Cash-rich non-resident Indians (NRIs), especially from the Gulf region, are changing tacks in their property investments back home, with many of them now investing in holiday homes or second homes for personal usage as well as vacation rentals, industry insiders said.
Developers in India of late are also earmarking ‘NRIs only’ dedicated inventories in their upscale projects amid a substantial spike in demand from expat Indians for homes in the luxury segment and above, in projects that offer amenities and facilities at par with global standards.
“We are now observing an interesting trend change in NRI investments in India, with an increasing number of them looking for holiday homes and second homes for personal usage, as also for vacation rentals,” Aakash Ohri, Group Executive Director and Chief Business Officer at DLF, a leading and among the oldest Indian real estate firms in India, told Arabian Business.
“Non-metro destinations with lower density such as Chandigarh, Panchkula, Goa and Kochi are the preferred cities for such investments,” Ohri said.
Senior executives at some of the other developers and real estate consultancies also corroborated the newly found love of NRIs for holiday and second homes, and said this was among the major reason for a 22-25 percent jump in expat Indian investments in recent months in some of the Tier 2 Southern Indian cities such as Kochi in Kerala and Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu.
They said the desire for a perfect work-life balance has fuelled the concept of a second home among NRI corporate professionals and businessmen.
“With work-from-home becoming the new norm, geography is no longer an impediment,” a senior industry executive said.
‘NRI quota’ in upscale residential projects
Industry sources said some of the leading developers have also started wooing NRIs with dedicated blocks in their upscale residential projects.
“We have also started securing certain inventory specifically for NRI buyers, with simultaneous launches both in India and abroad, so that our NRI customers have access to the best inventory,” Ohri said.
“We also have a dedicated team that has been put in place to facilitate the engagement with Indian diaspora living abroad,” he said.
The DLF senior executive said the dedicated team is assigned to keep NRIs fully informed about not just the latest developments in DLF, but also the industry at large.
“The team introduces them [NRIs] to our latest offering, and also offers them real-time support, across all time zones to help them with any queries towards their investment decision,” Ohri said.
Sajai Jacob, MD and Country of Anacity, the group business service of Anarock, a leading real consultancy in India and GCC, has recently told Arabian Business that luxury properties have emerged as a hot favourite with expat Indians of late, as the depreciating rupee value, coupled with attractive developer discounts, offer greater buying power.
GCC-based NRIs drive property investments
Industry insiders said when it comes to NRI investments in Indian real estate, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) remains a key one.
“Investments from the GCC as a whole account for close to 41 percent of the global contribution,” Ohri said.
He said with rupee weakening against dirham, NRIs from the UAE and GCC have been investing back in Indian real estate in large numbers of late.
“NRIs in the Middle East are also becoming more optimistic about the Indian market because it has outperformed competitors in many countries, including developed ones,” Ohri said.
He said DLF has also seen a major spike in NRI demand in its projects in recent months.
“In the last two years, the contribution from NRI investors in our homes business has been between 14 and 20 percent, and with our product offering already providing a world-class lifestyle, we aim to further expand this share,” Ohri said.
He said the company developments are designed to provide a lifestyle preferred by a well heeled, well-travelled global audience from India and overseas alike. “All of our future projects will be developed with the same philosophy”.
Ohri also said NRI demand today spans all regions and product categories, especially in the luxury segment, with projects offering amenities and facilities on par with global standards.
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