'Infrastructure status could have given new lease of life to realty sector'

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s fifth union budget was one of the most closely-followed events as it was the final budget before the 2019 general elections, but it has disappointed real estate sector. 

The sector harboured considerable hopes from this Budget in the wake of demonetization, RERA and GST, expecting that some major announcements would re-inject the market into a growth trajectory.

The real estate, however, got neither infrastructure status nor any additional direct policy push from Union Budget 2018-19. The sector's demand for infrastructure status is related to several positive implications.

"Given the government’s ambitious vision of ‘Housing for all by 2022’, it has a very direct stake in helping the real estate industry get back on track. With rising demand and improving profitability, private players will be more than willing to be a part of the journey to achieve this ambitious mission. There would be increased real estate activity not only in the metros and larger cities but also in Tier II/Tier III cities," said Santhosh Kumar, Vice Chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants.

Instead of providing the real estate sector infrastructure status, the Budget gave a minor boost to the Housing for All scheme with a stated intention to build 51 lakh homes in rural areas and 37 lakh urban houses. 

"Infrastructure status to the real estate sector would have been a major structural reform that could have boosted the GDP, increased employment opportunities, lowered the cost of home development and purchase, and led to rapid growth of the sector," Santhosh Kumar of ANAROCK added.