The three-week lockdown to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) will delay residential and commercial properties by three to 12 months depending on the scale, mainly due to acute shortage of labourers in the post-virus era. This would result in real estate developers evoking the ‘force majeure’ clause, experts and developers said.

Developers apprehend an acute financial crunch due to disruptions in payment cycles. They are expecting the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to reduce interest rates, the government to give fiscal incentives and the sector regulator to condone construction delays, said executives working with leading developers, requesting anonymity.

This is bad news at two levels.

One, it adds to the number of stalled projects. In November, while announcing a Rs 25,000 crore alternative investment fund to help such projects, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman put their number at around 1600 and the number of housing units involved at 458,000.

Two, it depresses consumer sentiment. Many of the consumers who have bought apartments in these units have invested a substantial amount of savings or taken out loans against them.

A recent “Report on COVID-19”, prepared by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci), said the pandemic had hit the real estate sector hard at a time when it was hoping to recover from a prolonged slowdown. “The health contagion of COVID-19 disease, however, has the potential to put some brakes on India’s real estate market, given the anticipated slump in demand,” it said.

“The real estate sector was already languishing because of delayed projects, inventory overhang, liquidity issues and a trust deficit between builders and customers. Now, construction activity has come to a halt across the country and sales have virtually dried up. Many small and mid-size [real estate] companies will face challenges in servicing debt and managing cash-flows,” an executive working for a leading developer said requesting anonymity.

National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) president, Niranjan Hiranandani, said that with the lockdown in place, home seekers were facing the prospect of delayed possession, work had stopped at construction sites, workers were worried about their financial future, and companies, already facing economic challenges, had to deal with ‘no fresh inflow’ of funds, with sales having dropped to almost zero. “The regulatory aspect of RERA will see developers citing ‘force majure’ as the reason, and ensuring no action on delayed possession,” he said.

According to a CRISIL report, the fallout of Covid-19, weak orders spanning the last quarter of 2019-20 and the first quarter of 2020-21, and diversion of state funds towards healthcare, will weigh on demand growth, especially in the first half of the next financial year that would start from April 1. “Weak business sentiment and some issue of labour availability can also derail execution, especially on the urban side during Q1 fiscal 2021,” it said.

Gaurav Karnik, National Leader-Real Estate, EY India said that projects would be delayed depending on the level of completion. “RERA authorities need to look at the ongoing situation on projects and evaluate providing an extension for projects in view of current lockdown and the fact that workers at sites may have gone back to their homes and would take time to come back once lockdown lifts,” he said.

There are some developers who are undeterred by the temporary crisis due to pandemic, one of the experts mentioned above, said giving the example of Godrej Properties Ltd, which on Friday announced its entry into the Faridabad market with its residential plotted development.

Ankush Kaul, president-sales and marketing, Ambience Group said there is opportunity for buyers even in this crisis. “Past and current challenges so far have kept the prices under check. This has prompted the smart, discerning buyers and investors to go out in the market and seek deals and reap gains from the offers.”

With the Maharashtra government announcing a temporary shutdown amid growing concern over the spread of coronavirus and most employees or clients deciding to work from home, there is confusion and anxiety among those who have booked spaces in co-working offices – so much so that some have already started renegotiating terms, real estate experts said.

A co-working operator, who did not want to be named, said that they have had to close down more than 10,000 seats following the announcement of a temporary shutdown in Maharashtra. “This is a directive from the government and we have to follow it,” he said, adding “Some clients have requested for more flexibility in their membership agreements.”

Globally, multiple precedents are available where occupiers in markets, where effects of COVID-19 are more pronounced, have asked for refunds. If things were to escalate, this may be the likely outcome in India as well, experts warn.

Sample this tweet – “@WeWork will not let us cancel our 6-month lease or return our $19k deposit. We have a 17-person office that we cannot legally use in Culver City & went remote March 11. They said WE are breaching our contract bc they are open and have ppl working there despite the order.”

Based on a consensus estimate from various international research agencies, the total market for flexible or co-working space was expected to grow from 30 mn sq ft to more than 40 million sq ft in 2020 in India across the top 10 cities this year.

“As much as 75% of this space falls in the managed co-workspace category and 25% in the co-working business centre segment. Based on market feedback, we see the 25% co-working segment, that comprises start-ups and newfound small businesses (that occupy seats in the open plan), to be the first casualty during the pandemic,” explains Anckur Srivasttava of GenReal Advisers.

