January 20, 2018; Mumbai: I strongly believe that the Union Budget 2018 will be good for everyone. The sentiment in the market is good with the affordable housing policy of the government. Also, lack of trust which used to be a big challenge for the realtors has been effectively addressed by the Government with RERA. There have been many landmark judgments under the act, since the time it is implemented.
By the end of two more quarters, the market is expected to be more stable. Also, Input Tax Credit under the GST module has helped the builders to pass on the benefits to the consumers. A mega advertising and promotion campaign on GST undertook by the Modi Government also helped in making the consumers aware of the different stages and benefits available to them under GST.
Here is my wishlist for Budget 2018:
- Real estate sector may be granted ‘industry’ status, which will help the sector to access long-term financing at a lower cost. The benefits of the low costing will be eventually passed on to the consumers.
- There should be concessions in the income tax slabs for home buyers. These would positively affect disposable incomes and would help spur sales on the real estate market.
- Since last year the sentiment was negative due to demonetization followed by a change in the policy environment, the consumers were sitting on a fence leading to a massive slowdown in the real estate sales. If the honorable government could think of lowering the GST slabs for real estate for a period of a year, it will boost the sentiment of the industry.
- Stamp Duty and Registration charges which are outside the ambit of GST should be included in GST.
- Additional tax sops to homebuyers by increasing the Rs. 2 lakh tax deduction limit for a housing loan.
- Tax incentive for first-time home buyers under Section 80EE hiked from Rs 50,000 to Rs 2 lakh.
- Single window clearances, which have been effectively implemented across many sectors, should be made available for real estate too. I strongly believe that this help the developer and his team focus on the core business and cut the time taken for stupendous paperwork.
The current Government has done a lot of work for the real estate sector. The sector will be benefitted in a big way if the above pointers are being considered and implemented.
About Sanghvi Realty: Sanghvi Realty is a company of repute which deals in the acquisition, development, construction, and management of residential and commercial real estate. With over 4 decades of legacy, it is a well-established name in the real estate industry. Having delivered more than 8.5 million square feet of living space to more than 16500 families, Sanghvi has a large contribution to the real estate sector in the city. Their projects are spanned across Mumbai, Suburbs, Nashik, and Pune. The group has won numerous regional and national awards apart from being CRISIL and ISO Certified.
About Pakshal Sanghvi: Having done Bachelors in Architecture from NMIMS and M.Sc. in Management from Manchester Business School UK; he heads the design and architecture unit at Sanghvi Realty. As a gen-next entrepreneur, he has accomplished some architectural marvels across the city apart from endorsing many. Mr. Sanghvi strongly believes that ordinary people are capable of extraordinary tasks when structured into highly charged and motivated teams, and has invested in many startups in the city.