4.28 PM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

Indian Property Show to help UAE NRIs cash in on weak rupee

Published
By Parag Deulgaonkar

Buying a property back home is the top-most priority of every non-resident Indian, at least for those living in the Gulf countries as the weakening rupee (Dh1=Rs15.56 as on Friday) has given an impetus to fulfill that objective.

Developers, showcasing their projects in the Indian Property Show, held at Dubai World Trade Centre, are an optimistic bunch, expecting to get a good number of booking this year.

Their confidence is based on the fact that the rupee is plunging and has fallen 30 per cent in last six months. On Friday, it hit a nine-month low of Rs57.12 against USD.

Ravi Sharma, Associate Vice-President, International Sales, Lodha Group, told ‘Emirates24|7’ that they had done business worth Dh250 million in April this year and were expecting do better than that.

“Over 60 per cent of our buyers are from Dubai and the rest across the GCC. Over the years, the numbers have increased.”

Sharma ruled out any chance of price decline in Mumbai, saying: “The volumes may have come down but prices have increased by almost 20 per cent from last year.”

Rishab Thukral, General Manager, Better Option Propmart, which is selling Jaypee Group in the NCR, also rules out chances of a price decline.

“Not just the weakened rupee, better education and reverse brain drain are also leading to increased demand for properties. The prices may have stagnated, but there is no dip.”

Sunil Jaiswal, CEO, Sumansa Exhibitions, said: “Currently the Indian realty sector is very vibrant, the otherwise lacklustre sector has received a sudden boost and this is due to the increased remittances from NRI’s. It is expected that this money will be invested in property as this is the only sector which has shown positive growth over the years.”

As per World Bank report on remittances, India is the world’s largest recipient of remittances with the country benefiting from a record $64 billion in 2011, a 10 per cent increase over the $58 billion it received in 2010.

However, PropEquity Analytics, a Gurgaon-based real estate research firm, has said poor home sales in the past few months, the inventory overhang of unsold units, high interest rates and a slowing economy have hit the realty markets of the National Capital Region, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region and Bangalore.

Developers in the Indian Property Show, which ends June 23, are showcasing properties ranging from Rs800,000 to Rs90 million.

[Image via Shutterstock]

 

MUST READ:

Sellers greedy as realty soars


No threat of cooling disconnection in Palm's Marina Residences


It's official: Rent contract must for Dubai visit visa