“In the case of the 75% managed workspace segment, we are currently seeing corporate occupiers revaluating their current commitments, and, unfortunately, if things were to continue unabated, we may expect them to start optimizing their real estate occupation costs in the near future. We also see a re-evaluation of corporate real estate growth plans in the short to mid-term but that situation is likely to unfold in the next couple of months,” he said.

The impact of co-working operators is most likely to see the first quarter profit and loss statements in the red, he warns.

Co-working operators say that they have not yet received requests for refunds but start-ups that occupy seats in the open plan have requested for terms to be renegotiated.

“The force majeure provision is in-built into the agreement from both sides, the tenant and the landlord. It’s too early to comment on how clients in India will react. The call for closure is a directive from the government and we have no choice but to close the facility. We have communicated the same to our clients,” an official of a co-working company, who did not want to be named, said.

Vinayak Agarawal, Co-founder and CTO, myHQ, said the concerns around COVID-19 have led to reduced footfalls at its workspaces. "But we believe this blip is temporary and will only last till precautions are deemed necessary. We aren't seeing any decrease in our immediate revenues. In case the situation grows more alarming and persists beyond April, there might be a decrease of 15-20% in the short term revenues,” he said.

He says that none of the company’s clients has so far reached out to opt out of long-term agreements due to the COVID-19 situation.

WeWork, Awfis and Garage Society refused to comment.

Co-working companies in India typically sign leases with landlords for a lock-in period of one to six years, and service agreements or flexible membership agreements with clients for one day to five years.

The legal recourse available to both clients and the co-working companies is the force majeure provision factored into the agreements signed by the parties in case refund or cancellations are sought due to COVID.

“Termination of membership due to non-usage of co-working space, whether due to COVID-19 or any other force majeure event, would be dependent on the agreement entered into with the user as well as the government acknowledging that such an event is beyond the control of the parties,” said Yudhist Singh,  Senior Partner at law firm YNS & Associates.

“Co-Working companies spend a lot of money in terms of lease rent, fit-outs, maintenance etc. Therefore, unless they are exempted from incurring such fixed costs due to a force majeure event and unless their contractual obligation with the respective landlord, maintenance agency etc. is suspended, they would be suffering an undue loss which may also adversely affect their solvency,” he said.

The novel coronavirus pandemic has negatively impacted the real estate industry to an extent that 65 percent of flat purchasers have been defaulting on instalments since last week, The Times of India has reported citing MCHI-Credai.

MCHI-Credai is the apex industry body that represents over 1,400 builders in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). There are as many as 10,200 residential projects in MMR registered under the housing regulator, MahaRERA, with a total construction area of around 50 million sq ft.

With the closure of shopping malls as a preventive measure amid the rapid spread of COVID-19, there are indications that retail tenants will also stop paying rents to mall owners, the report suggests. The mall owners will in turn not be able to service their loans owed to banks.

“Since June 2019, on an average 25-30 percent flat buyers of any project were defaulting on instalment payment on the due date. However, after the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the situation has become critical with almost 65 percent of customers defaulting in paying their installments linked to construction,” the newspaper quoted MCHI-Credai as saying.

The report adds that MCHI-Credai has asked the Maharashtra government to suspend property tax and payment of various premiums to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for one year without interest.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

Further, the industry body has urged that all premiums payable to BMC and the state government be reduced by 75 percent for five years and zero percent stamp duty for all fresh sales of flats for six months to encourage the public to buy new properties.

There are several things that we need to keep in mind while hunting for a new apartment or a flat.

People zero in on a house that fits their budget and lifestyle. But before signing the rent agreement there are a few things to keep in mind.

Inspect the apartment: One of the crucial things before buying an apartment is to inspect it properly. If there is any damage, ask the owner to fix it before you sign the agreement and move in. Else you will be blamed for it and will have to shell out from your own pocket to get things repaired.

Check the gas pipelines and look for any leaks, check switchboards, fans, lights, bathroom fittings, including water flow, showerheads, sink and faucets. Look for loose doorknobs, window handles and panes. Also, check walls and ceiling and ensure there is no seepage.

