Despite property sales in in Kerala seeing rise for October, realty sector not happy

According to the department, it is too early to conclude that the economy is recovering from the slowdown.
Representational image (Illustration | Amit Bandre)
Representational image (Illustration | Amit Bandre)

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Property sales have picked up in the state after hitting a record low in September. October recorded 71,777 deals, a 20.50 per cent jump from the previous month’s 59,563, according to the state registration department.

According to the department, it is too early to conclude that the economy is recovering from the slowdown.“The data needs to be analysed. It should be checked whether the transfer of domestic or commercial units increased during the period,” said A Alexander, Inspector General of the department.

The registration department’s revenue rose from Rs 243.64 crore in September to Rs 269.72 crore in October though it was only 72 per cent of the target set for the month.

According to the Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India, (CREDAI), the real estate sector is going through the worst phase in recent history. “The registration department’s figures don’t reflect the ground reality. These would be deals which were fixed earlier. People are reluctant to make new investments and the sales would come down in the coming months,” said CREDAI Kerala chairman S Krishnakumar.

More than slowdown fears, the uncertainty prevailing in the sector after the Supreme Court order on Maradu flat demolition is creating trouble for the industry, he said.

“A large number of people, including non-resident Keralites unaffected by the slowdown, are willing to invest in the reality sector. But they’ve lost belief in government’s building-approval mechanism after the Maradu issue. It’s high time the government put in place a proper approval system and stood by the approvals it grants,” he said.

Another disturbing trend is the denial of occupancy certificate for new buildings citing a variety of reasons, he said.“Recently an adalat chaired by Local Self-Government Minister AC Moideen had decided to dispose of several cases in favour of petitioners. But a majority of them are yet to be disposed of,” he said.

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