GST gains: Prices of flats may drop by up to 5%

NEW DELHI: Housing price are likely to fall by up to 5% following the implementation of goods and services tax (GST) after the Centre and states decided to peg the levy at 12% on finished houses or apartments.

After allowing for credit for taxes paid on inputs such as cement, steel, paints and other items, the actual burden will be lower. As a result, the price of a Rs 1-crore apartment may come down by Rs 3-5 lakh, said a consultant.

The net price of houses in the affordable segment, which cost up to Rs 30 lakh (at Rs 3,500 per sq ft of built-up area) should fall by 5%. Once GST kicks in, home buyers will not have to pay the 4.5% service tax on the final price that they shell out while taking possession.

As a result, tax consultants and realtors said that fixing the GST rate at 12% was a customer-friendly move and would lead to either lower tax liability or be tax neutral.

For a premium product, however, Credai chairman and CMD of ATS Infrastructure Geetambar Anand said that at 12% GST, customers will benefit from projects that cost up to Rs 6,000 per sq ft.

A premium project may not gain significantly as developers build high margins into such properties. Manoj Gaur, Credai vicepresident and MD of Gaursons, said that if input credits are allowed properly, the 12% GST rate is favourable to buyers.

Suresh N Rohira, partner, Grant Thornton India, said that GST at 12% would certainly bring down the tax liability in the affordable segment. He said that the taxes on inputs for construction are more than 12% of the final price.

But if a developer is working with a high margin, which is the case in premium project, the net tax will remain significant. Priyajit Ghosh, partner – indirect tax, KPMG India, said that under the GST regime, 12% GST on construction sector would make the sector better off. Because of input credit, the net tax on finished product would have a downward pressure.

According to a Crisil report, at present, a developer pays excise tax and VAT on inputs like cement and steel at 27.7% and 18.1% respectively, which vary from state to state. Now, cement and steel will be taxed at 28% and 18% respectively under GST.

Similarly, other inputs like paints and white goods are going to be taxed at 28%. But the final product that is a housing unit will be taxed at 12%, with the allowance of credit against taxes paid on inputs. But as 12% tax will be levied on entire cost including the land, the amount will be sufficient enough to provide for the input credit, said Ghosh.

He said that 12% tax rate is favourable to the industry. For normal houses (up to Rs 6,000 per sq ft), 12% GST on a finished house or an apartment will be effectively reduced to near zero as the developer will take the credit for taxes he paid on inputs. At the same time, the buyer will not have to pay the service tax4.5% of the price of the house. This will reduce the cost of acquisition of the house. In some cases, even input credit could be more than the GST levied on the finished product, but a developer can claim a maximum credit to the extent of the GST he would be paying on the finished product.

Take a simple example: A developer is completing a housing project where the work has been awarded to a contractor. The cost of construction is around Rs 2,000 per sq ft, the going rate in the market for average quality. The contractor will collect a tax at 18% on the amount at which he is completing the work. In this case, he will collect a tax of Rs 360 on Rs 2,000 per sq ft from the developer. If the developer sells the house at Rs 3,000 per sq ft built-up area, which is the going rate for the affordable segment housing, he will pay a tax at 12 % on the final cost. In this case, it will be also Rs 360 per sq feet.

Therefore, his fresh tax liability would be nil. If other expenses and tax paid thereon is included, the developer could have claimed more. But under GST, he can claim only up to the fresh tax liability. But the service tax that a buyer pays so far at the rate of 4.5% will not be levied now. So the next cost for buyers of not-so-premium houses will decline. But if the product is in the premium segment, the entire input tax credit is not sufficient to bring down the fresh tax liability to nil. A premium construction can be done at Rs 5,000 per sq ft. The net tax collected by works contractor would be Rs 900 per sq ft from the developer. But while selling at Rs 10,000 per sq ft, the developer needs to pay Rs 1,200 per sq ft. Therefore, after adjusting against the taxes on input, he will have to pay Rs 300 per sq ft or 3%, which he will recover from the customer. But as the developer will also pay taxes on other expenditures, the net tax liability at 12% GST on finished product would be very small.