Landlord: You need to be talk clearly with the landlord. If your friends come over to your place often, put it into your landlord’s notice as there are some who might have a problem with it. If you have odd working hours, speak about that too.

It is also advisable to ask the owner of the apartment about the mode of paying the rent. There may be some landlords who accept cash, while some prefer cheque or online transfer. Find out the date by when the rent can be paid and if you will have to pay a penalty for any delay in payment.

Another thing to sort out in the agreement is the yearly increase in the rent. Most lease agreement have a clause about a 10% hike in rent, sort it out in the beginning to avoid any troubles in the future.

Utility costs: Renting an apartment in any metro or other developing cities means you must be prepared to pay for a number of utilities along with the monthly rent.

Utility costs include maintenance, water, gas connection, electricity and garbage cleaning. There are some charges which are included in your rent, but there are a few that are not.

You should ensure that everything is clearly mentioned in the rent agreement.

Pet policy: If you have a pet or you are planning to get one after moving to a new apartment, make sure your landlord agrees to that. Talk to the landlord if there is any extra charge to keep pets and the types of pet allowed.

There have been instances when the landlord is okay with a pet but the society has restrictions. There are some societies which are not pet-friendly and if you are planning to rent an apartment there, you may not be allowed to take your pet along.

Pest control: Look at every nook and corner and check all the storage places, kitchen shelves, cupboards and other furniture for bug infestations or rodent droppings.

You must ask the owner of the house to get pest control done and continue the practice every six months to ensure that you are not troubled by rats, cockroaches, bed bugs and other pests.

Co-working spaces in Pune are available at 33 per cent lower rentals than traditional offices, while the cost advantage of flexible workspace is lowest in Gurugram at 6 per cent, according to property consultant Anarock.  In its report on co-working segment, the consultant said flexible workspaces in Pune offer the highest rental difference -- as much as 33 per cent against comparable spaces in traditional offices.

The average monthly rental for co-working spaces in Pune's central business district (CBD) areas like Laxmi Road, Camp, Bund Garden, Koregaon Park and Shivaji Nagar hover between Rs 5,000-10,000 per desk as against Rs 10,000-12,500 per desk in traditional office spaces (assuming 100 sq ft per desk for conventional commercial office space).

In NCR's Gurugram, flexible workspaces command only 6 per cent lower monthly rentals of Rs 9,000-14,000 per desk as against Rs 9,500-15,000 per desk in regular office spaces.

"On an average, co-working spaces offer a substantial price difference of 15 per cent over traditional spaces in the top cities. While Pune offers the maximum cost advantage of 33 pc, Gurugram in NCR has the least at 6 pc," ANAROCK Property Consultants Chairman Anuj Puri said.

Analysing the rental difference between co-working and traditional offices of six major cities, Anarock said that co-working spaces in Bengaluru charge nearly 20 per cent lower rentals in key areas such as M.G. Road, Millers Road, Vittal Mallya Road, Residency Road, among others.

The average monthly rental for flexible workspaces is between Rs 7,500–15,000 per desk, while for traditional office spaces it is Rs 10,000-18,000 per desk, the report said.

In Mumbai Metropolitan Region, co-working spaces come at 14 per cent lower rentals in key micro-markets such as Ballard Estate, Colaba, Churchgate, Fort and Nariman Point.

The average monthly rentals for co-working spaces is between Rs 18,500-28,500 per desk, while it hovers between Rs 24,500-30,000 per desk for traditional office spaces.

In Chennai and Hyderabad, rentals for co-working spaces in CBD areas are 9 and 10 per cent lower, respectively.

The average monthly rentals for flexible workspaces in Chennai's key areas like Anna Salai, Nungambakkam and RK Salai are between Rs 6,000-14,000 per desk as against Rs 7,000-15,000 per desk for regular office spaces.

In Hyderabad, co-working rentals in key office areas like Gachibowli, Madhapur, Manikonda and Kondapur range between Rs 5,000-8,000 per desk as against Rs 6,000-9,000 per desk in traditional office spaces.

Even though coworking spaces is resulting in rental savings between 6 per cent and 33 per cent, the segment has failed to attract major multinational companies (MNCs) in India. This is in sharp contrast to its popularity in several European nations, a report by ANAROCK Consultants stated.

