Mumbai, Delhi among best realty investment spots

Mumbai: India is among the top real estate investment markets in Asia in 2010 with Mumbai ranked second only to Shanghai as the most promising development market and Delhi at fourth, a report said here today.

The Emerging Trends in Real Estate Asia Pacific 2010 report, released in India today by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC), which provides an outlook on Asia-Pacific real estate investment and development trends, pointed out India and in particular Mumbai and Delhi as good real estate investment destinations, reports PTI.

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Residential properties are being viewed as more promising than other sectors in India, the report said. The relatively stronger fundamentals, and the lack of dependence on foreign demand are seen as key advantages as India has managed to mitigate the severe recession that has hit most other Asian countries," said India Leader for Real Estate Practice, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, Gautam Mehra.

"The re-capitalisation by players in equity markets across Asia has been successfully replicated by some Indian developers, which has helped ease the liquidity stresses," he added. According to the report, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Beijing are the top three real estate investment prospects. Shanghai, Mumbai, and New Delhi are first, second, and fourth, respectively, for real estate development opportunities, with Ho Chi Minh City ranked third for development prospects, it said.

Development has increased in all property sectors in Mumbai, the report observed. Construction of affordable housing is particularly strong, as the Government continues to lower mortgages and the middle-class is being offered "good-quality, honest accommodations."

Investments within the hotel sector are a stable prospect, as India is projected to be the second-fastest growing tourism market in the world, it said. Similar to Mumbai, New Delhi remains fairly stable in its movement from the 2009 Emerging Trends publication. In addition to residential buying opportunities, the city is expected to prosper from increased tourism and shows signs of market recovery in the coming year.

Real estate investments and developments in Bangalore are not seen as capital-focused compared to last year, the report said.