Source: ET Realty

DPR soon for Metro corridors in Ghaziabad

GHAZIABAD: Union minister Gen V K Singh (retd), who represents Ghaziabad in Lok Sabha, held a meeting with senior officals of the district administration at the collectorate on Saturday to review the progress of various development works in the district including Metro projects, NH-24 widening work and rapid rail transit system.
Senior officials of Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA), Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC), power department and the police were also present.
In the meeting, the DMRC said a detailed project report (DPR) for the construction of two Metro corridors would soon be submitted to the GDA. The GDA board had given its in-principle approval for the project in September 2016, and sanctioned Rs 1.09 crore to the DMRC for preparation of DPR.
"The DMRC has already received Rs 32.76 lakh from the GDA as the first-stage mobilisation fee for preparation of the DPR. It is being finalised and will be submitted to the GDA very soon," a senior DMRC official said.
The project involves extension of Delhi Metro's Blue line — which terminates at Vaishali at present — to the under-construction Mohan Nagar Metro station. Another corridor will link the under-construction Noida City Centre-Sector 62 Metro line with the proposed Vaishali-Mohan Nagar line at a suitable point by extending it across NH-24 and Indirapuram. The project includes the construction of a new Metro station in Indirapuram.
According to a DMRC survey, the corridor to link Vaishali with Mohan Nagar will be approximately 5km long, while the corridor stretching from Sector 62 Metro station till the Vaishali-Mohan Nagar line will be nearly 4.5 km long.
Other infrastructure projects, including the under-construction Dilshad Garden-New Bus Stand Metro corridor, NH-24 widening work and the rapid rail transit system, were also reviewed during the meeting. "Various aspects of the Smart City Proposal that has been submitted to the Union urban development ministry were also discussed. All departments will have to work in tandem if Ghaziabad makes the cut in the next round of the Smart City selection," Ghaziabad mayor Ashu Verma told while talking to media.

Source:TOI

GST unlikely to burden home buyers

MUMBAI: Home buyers are unlikely to be burdened with additional tax outgo and cost from the introduction of GST. Real estate has been brought under the GST ambit partially through works contracts that will be levied a 12% tax, which is likely to keep the impact neutral for homebuyers, tax experts said.

The key indirect taxes levied on real estate are excise duty, value added tax and service tax totalling 9-11%, excluding stamp duty which varies being a state levy.

These, barring stamp duty, would be subsumed in GST under the new indirect tax regime that will also allow input tax credit for developers. The sector, however, is awaiting clarity on the abatement rate for the land cost.

“The current effective rate of taxation for real estate is in the range of 9-11%, excluding stamp duty. The proposed rate of GST at 12% should not, therefore, lead to any rise in property prices,” said Pratik, partner and national leader-indirect tax at PwC India.

“Further, entire input credit is also allowed to the sector. This should incentivise the people to come within the tax net and help reduce the cash component in the economy.”

The final impact to buyers of under-construction properties will be the net effect of savings on currently unabsorbed input taxes and the increment in GST rates over the current tax rates.

Currently, input taxes such as excise duty and central sales tax on construction materials that are paid by the project developer are not allowed to be offset against indirect taxes collected from customers.

Source:- ET Realty

Delhi-NCR average city-level office rentals rose 1% in Jan-Mar: Report

Gross average rental of the Delhi-National Capital Region office market showed marginal appreciation in the quarter ended March. The third largest office market in India, in terms of stock, recorded almost a 1% appreciation in average rents at Rs 78 per sq ft per month, showed a JLL India report.

The average has been arrived at by considering office assets spread across Delhi’s Central Business District and Secondary Business District as well as Gurgaon and Noida. As it is on a stock-weighted basis, the higher office stock of Gurgaon has influenced the average number.