Pune offers the maximum cost advantage, while Gurugram in NCR (national capital region) offers the least. Individually, flexible workspaces in Pune offer the highest rental difference of as much as 33 per cent as against comparable spaces in traditional offices, while Gurugram offers 6 per cent.

“While startups and budding entrepreneurs make a beeline to co-working spaces, large corporates remain wary of depending on them for their expansion. This trend is quite contrary to what is witnessed in developed European nations,” Chairman of ANAROCK Property Consultants Anuj Puri said.

As per the ANAROCK report on the emerging asset classes, the average monthly rental for coworking spaces in Pune’s CBD areas such as Laxmi Road, Camp Road, Bund Garden, Koregaon Park, and Shivaji Nagar hover somewhere between Rs 5,000 - Rs 10,000 per desk as compared to Rs 10,000 - Rs 12,500 per desk in traditional office spaces.

Despite all the pros of co-working spaces, they are not devoid of cons. There are many which do not have separate canteens or pantries for occupiers, and also restrict corporates from organising events in common areas. Maintenance of these properties is also a big challenge, the report said.

Though there are some big companies that do use coworking spaces, these limitations have generally put large companies “off the notion of embracing coworking spaces despite the lower rents,” Puri said.

As per the report, coworking spaces in Bengaluru charge nearly 20 per cent lower rentals in key areas like MG Road, Millers Road, Vittal Mallya Road, Residency Road. The average monthly rental for flexible workspaces hover between Rs 7,500 – Rs 15,000 per desk, while rents for traditional office spaces remains somewhere between Rs 10,000 - 18,000 per desk.

Speaking about Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), the report said coworking spaces in the region come at 14 per cent lower rentals in key micro-markets such as Ballard Estate, Colaba, Churchgate, Fort and Nariman Point. As for the average monthly rentals in coworking spaces, it is somewhere between Rs 18,500 - Rs 28,500 per desk, while for traditional office spaces it ranges between Rs 24,500 - Rs 30,000 per desk.

The rentals for coworking spaces in CBD areas of Chennai and Hyderabad are 9 per cent lower respectively. In Chennai’s key areas like Anna Salai, Nungambakkam and RK Salai the average monthly rentals for flexible workspaces are somewhere between Rs 6,000 - Rs 14,000 per desk as compared to Rs 7,000 - Rs 15,000 per desk for regular office spaces.

In Hyderabad, co-working rentals in key commercial or office areas such as Gachibowli, Madhapur, Manikonda and Kondapur range between Rs 5,000 - Rs 8,000 per desk, as against Rs 6,000 - Rs 9,000 per desk in traditional office spaces.

Closer to the capital, in Gurugram, flexible workspaces command only 6 per cent lower monthly rentals of Rs 9,000 - Rs 14,000 per desk, against Rs 9,500 - Rs 15,000 per desk in regular office spaces.

The report said that a major factor keeping the price difference between the two low in Gurugram is the huge demand for coworking spaces by the start-ups and entrepreneurs in the CBD areas of the city.

Gurugram is considered to be one of the major co-working hubs in the country. Also, keeping in mind the huge demand for commercial spaces in city, supply for Grade A commercial office spaces is low, the report concluded.

A prolonged demand slowdown has seen property prices in Gurugram and Noida witnessing a fall of 7 percent and 4 percent, respectively, in the last five years, according to a report by realty portal PropTiger.

At 7 percent CAGR (compound annual growth rate), Hyderabad saw the highest increase in value of property among key markets between March 2015 and March 2020. Besides Hyderabad, only Mumbai and Bengaluru saw any noteworthy rise — of 2.8 percent and 2.1 percent CAGR, respectively, the report said.

In terms of absolute change in the period from March 2015 to March 2020, Hyderabad saw the average value of apartments increasing 40% to reach Rs 5,318 per square foot (psf).

In Mumbai, the average value rose 15 percent to Rs 9,446 psf. At the third spot on the list was India's technology capital Bengaluru, where the average apartment value rose 11 percent to Rs 5,194 psf in the past five years, the report said.

While price increases in Ahmedabad, Chennai, Kolkata and Pune were only marginal, the two NCR markets of Gurugram and Noida saw rates declining during the same period. The average property value in March 2020 over March 2015 increased by 4 percent in both Kolkata and Chennai; the rise in Pune was only 2 percent while Ahmedabad saw a rise of 3 percent.

