Saturday, July 25, 2015

AREA WATCH - LOWER PAREL and PAREL: walk-to-work REALTY DESTINATIONS :The Times of India



The Parel and Lower Parel belt offers easy access to one's workplace, boasts of being one of the best areas to reside in and is also easily connected via road and rail to other parts of the MMR. Read on to know why it's wise to invest in this belt

Lower Parel is an ideal suburb offering an excellent mix of residential and commercial real estate options. The suburb has emerged as the new secondary business district and promotes the walk-to-work culture.All these factors have proven to be an advantage for the buyer. Sandeep Ahuja, CEO, Richa Realtors, feels, “The Lower Parel and Parel belt was known for its mills in the 1990s. Areas like Parel Village, Haffkine, Lower Parel, Lalbaug (close to Parel and Lower Parel) have developed drastically in the last decade. In the last five years, the demographics of the area have changed particularly in a big way; from a Marathi dominant area, Parel and Lower Parel have seen an inflow of people from other communities too. The real estate landscape has also changed in the last five years with many elite developers transforming the canvas with luxury, premium luxury and high rise structures.
Mayur Shah, managing director, Marathon Group, agrees and adds, “There has been a considerable change in the real estate market of Lower Parel today as compared to the market five years ago. The connectivity has been boosted in this suburb due to the presence of flyovers connecting this area with different parts of the city. The upcoming metro and mono rail are the other key features that are expected to give another push to the development of this area.“

With the presence of large business setups, followed by BFSI and top notch media houses, Lower Parel has emerged as one of the hot Secondary Business Districts (SBD) in Mumbai. The new residential towers have come up over the erstwhile dilapidated mill land areas and have converted this SBD into one of the `walk-to-work' places for Mum baikars. Ramesh Nair, COO, business and international director, JLL India, says, “Over the last five years, Lower Parel has seen significant commercial development with large IT buildings coming up. More and more tenants are seeing this as a viable office location.Meanwhile, Parel has seen more traction on the residential front as it is largely seen as a good alternative to the more expensive locations in central Mumbai. Both the locations are seen as very desirable places to live and work by their respective clientele.“

Today, there is an immense change in the lifestyle of the people in Mumbai. They are well-travelled and are aware of the international standards of living. The target audience for real estate in Lower Parel includes businessmen, professionals holding positions in top companies such as directors, CEOs, High Net worth Individuals (HNIs), celebrities and others. Hence, people residing or willing to reside in this area not only wish to have residences at premium locations of Mumbai but also want their dream homes to match the global style and standard. Mohit Chauhan, an advertising professional is staying in a rented apartment in the area because it was near his office and also along with traditional structures, the area had many new buildings, which have changed the skyline of the area today.

According to Rajesh Jain, managing director, Neumec Group, “Once dominated by cotton textile mills, the area now boasts of skyscrapers, posh commercial buildings, media houses, shopping complexes, upscale restaurants, reputed retail brands and others. Lower Parel has emerged as a Secondary Business District (SBD). The old buildings in this locality are now giving way to new developments.“

Lower Parel also has a good mix of hospitals and shopping outlets too. Well-known government hospitals such as KEM, Tata Memorial Centre, Wadia and MGM are on one hand and shopping centres such as High Street Phoenix, Palladium Mall on the other.The locality is surrounded by good schools and colleges too.

The infrastructure in Lower Parel is also developed to suit the lifestyle of the premium residents. Developers have understood their need and after conducting a detailed research, have begun creating residences that are luxurious and complete with all the latest amenities and facilities. The idea is not only to provide the premium buyer with a luxurious residence to live in but the motive is to give every buyer a distinct identity with their special home. Hence, today, developers rope in international designers and architects to design world-class homes. A company spokesperson of Kalpataru Ltd adds, “With new businesses and financial institutions moving to Parel, it has transformed from a hub of textile mills in Mumbai to a strategic business location in the city. It is also increasingly emerging as the focal point of luxury residential development.The location also enjoys a premium advantage due to its proximity to key locations like Mahalaxmi Race Course, business districts like Nariman Point and BKC and the international airport. The location boasts of an elite neighbourhood with luxury malls, hotels and restaurants as well.“

As far as connectivity is considered, Lower Parel railway station on the western line is also a key junction for daily commuters to travel to parts of south Mumbai and the western suburbs. The suburb is well-connected through roadways to the two ends of the city as well. One connects to south Mumbai through the Tulsi Pipe Road while the other end of the city is connected through the Eastern Express Highway. The Bandra Worli Sea link, an iconic infrastructure of the city, is located at a few minutes drive from Lower Parel. Through the sea link, the suburb is connected to the western parts of the city. Apart from the existing infrastructure, the govern ment also plans to have a monorail project between Wadala and Chembur that shall pass through Parel. The area is well-connected via the monorail and the nearest station is Jacob Circle located at a distance of two kms.The Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport via Senapati Bapat Marg and NH8 is located at a 15 kms' distance. Along with this, Lower Parel provides excellent Returns on Investment (RoI) in the form of capitalrental values due to the gradual increase in the per sq feet rate of properties in the suburb. This makes it lucrative for the investors to invest in Lower Parel.

According to industry experts, price and ROI depend on which stage the property has been bought. As a general rule, premium residential properties cost between Rs 35,00050,000 per sq ft and fetch a yield of two-three per cent annually. Commercial properties can be bought for Rs 22,000-30,000 per sq ft and one can expect a yield of 8.5-9 per cent on such assets. Overall, Lower Parel and Parel have turned into hotspots and with the residential and business clout growing, the road ahead looks positive.

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