Eighteen months after the collapse of a multi-storey building in Mugalivakkam, a western suburb, the realty sector was looking for brighter days towards the end of 2015. But, the hopes of promoters, mediators and investors who were searching for budget homes in the city suburbs, submerged during the floods of 2015
“People just stopped making enquiries. Prices crashed, but it did not help. Some were desperate to sell their property at even half the market value, but there were no takers. Registration of new property in Padappai, Pammal and Tambaram came down by more than half and it remained like that for many months,” says M. Subramani, who has been a mediator in the real estate sector for two decades.
On the other hand, Suresh Krishn, president, Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India, Chennai, says that the floods had short-term consequences, but not to the extent that people did not want to buy property in these places. Investors, he says, are becoming more conscious of the property they plan to buy. Seven months after the flood, there has not been any major dip in property prices, he says, but concedes that sales have been affected.
Recalling that there was a similar short-term impact in the aftermath of the tsunami and that the situation soon returned to normalcy, Rajesh Dave, immediate past president of Chennai Real Estate Agents Association, feels that the temporary setback to the realty sector in the flood-hit areas will be overcome in a few months.
