Affordable housing still a distant dream in Vijayawada

Rise in land rates the primary reason for skyrocketing of apartment prices

Notwithstanding the lack of clarity on the expected capital around Vijayawada and Guntur, prices of apartments have taken off. Affordable housing has become a distant dream for the middle class thanks to exponential rise in prices.

At the outset, there are not many apartments for sale in the city.

Nearly all apartments have been exhausted in the recent past, and for some reason, the builders have not taken up any new ventures within the city limits. The leftover 3-bedroom flats in the city are costing between Rs. 80 lakh to Rs. 1.2 crore according to sources.

Earlier, two-bedroom flats were available for Rs. 30 lakh within the city, but now one has to go to the outskirts of Poranki and beyond and yet pay anywhere between Rs. 30 to Rs. 35 lakh for a flat. The price will be 5 to 10 per cent more in Kanuru, which is closer to the city.

Two-bedroom flats are available in the range of Rs. 27 lakh to Rs. 35 lakh as far out as Gollapudi and Ibrahimpatnam, which do not come under the city limits.

And, the three-bedroom flat costs Rs. 45 lakh to Rs. 50 lakh out there. In areas like Ajithsingh Nagar and Payakapuram, two-bedroom flat cost Rs. 27 lakh to Rs. 35 lakh.

Says Greater Vijayawada Builder’s Association president Gadde Rajling: “The sad part of development is that affordable housing is not in the reach of middle class.”

He, however, is quick to add, “The prices will stabilise in two to three years soon after the announcement on capital et al.” The land rates are so high that the quoted price of a square yard of land is Rs. 1 lakh. It was just Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 18,000 per sq yard till 2011.