As Unitech developers promise to deliver projects that have been delayed for over 15 years in the next 15-18 months, a look at how middle class home buyers, continue to be gullible victims in the hands of real estate mafia. Their "dream home" remains elusive, EMI continues to pile up, rent spirals, cost of living goes out of bounds, the vicious circle continues. Is there a way out of this maze? Until we get proper regulations in place, buying a home in India and enjoying it, seems like two different realities.
New Delhi: Yes, Realty does Bite and it leaves a scar too...
If you are among those who have invested in property around Delhi NCR, you would know what the catchphrase means (and boy, does it hurt!). Playing devil’s advocate, one would argue that property buying anywhere in India is nothing short of an ordeal. However, as far as the biggest real estate market of the country is concerned, property buying in Delhi is akin to playing Tom and Jerry with scandalous property dealers on the one hand and corrupt authority officers on the other.
If you are lucky, your dream home will see light of the day...
if you are not, it stays a nightmare for a really long time, we mean really long! If there is one segment who is unbothered by this property chaos, and are regaling about their nexus, it is the developers. Recently, on September 16, there were reports of Unitech hosting a “groundbreaking ceremony” for their delayed projects in Noida. They even promised delivery in less than two years – by 2026.
Mind you, there are more than 5,586 homebuyers who had invested in the three projects and have been waiting for their house for the last 15 years. Some of them had to even sell their inherited land to pay off EMIs for these homes. Unitech houses in Sector 96,97,98 have remained unused since 2011 The builder (Unitech) failed to complete their ambitious projects in the Noida- Greater Noida expressway because they didn’t have adequate funds to pay the Noida authority land-cost dues of around Rs 11,000 crore.
They were also unable to arrange for the required funds to complete the said projects. But now, Unitech says it will deliver on time and ensure that their customers are a satisfied lot. But are they? What happens to the sacrifice that has already gone into buying a home? Who compensates for that cost incurred? Lost cause of real estate investing: Some voices While the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other agencies are deep diving into Unitech’s diversion of funds done by promoters, hapless customers stare at an uncertain future.
Take Supriya Sharma (52), a senior marketing professional and a Delhite, who had invested in the Burgundy luxury tower promised by Unitech. “My mother has a flat nearby in Sector 100 and I wanted to be close to her home. We bought a flat of 3,798 square feet in a tower in 2011 and were promised delivery by the end of 2012.
My son used to go to school back then and I had dreams of seeing him tee off in the golf course in our apartment complex. A lot has happened since then,” a dejected Sharma, who was one of the 400 attendees at the event held by Unitech, says. Groundbreaking ceremony for three Unitech housing projects in Noida held on Sunday.
(Photo source: X/@vinodrajputs) Her mother has since passed, her son is working in Bangalore and daughter is in a college in Kerala. Supriya and her husband are left with not much finances to retire from their jobs with ease. They continue to pay Rs 50,000 as rent in a 2 bhk at Sector 44 in Noida.
Although they were forced to pay off the EMIs, the Sharma’s still don’t have a home they can call their own. There are many like Sharma who have homes to their names but a delivery date that hangs in balance. Poonam Singh, a resident of a rented accommodation in a non-descript part of Mayur Vihar extension, has a similar tale to tell.
Singh had bought a property at the Jaypee Greens in early 2000s, no sooner had she started paying the EMIs that Singh was told that the developer had run into a problem with the land authority. “They told us that there was an issue with the builder and his selection of the land (it was build on agricultural land and the compensation was not paid off). We have filed umpteen cases, and an equal number of PILs asking for a fresh delivery date of our flat.
The court had to intervene and just a few years back we got our home. It is of no use to us now as our sons are married and gone,” Singh, a journalist by profession, tells us. She continues to live in her rented flat and her newly acquired Jaypee flat lies vacant.
Plans of reselling are stalled for now as registry of her home is yet to be completed. Where lies the problem There is no simple answer to this tough question. But there is ample evidence that points towards years of unchecked real estate expansion.
Developers in their greed for more, went on a land-buying frenzy and frequently diverted funds away from those projects that they were working on into other non-real estate ventures. This was allowed to thrive due to the corrupt nexus between developers and development authorities in the region. Logix Infrastructure Private Limited, which boasts of a couple of prime properties in the Noida-Greater Noida expressway and some commercial ventures (including the Logix City Centre multi-plex in the heart of the city).
During the time the mall was being negotiated, Logix had started aggressively marketing for their luxury apartments in Sector 137 and 143 respectively. Their promise to deliver Logix Blossom County in just 26 months failed miserably. It was learnt that the builders had gone bankrupt following the diversion of funds to build the Mall complex ahead of the residential towers.
The Sector 32 property is a mixed-use building with 25,000 sqm and about 6 lakh square feet of mall space. With a 20m green belt on both sides, this mall includes a five-star deluxe hotel, corporate offices, and serviced apartments. “Logix Infrastructure declaring bankruptcy and then removing their LBC Association of Apartments from the residential complex in Sector 137 is a nightmare even for those who have got possession of their flats much after due date.
The registry of most of our individual homes has been stalled, there is no maintenance office and the payment of staff maintaining the property still remains as a deficit running into crores,” a owner of a 2000 sq feet flat in Logix Blossom County, says. About the upkeep of the society, she informs us that it is up to the individuals to do the maintenance but a BOM is in place at present to look into official matters of the society. According to real estate survey conducted in 2021, Delhi-NCR has over 328,000 homes that are either terminally stalled or heavily delayed.
This in itself accounts for 52 per cent of all such units across India’s seven major cities. Greater Noida, alone makes for 50 per cent of the stuck or delayed units, followed by Noida, which has a 16 per cent share (around 53,680 units are delayed in this area). The problem is that these are large real estate conglomerates — from Jaypee Infratech Ltd to Unitech Ltd and Amrapali Group to Supertech almost everyone is a defaulter.
This compounds the problem because when you are looking to buy a home in the area, your best bet is to rely on big names in the business because of the brand value and the trust associated with such firms. However, if these very developers turn into tricksters and engage in selling false hopes to poor, unsuspecting buyers, the home coming is bound to be a delayed and a sordid affair. Would you fall for this trap or continue to live on rent? At it’s core, this is the sum of hard choices.
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