Chandigarh, Nagpur, Kochi: the new hot spots
Chandigarh, Nagpur, Kochi: the new hot spots
New Delhi: Chandigarh—the capital city of Haryana and Punjab—tops a list of the country’s emerging real estate growth centres in a new Knight Frank study of 15 cities. Relatively low property prices, availability of land, an untapped labour pool and improving quality of life are the factors that put Chandigarh on the top spot.
No. 2 on the list is Nagpur, an industrial city in Maharastra which has recently grown into a major aviation hub with a new multi-modal cargo hub and a Boeing repair and overhaul facility to service airplanes coming up.
“The ranking has been primarily done from point of the view of real-estate destinations," said Malvika Chandra, head of research for Knight Frank India.
The listing took into account real-estate prices, infrastructure, the cost of living, business environment and the education and purchasing power of residents.
Chandigarh and its suburbs scored well because of its wealthy residents, business-friendly policies and recent information-technology development projects. Property values here have grown about 25-30% in the last year, Chandra said. But she said the city has a shortage of hotels and entertaintment venues.
Property prices in Chandigarh have increased about 15% (or Rs3,000 per sq.ft) in the past year according to property consultancy Colliers International.
Kunal Banerji, vice-president of marketing for Ansal Properties & Infrastructure, said Chandigarh’s spot on the list didn’t surprise him.
“People there have gone abroad and come back," Banerji said. “There’s a lot of wealth there... I think it’ll continue growing."
Others in the top slot include Goa and Kochi which tied for third, followed by Visakhapatnam and Ahmedabad.
Chandra said what might surprise people is Kochi’s No. 3 rank. “With growth in medical tourism, eco-tourism and IT/ITeS sector, the city has emerged as an important investment hub of South India," the report said. “Residential demand has been rising on the back of increasing IT/ITeS activity in the city."
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