While Delhi-SBD witnessed a decline of 6% in average rentals, Noida saw an appreciation of 4%. Similarly, Delhi-CBD rents declined by 1.4% from a year ago whereas Gurgaon witnessed a 1.3% gain over the same period. The average rents of Delhi’s CBD and SBD went down to Rs 246 and Rs 138, respectively. On the other hand, average rentals of Gurgaon and Noida went up to Rs 76 and Rs 44, respectively, the report said.

“The relatively affordable rents in both Noida and Gurgaon micro-markets make them attractive to IT/ ITeS occupiers, among others. With this key differentiating factor, Noida is expected to remain an attractive destination for occupiers seeking consolidation or large campus-style developments and alternative office facilities in SEZ developments,” said Manish Aggarwal, Managing Director – North & East, JLL India.

In Gurgaon, rents in older, strata-titled properties are expected to correct and may affect the overall growth rate. However, the established DLF Cyber City precinct as well as upcoming and existing quality IT and other commercial projects are expected to command a premium over prevailing average rents, thus driving rental growth in this micro-market, he added.

In the first quarter of 2017, leasing activity remained largely slow in the Delhi-CBD due to lack of vacancy in quality assets, and only select occupiers taking up space. With occupier exits overshadowing the sluggish transaction activity, this micro-market recorded its worst performance in 13 quarters. On the other hand, Delhi-SBD saw its net absorption improve to a three-quarter high on the back of moderate-sized transactions in a few quality projects.

Many strata-titled projects are struggling from a lack of occupier demand in the Delhi-SBD. Delhi city has often seen developers employ the strata sale model. In the suburban locations, however, the lease model has been more prevalent, which makes them more attractive to large occupiers. Rents in certain precincts of Gurgaon, especially DLF Cyber City, had touched triple digits last year on the back of healthy demand, the report said.

Both the CBD and SBD of Delhi city will continue to cede ground to the suburbs, which have become more homogeneous office markets and are finding greater acceptance with even traditional, non-IT occupiers thanks to availability of more cost-effective office facilities. Most of the anticipated leasing activity in these two micro-markets is likely to occur in quality buildings and result in cyclical periods of good absorption levels.

The office footprint across NCR has risen steadily over the years. From 47 million sq ft in 2010 to 96 million sq ft in the first quarter of 2017, developers in Delhi-NCR have been aggressively building new office stock. The quality of assets has been improving too – with larger floor plate options for corporates and smaller floor plate options for IT and other occupier categories.

Gurgaon leads the way in its grade-A office stock, followed by Noida and Delhi-SBD. Delhi-CBD, on the other hand, has limited grade-A stock and an almost nil supply. This has fuelled occupiers’ move towards the suburbs of Gurgaon and Noida, both of which have emerged as preferred office corridors. The lack of adequate land in Delhi for fresh office developments is another factor helping the suburbs.

Source- ET Realty

Government mulls easing FDI in construction, retail & print media

The government is moving ahead with the further opening of print media, construction and retail sectors to foreign investments, and detailed deliberations in this regard were held in the finance ministry on Wednesday.

The commerce and industry ministry may soon approach the Union Cabinet to get the final approval on the proposals, sources said.

According to them, the government is considering to relax foreign direct investment (FDI) norms in certain areas of print media.

Currently, the government allows foreign investment in areas such as printing of newspapers and publishing of scientific magazines with certain conditions and FDI caps.

There is also a proposal to ease the policy in construction and development sector, under which an Indian company could be allowed to bring FDI even for undeveloped plots in any project.

Currently, 100 per cent FDI is allowed in the construction sector subject to various conditions.

One of the norms is that the Indian investee company is permitted to sell only developed plots, which means plots where trunk infrastructure - roads, water supply, street lighting, drainage, and sewerage, have been made available.

Sources said the government may put certain restrictions while making changes in this condition.

The whole exercise is aimed at providing investor-friendly climate to foreign players and in turn, attract more FDI to boost economic growth and create jobs.

The government is also mulling easing policy in single brand and multi-brand retail trading.

There is a consideration to allow 100 per cent FDI in the single brand retail sector through automatic route with certain conditions.

