Luxury Homes – The New Facet of Residential Real Estate

It is becoming increasingly common that an NRI invests in residential
property/ house in India. NRIs are contributing heavily to the
luxury home markets in cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore,
Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune. While he keeps one storey for his
personal use, he rents out the other two floors to an embassy
that fetches him an attractive rental income. NRIs and high net
worth form a sizeable chunk of luxury homes which serve as a second
home as well as a good rental proposition.

These luxury homes stand for all the frills and fantasy that
there is for leisure and lifestyle. Condominiums and even service
apartments offer the services and amenities of a hotel, with the
warmth and privacy of home. Golf Course, club house, swimming
pools, theme parks, shopping areas, green stretches and walkways
are some of the alluring features. The 52 luxury homes at Kashid
beach in Mumbai, for instance, has a club house built at the foot
of a mountain, a fully air conditioned restaurant, houses the
gymnasium, tennis courts, swimming pool and sauna.

Also helping this trend is a large population of Indians who have
served their tenure outside India or have settled here after long
stints in the US, Far East, Middle East and Africa. Buying a house
is quite popular with those who intend to eventually lead a retired
life there.

Since hill towns are important destinations for vacation homes,
there is a good demand for luxury homes in Mussorie, Nainital,
Ooty, Mahabaleshwar, Khandala and Lonavala. The scenic hill city
called Amby Valley Sahara Lake City, near Lonavala with proximity
to Mumbai and Pune; targets high net worth individuals, corporate
honchos and especially NRIs. On offer are one and two bedroom
timber chalets and 2-acre villas. The cultural impact on India
is visible and visceral. The New Delhi suburb of Noida has a collection
of luxury homes known as an "NRI Colony."

Developers have been at the forefront in supporting the culture
of luxury homes. Taneja Developers are developing townships in
cities like Sonepat, Agra, etc. Luxury homes that cater to the
international taste of comfort and living are available at an
affordable price. These can serve as vocational getaways. Hiranandani
Group, well known Maharashtra based developers is also very active
in these ventures.

Goa and Chennai are also witnessing a strong investment in these
luxury homes. Many NRIs buy houses near their Indian families.
This has the advantage of living independently while being in
proximity to their kin. The buyer today is presented with multiple
options of using the property as a weekend home or renting or
leasing it out.

Photo: Western Springs (Hyderabad) – Active skyscraper construction with by iMahesh, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.