COVER STORY - Pune poised PERFECTLY

Oct 01 2016 : The Times of India (Pune)





Are you a first-time home buyer? Infrastructure, connectivity and presence of civic facilities are the important aspects across segments

The first home is an important step towards stability in one's life. Pune offers opportunities for all types of home buyers whether it is an affordable segment or the luxury. While buying the first home in Pune, the buyer needs to take care of certain things such as quality of infrastructure, connectivity and presence of civic facilities in the area.There is good scope for the first home buyers in Pune. “The real estate segment of Pune is experiencing a facelift driven by an improvement in infrastructure and strengthening ITITeS business in the city. With its close proximity to Mumbai, Goa, Satara, Kolhapur and Belgaum, quality infrastructure and year-round good weather, Pune have grown into a better -performing real estate market in the last five years. Moreover, Pune offers spacious and well equipped apartments at more affordable prices, making it an increasingly favourable first home destination for the incoming working population. In the long run, Pune will experience an upward trend in real estate prices as the city continues to be an IT, education and manufacturing hub and offers huge service opportunities which will stimulate the demand for real estate and especially first homes in this city“, explains Rajeeb Dash, AVP Sales & Marketing, Tata Housing Development Company Ltd.
Experts believe that Pune is a city where owning a home still presents a very sound rationale from both, family security and investment perspectives. Also, the national slowdown in the realty market has made homes in Pune more affordable than ever before.
PLANNING THE FIRST HOME
According to experts, it is always a good time to buy a property if the homebuyer has found a house which matches one's requirements. Residential segment is the mainstay of the real estate market and regardless of the market's condition, it is likely to stay that way. Today buyers have multiple options to choose from with unbelievable offers from developers. Notwithstanding the reputation of the builder and a secure transaction, home seekers should explore Pune's peripheral locations that offer rapidly developing infrastructure, good connectivity, benefits of good climate and residential projects at affordable prices. With the city and its nodes fast becoming home to multisegments residential developments, customers should acquaint themselves with the portfolio of offerings in the city.
Sanjay Bajaj, managing director Pune, JLL India, says, “Decide on budget, work in some flexibility via bank leverage and look at the options available at good locations from reputed developers. As a first-time buyer, one may lack the market exposure and be prone to impulse decisions, which need to be avoided. Look for projects by accredited builders with reasonable short possession timelines not exceeding six to twelve months.“
Bajaj adds, “Social and civic infrastructures are the factors that decide how comfortable and convenient one's residential experience would be. One should not compromise on basic facilities like water and power, and look for good road connectivity and public transport as well. At a project level, never buy into amenities unlikely to be ever used. Instead, focus on aspects like adequate unit size, parking and green open spaces.“
ATTRACTIVE LOCATIONS
Undri-Pisoli, Bhugaon, Wagholi, Mundhwa and Hadapsar are currently popular among first-time homebuyers owing to attractive price points, rapid infrastructure growth and good connectivity to important workplace hubs in the city.
An increasing demand for housing in and around Pune city has resulted in rapid development of locations such as Kalyani Nagar, Charoli, Wakad, Baner, Pimple Saudagar and Rahatani.
Expert suggests that an attractive location to watch out for is Undri, thanks to rise in demand for affordable housing in this area. It is conveniently close to Pune Camp and has the added advantage of being well connected to various key localities in Pune. Undri now has several options, both in affordable and premium categories, which is giving further prominence to the area.
Another viable residential location close to Pune is Talegaon. It is 20 kms away from the important location of Hinjewadi, which is deemed to be a major IT hub of Pune, making Talegaon a sought-after destination among IT professionals.