Housing prices in Gurugram fell by 7 percent during the same period, while the decline in Noida was 4 percent. These two NCR markets have been at the receiving end of negative publicity because of large-scale project delays and instances of some mega players entering into insolvency resolution, the report added.

"An ongoing demand slowdown in India's real estate market has kept price growth in check, as a result of which housing rates in most markets have shown only negligible growth. If Hyderabad stands as an exception here, it has more to do with the fact that the base price in what is referred to as India’s pharmaceutical capital was quite low during 2015. The state bifurcation also pushed prices upwards," said Dhruv Agarwala, Group CEO, Housing.com, Makaan.com & PropTiger.com. 

After many failed attempts over the past decade, Bhendi Bazaar, one of the most underdeveloped and busiest business-cum-residential districts of the city, is taking a big leap into the future in what's said to be the nation's largest cluster redevelopment project.

The 125-year-old neighbourhood spanning 16.5-acres, not very far from the iconic CST, is already home to two newly-developed towers of 36 and 41-floors which are opening a new world of modern living for the families there. Around 610 of the over 3,200 families and 128 of the over 1,250 businesses have moved in to the new buildings -- all for free.

The families, which were living in 80-ft dilapidated homes, are moving into 350 sq ft modern apartments now.

This is the country's largest and one of the most ambitious cluster redevelopment programmes till date. It is being fully funded by the Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust, established by the late Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, the former spiritual head of the Bohri Muslim community who are the vast majority of the residents and tenants of the area.

These two towers have come up on the plot where 13 dilapidated buildings stood and form part of the 13 towers which will be developed at the site.

"The new neighbourhood will meet the present and future socioeconomic needs of diverse communities living and working in the area," Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust Secretary Abdeali Bhanpurawala said.

The redevelopment comprises 16.5 acres of land with more than 250 decrepit buildings, 3,200 families and 1,250 shops, all of which will be incorporated into a state-of-the-art sustainable development model with wider roads, modern infrastructure, ample open spaces and highly visible commercial areas.

The state planned to redevelop the area almost a decade ago but work was marred by slow pace.

The project involves razing 250 mostly dilapidated medium-rise structures and building 13 high-rise towers in their place. These towers will house existing commercial and residential tenants, who will be given ownership of their new apartments.

The project aims to add greenery, public spaces and glitzy shopping options to the 125-year-old market-district, a holdover from the colonial days.

Originally built to accommodate migrant labourers working in the harbour, more recently Bhendi Bazaar has attracted low-income families, drawn by state-controlled rents that have been frozen for decades.

This ambitious project is the brainchild of the late Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, who in 2009 made the drastic proposal to demolish the 16.5-acre district, with the exception of its holy sites, and build anew.

In a city where property prices are sky-high and challenges arising from land constraints are an everyday occurrence, it seemed an ambitious undertaking, but the proposal got the backing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi who made it a flagship smart city project in July 2015.

The two towers which are already completed and where 610 families have moved in have been designed to include a recreational area with gardens and a kids' playground and various other amenities like prayer room, multi-purpose hall, activity rooms, and separate gymnasium rooms for both women and men.

The commercial spaces are housed on the ground, first and second floors with street-facing frontages.

Mumbai-based BK Birla Group's realty firm Birla Estates is planning to expand its residential footprint in Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru and Pune and invest over Rs 2,000 crore over the next two years, a top official of the company told Moneycontrol.

The focus of the company, a subsidiary of Century Textiles and Industries Ltd, will largely be on high and premium housing.

"In 2020, we are looking at many more joint ventures depending on the quality and the location in NCR, Pune, Bengaluru and Mumbai. The company is looking at investing about Rs 2,000 to Rs 2,500 crore across these four markets for enhancing its residential footprint. While we will continue to develop the land parcels that we own, we will also prefer the asset-light joint venture model. Consolidation and joint ventures will be the focus going forward," said KT Jithendran, CEO, Birla Estates.

The company's portfolio of 200 acres includes 40 acres of textile mill lands in Worli, 45 acres in Pune, 125 acres in Kalyan, 2 acres of land along the beach in Prabha Devi in Mumbai and land owned by subsidiary Century Rayon.

"Only about 31 acres has been launched so far which is approximately 2 million sq ft of residential space. The entire exploitation of the 200 acres will take 8 to 10 years," he said.