Currently, FDI up to 49 per cent is permitted under the automatic route but beyond that limit, government's nod is required.

Further, the government is weighing the option of permitting overseas retailers to open stores for selling 'Made in India' products.

Besides, Union Food Processing Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal is pitching to permit FDI in non-food items, along with food products, under the multi-brand retail policy.

She wants that foreign players should be allowed to sell non-food items along with food products processed and manufactured in India under the FDI in food policy.

The easing of the policy will be on the lines of the announcements made by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the Budget for 2017-18.

The government last year relaxed FDI norms in over a dozen sectors, including defence, civil aviation, construction and development, private security agencies, real estate and news broadcasting.

Foreign investments are considered crucial for India, which needs around USD 1 trillion for overhauling its infrastructure sector such as ports, airports, and highways to boost growth.

Foreign investments will help improve the country's balance of payments situation and strengthen the rupee value against other global currencies, especially the US dollar.

Source- ET Realty

Builders to get up to 35 bps concession on construction loans from SBI

State Bank of India, the nation's biggest bank is stepping on the gas on marketing to sell home loans and remain the top mortgage company.

As a marketing thrust, SBI has also decided to offer up to 35 basis points concession on loans for construction to the builders for the affordable housing segment.

"We are tying up with builders and offering them construction finance on easier terms for affordable housing projects. This, in turn, helps marketing of home loans," SBI chief general manager for Kolkata circle Partha Pratim Sengupta said at an event in Kolkata.

One basis point is 0.01 percentage point.

SBI announced lowering of home loan rates last week and accordingly women borrowers get home loan at 8.35% for up to Rs 30 lakh, while other salaried borrowers get loans at 8.40% a year.

This was matched by its rivals ICICI Bank and HDFC as they are all trying to take advantage of the central government's push towards affordable housing.

The government envisages housing for all citizens by 2022 which is the year India completes 75 years of Independence.

Source- ET Realty

The unorganised nature of Indian realty is the sole reason why it had always been in the dire need of a regulatory authority which will now be available post the implementation of nationwide RERA from May 1, 2017. Several states and almost all the Union Territories have notified the laws of RERA before the said deadline of April 30th, 2017. RERA is something which is happening for the first time across the nation and would more or less be finalised along the framework which was set forth by the central government. RERA tends to bring about a new dawn in the sector of Indian realty and limit the concerns of several homebuyers and investors who had almost written off this sector which has seized to be one of the greatest employers and contributors to the country’s GDP. Slowly with the turn of clock, RERA would also settle down as any normal regulation similar to the hundreds we observe in our day to day life but the initial phase will definitely hold key to how better it is accepted amongst the developers and buyers. 

Industry Reacts:

Manoj Gaur, Vice President CREDAI – National & MD, Gaursons Group

At the outset, I welcome this much awaited initiative of RERA, which should bring huge relief to homebuyers as well as regulate the real estate sector of India. With the implementation of this act, now all approvals will have to be in place and the agreement signed with buyers includes the interest and the penalty clauses laid down in RERA. Also, the statute now demands that the builder should mention carpet area also specify common areas and the parking areas separately. At the CREDAI level too, the apex body of developers is holding training sessions for developers to educate them on the changes expected in the new business environment.

Deepak Kapoor, President CREDAI-Western U.P. & Director, Gulshan Homz

The buyers of property market in particular had waited long for RERA becoming a reality which guarantees safeguarding of their rights and interests. For long has this sector and its buyers being affected, but with RERA in place now, soon there will be a regulator in every state who will monitor all the transactions and have answers for their grievances. The amendments are fair and developers have already started working on the lines because these will now pave way for a better demand and supply in the sector. 

Avneesh Sood, Director, Eros Group

With RERA implemented in full scale now across major states and union territories, developers are sure to find it encouraging towards building a better image for the sector. Infact, most of the developers who are genuinely into real estate had already been following the rules which have been set forth by this act. With the government concerned and showing direct intentions towards the sector, RERA will enhance the sentiments in the sector paving way for growth. Possessions are the hot cakes in the sector today and history of a developer in the near future would be judged on the possessions they have offered.

