significant number of investment options for the investors seeking properties with assured returns". According to the report, Noida and Greater Noida, which also emerged as hotspot, saw largest number of residential unit launches in the past three years. The presence of Formula One track which hosts Indian Grand Prix and opening of the Yamuna Expressway gave a fillip to the real estate sector here. Thane in Maharashtra emerged as a prime business district thanks to the cost conscious buyers while Nave Mumbai, on the other hand, offers options to all income groups. Bangalore's Whitefield, also in the list, is the most preferred IT and residential suburb of Bangalore's mid-income and upper mid-income population thanks to its connectivity. The southern suburb of Chennai which includes the major corridors along the Great Southern Trunk (GST) Road, Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) and East Coast Road (ECR) has been seeing faster development in the recent years. Pune's Viman Nagar owes its prominence to presence of IT companies nearby while Rajarjat, a satellite city planned near Kolkata way back in 1990s, is expected to improve its investment potential further.