HYDERABAD: Hyderabad is looking to purchase residential properties in the city will need to fork out far more than the usual prices, as there has been a sharp hike in the costs of building materials in the city.
Post the onset of the pandemic, prices of building materials required for construction, including steel, cement, solid blocks, nails, binding wires and plywood, have shot up sharply due to factors like restrictions on manufacturing and shortage of supply. The rise in prices of the key ingredients for construction — steel and cement — would result in higher costs of both residential and commercial properties.
According to the Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Association of India (CREDAI), the primary rates of 8 mm and 16 mm TMT steel bars, which were Rs 41,700 and Rs 47,000 per tonne during February 2020, increased to Rs 57,500 and Rs 55,000 per tonne respectively this month.
The prices of almost all lengths of steel bars have increased by around Rs 15,000 per tonne. As for cement, the cost of ordinary portland cement rose from Rs 260 per bag to Rs 395-420 per bag, while the rate of portland pozzolana cement (PPC) rose from Rs 250 per bag to Rs 380-400 during the same period. This has led to a significant rise of overall construction costs in Greater Hyderabad limits.
Speaking to Express, G Ram Reddy, vice-president (national), CREDAI, said construction costs have approximately increased by Rs 500 per sq ft. “If any construction is taken up on a 1,000 sq ft property, construction cost would rise by Rs 5 lakh. Hence, the cost would rise by a million rupees for construction on a 2,000 sq ft land. And these are just additions to the other costs,” he said.
He added that prices of construction materials should come down as it impacts both contractors and buyers. Compared to other Metro cities, construction costs in Hyderabad are the fourth highest. Ram Reddy said, “Hyderabad stands in fourth place with Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai occupying the top three spots.”