Over the past one and a half years, the real estate sector has seen a good turnaround. People have realized the importance of owning a house in the post-COVID era. While the Government has supported and given few benefits like cut off on stamp duty, all-time low home loan rates, the real estate sector is hoping for a slew of sops from the Budget.
Realty players share their wish list:
Anurag Mathur, CEO, Savills India
On the wish list, it will once again be infrastructure status for real estate sector. It has the potential to unlock a host of benefits for boosting foreign as well domestic investment. Reduction in GST rates of key construction material, extension of credit linked subsidy scheme (CLSS) and enhancement in interest deduction limits on housing loans are also highly desirable. Introduction of alternative asset classes in REITs could fundamentally increase both retail and investor participation in the real estate sector.
Aryaman Vir, Founder & CEO, MYRE Capital
Fractional ownership of commercial real estate is uplifting the entire real estate industry, the only concern remains regulation around this space. While REITs are regulated by SEBI, fractional ownership models are still not under the purview of a securities body. Fractional ownership platforms (FOPs) could be considered to be regulated under SEBI which will eventually lead to further growth in the sector. One of the other areas I am expecting relief for is the house property tax. Considering the increased housing cost and the resultant rise in home loan EMIs, this limit should be increased from 2 lakhs to 5 lakhs.
Dr. Atul Goel, MD, Goel Ganga Group & President (Elect.), NAREDCO Pune
The real estate sector is looking at a few tax relaxations such as hike in Rs 2 lakh rebate under section 24, as in the aftermath of the pandemic, the profit margins are already low and developers have to compensate for the lost time. A single window clearance mechanism has remained a demand for many years now.
Dhaval Ajmera, Director of Ajmera Realty & Infra India
The real estate industry seeks continued low interest rates for next 2 to 3 years and GST on the component basis at 8 percent. The government should also focus on changing the definition of affordable housing. It is important to increase the interest cap to Rs. 5 lakh from Rs 2 lakh on housing loan interest rates, in order to reduce the financial burden of taxes for buyers in affordable segment. The above-mentioned factors will help to boost the economy.”
Dikshu C. Kukreja, Infrastructure Expert and Urban Planner,CP Kukreja Architects
The impetus on infrastructure spending should continue and be enhanced since that is the backbone to India’s growth story and a basic requirement to be able to attract global investment.
Attractive incentives should be introduced across industries especially construction and real estate to encourage environment friendly practices to achieve India’s Net Zero goals. There could be a system of fiscal incentives categorised on basis of quantifiable goals achieved by different companies.
Farshid Cooper, MD, Spenta Corporation
While interest rates are already at their lowest, a tax holiday for homebuyers will go a long way in boosting the market sentiment, nudging fence sitters to take a decision. Focus should be given to stalled/ stressed projects, apart from providing impetus to affordable and rental housing as we enter 2022 . This will likely free up capital and provide liquidity to the sector. Additionally, serious thoughts need to be given to GST towards major input materials as the rising cost structure could lead to long term increase in prices thereby softening demand.
Gautam Thacker, President, NAREDCO – Progressive Neral-Karjat Unit
We expect an extension in the time limit u/s 80-IAB of Income Tax where a builder can claim a deduction of an amount equal to 100 percent of the profits and gains derived from such business provided the project is approved by the competent authority on or before March 31, 2022 and the project is completed within a period of 5 years from the date of approval bythe competent authority.
Gururaj Bhat, Chief Finance Officer, Karle Infra Pvt. Ltd.
Being into mixed development, our Budget expectations on two areas of developments are as under. Residential: The Govt should consider allowing builders to set off the GST at least to the extent of collection against the payment made by them on construction cost, customers would be benefited and the increased sales in the sector can be witnessed wherein the entire inventory/project will be sold. Office space: If the government would allowing SEZ developers to have the flexibility to lease out the SEZ office space to Non-SEZ IT companies, the vacant space can be filled which will facilitate the developers to repay the borrowed loan without any default.
Harresh Mehta, CMD, Rohan Lifescapes
Real estate sector in India caters to nearly 250 plus segments across industries and it is also covered by 100+ regulatory laws. There are currently several grey areas when it comes to schemes, taxation, funding and others where the government should provide a helping hand and the same is expected in the upcoming Union Budget 2022. One of the key expectations is some relaxation in taxation slabs which will help the sector flourish by creating new avenues. Union Budget 2022 is expected to deliver the dynamic favorable policy to the housing sector as it is one of the largest sectors when it comes to contributing to steel, cement, employment and other parallel segments.