Ashok Gupta, CMD, Ajnara India Ltd.

With so many states implementing RERA today, we will see a completely different scenario in the sector in near future. Infact, developers have been gearing up for RERA ever since it became an act in the parliament and have been working based on the norms excluding the limitations. These limitations, if some, can be done away with only when it is existent in the real scenario helping everyone understand them better and try devising corrections.

Pradeep Aggarwal, Co – Founder & Chairman, Signature Global 

Indian real estate sector will shape up in a different manner now. With RERA on board and implemented in full force, each state will have a regulator in place to safeguard the interests of the buyers and promote fair dealings in the sector. The housing demand in particular, will catch up momentum which will allow better performance of the sector. But, apart from everything else, the one thing that will infuse buyer sentiments in the sector will be of timely deliveries. 

Ashwani Prakash, Executive Director, Paramount Group

The regulatory act (RERA), has been able to arrest the uncertainty in the real estate sector, vis a vis the investors and end users. The mere passage of the bill had given a lot of clarity and made real estate dealings more transparent there by bringing the confidence in the investors and the end users.  Once this confidence sets in completely with it’s proper implementation, the market is bound to grow at a steady pace. Single window clearance system once implemented across the country will allow RERA to function smoothly, without which there might still be some barriers.

Rajesh Goyal, Vice President CREDAI-Western U.P. & MD, RG Group

Developers are certainly well prepared for this change now with RERA implemented across several states. The impacts are certainly going to be visible for both buyers and developers soon. Developers who are not able to deliver on their promises would be automatically filtered out reducing the existing supply in the market, the sector would be much more organised than before and people would be answerable for what is being done at each stage of project development. Buyers on the other hand would be assured of timely deliveries or assured penalty charges in cases of delay but simultaneously would see the property prices going up because of the supply reducing drastically.

Rakesh Yadav, Chairman, Antriksh India

This act is aimed at protecting the interests of consumers, and also seeks to promote fair play in real estate transactions and ensuring timely execution of projects. With this act in place, every state will now have a regulator who will be continuously supervising and monitoring. Moreover, the projects will now be completed on time and developers will have to submit all the layouts, plans and documents with the regulator who will ensure transparency and hence, customers will feel more secure while transacting.

Gaurav Gupta, General Secretary, CREDAI - RNE

RERA is the biggest thing to happen in the Indian real estate sector and we hope that it will infuse 300% more confidence in the buyers to buy their dream home. This in turn will allow end users to create demand, but will take a while to get going and certain case studies to prove its effectiveness. This act will safeguard the interests of every buyer which will allow a transparent and secured route to transact in future. Once the Act becomes fully functional in each state, grievances will not remain unanswered, and will come with a definite solution. RERAwill open more sources of institutional funding for the sector as institutional confidence will also go up in the presence of a regulator. We hope that the teething problems in its implementation will sure be addressed by the government in a practical manner as the intentions of the government is very clear towards protecting the interests of the buyers rather than to strangulate the sector. 

Dhiraj Jain, Director, Mahagun Group

RERA’s prime motive is to curb the irregularities persisting in the real estate sector and protect buyers’ interest. There are strict guidelines in the act against developers who are unable to deliver on time. But we cannot deny the fact that developers today are under severe pain of not getting the obligatory clearances and approvals on time; and if this continues then they’ll be axed for no reason. Thus, the government must ensure the passage of single window clearance, so as to allow the sector to work in a much systematic and organised manner, with full support for RERA as well.

Vikas Bhasin, MD, Saya Group

For long has the sector’s buyers and stakeholders being affected due to the absence of a watchdog for the real estate transactions. But with RERA now in place, there will a regulator in every state who will monitor all these activities and have solutions for the problems of the buyers. Developers who had been working fair and square need not worry much about the circumstances post the implementation of the act because adhering to norms and guidelines is a general business practice and that is what RERA is all about, to ensure all norms and guidelines are followed.