A combination of factors — primarily, easy access to different modes of transport and proximity to job-generating industrial clusters — has resulted in areas in West Chennai city limits as well as pockets in the western suburbs attracting the attention of developers, including national players.
Apart from areas along Mount – Poonamallee Road – the corridor that originates from Guindy – which is going to be a multi-modal transport hub, villages tucked away from it are witnessing the construction of high rise projects. A recent study by Proptiger, a real estate advisory firm, showed that West Chennai witnessed an annual price appreciation higher than even Central Chennai.
The study, however, said that on the basis of launch of new projects and their subsequent delivery, south Chennai and south-western areas continued to top the list, accounting for as much as about 60 per cent of total sales and more than half of the new launches.
The findings of the study come at a time when there are concerns about the huge volume of unsold inventory — homes that are yet to be completed, long after the project launch. “Markets are tight and inventory is high as developers should improve cash flow. What is needed in the market is re-visiting the fundamentals and if there is greater transparency on the status of projects with focus on timely delivery, people’s confidence will increase,” explained Anurag Jhanwar, head, consulting and data insights, Proptiger.
“With already an operational Metro route, a suburban railway line and a bus junction, Guindy is set to become a multi-modal hub. Once the MRTS is commissioned, people of will get further access,” said Sanjay Chugh, founder, Skylines Property Consultants.
An advantage that these areas have is the large number of ‘delivery stage apartments’ ready for possession. He said: “the reason West Chennai was witnessing a yearly price appreciation, higher than the rest of the city, was because inventories here — which began work back in 2013 — were beginning to be delivered, paving the way for new launches.”