The company has invested close to Rs 250 crore as equity capital in JVs and outright for its premium residential projects, he said.

The company has so far committed about Rs 400 crore to its JV partner in Delhi-NCR for its project Birla Navya, a floor rise project, for which Rs 125 crore has been paid and the rest is to be paid over a period of time. As much as Rs 50 crore has been paid for its Bengaluru project.

About 50 acres of JV projects have been launched – 6 acres in Bengaluru and 10 acres in Delhi-NCR, he said, adding we are looking at several JV opportunities in NCR, Pune, Mumbai and Bengaluru going forward.

"The slowdown in the real estate market is clearly an advantage for the branded players. We are getting several joint development opportunities from across the country. Some of them are stressed assets and some of them are from small developers, land owners. Capital is not a constraint for us," Jithendran said.

Last year, Birla Estates tied up with Delhi-based realty firm Anant Raj Group to develop a housing project in Gurugram and committed an investment of Rs 400 crore for the entire 73 acre land parcel.

The company recently launched a floor-rise project Birla Navya along Gurgaon’s Gold Course Extension Road is floors. This is spread across 10 acres of the total 47 acres comprising about 6 lakh sq ft of space.

"About 300 units are currently up for sale. Construction will begin in a month’s time. We have all the permits to launch construction. We are not in a hurry to launch a group housing project. It  will may be launched next year," he said.

The unit price of the floor rises are approximately around Rs 1.3 crore. These will be up for possession around 2024.

In Bengaluru, the company has launched 'Birla Alokya', located on Soukya Road, Whitefield. This project has 218 luxury apartments across 7.8 acres. The unit price starts from Rs 1.19 crore.

A second residential project in Magadi Road, Bengaluru. This is a joint development venture between Birla Estates and Subhadra Textiles. The 6 lakh sq ft project will be launched next year.

Birla Estates, a subsidiary of Century Textiles and Industries Ltd (CTIL) has also developed a few commercial office spaces in Mumbai, as a real estate division of CTIL.

A good 77 percent women homebuyers are end-users themselves  compared to 62 percent men with a similar objective, a survey by Anarock has found out.

Notably, for 87 percent women end-user homebuyers, these will be their first homes.

'Proximity to workplace' was the top priority for both male and female survey participants looking to buy homes, 35 percent of the polled women consider suitable amenities within a housing project the second-most important factor. For men, the second-most important factor was the largest size they can afford, the survey by Anarock said.

The Rs 45-90 lakh category is the most preferred budget range for prospective women homebuyers. MMR is first choice for at least 26 percent women among all major cities, followed by 22% in NCR, the survey said.

As many as 20 percent women said that Bengaluru was their primary choice. Pune was next with 12 percent votes in its favour, followed by Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad with 8 percent, 5 percent and 3 percent votes respectively. Only 5 percent women prefer to invest in tier-2 and 3 cities, the survey said.

At least 40 percent women homeseekers prefer a property in the mid-segment price bracket with ticket sizes between Rs 45-90 lakh, followed by 35 percent preferring the affordable segment priced within Rs 45 lakh. Only 3 percent women will consider buying luxury properties priced over Rs 1.5 crore - as against 12 percent men who prefer to buy within this category, the survey said.

Almost half the women respondents prefer spacious 2 BHKs with sizes 800-1,200 sq. ft. area, the survey noted.

Almost 38 percent men buy for investment while 23 percent women homeseekers buy property for investment, it said.

Trends also reveal that more and more young women buyers are now coming forward to buy a property. As many as 47 percent women property seekers polled in the survey were in the age bracket of 25-35 years, followed by 41% in the 35-45 years age. Interestingly, 5 percent women property seekers were also aged within 25 years. In contrast, 47 percent male home seekers were in the 35-45 years age bracket while 34 percent were in the 25-35 age category.

The survey also said that women are more brand conscious than men: As many as 60% women prefer buying homes from branded developers; male participants’ preference is equally divided between branded and non-branded developers – almost 50 percent each, the survey said.

Ready properties or those nearing completion within 6 months top choice. At least 56 percent women will only consider buying such homes, followed by 26 percent open to buying properties that will be completed within a year. Merely 18 percent preferred newly-launched projects, the survey said.