Growth in infrastructure development will pull down prices: Experts

Mumbai: Concerned over the rising land cost, realty experts believe that growth in infrastructure development will result in bringing the prices down.

"Infrastructure plays a key role in real estate development. Land prices will come down if infrastructure is in properly developed. Ahmedabad, Hyderabad are two good examples where property prices have remained stable due to infrastructure support," Jones Lang LaSalle India Chairman and Country Head Anuj Puri said at an event here.

Realty body Naredco, along with APREA, has organised a two-day Real Estate and Infrastructure Investors' Summit 2016.

"Opening up of land for development helps in making a city vibrant. The solution to create affordable housing would be to open more land and improve infrastructure," he said.

Puri also said that real estate is in an evolution phase and even foreign markets like US and Germany have gone through this cycle.

"The retail real estate is doing well due to good quality projects and is presently in a consolidation mode," he added.

Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) Managing Director Sanjay Bhatia listed a number of initiatives taken by the authority including creating iconic infrastructure projects such as entertainment hubs and all weather marina project at Princess Dock.

"MbPT will soon free 150 hectares from its land parcel for various infrastructure projects. We have planned an entertainment hub at Victoria and Princess Docks, while Marine Drive is all set to get a facelift with two jetties at Chowpatty and the NCPA end," he said.

In another project, the world's highest ropeway is being planned from Sewri to Elephanta over the proposed Mumbai Trans Harbour Link, he said adding Mumbai will also become the gateway for international cruise ships.

Oberoi Realty Chairman and Managing Director Vikas Oberoi said, "it is intriguing to see that when a project is launched and construction just begins it is considered inventory. This is misleading. It creates negative sentiments and sends out wrong signals to the market."