The Hindu Business Line : Real estate buyers can now check property prices thru Residex

NEW DELHI: Home buyers, who have been dependent mostly on dealers to check property rates, can now track prices through RESIDEX - a newly launched index on price movements in the real estate sector by housing finance regulator National Housing Bank. The index, which has been initially launched for five cities - Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Bhopal and Kolkata - will be soon extended to 35 cities, with a million or more population.

In the next phase, it will cover 63 cities and later collect data on real estate prices at the national level.

According to RESIDEX, real estate prices have gone up by 2.75 times in Bangalore between 2001 and 2005, compared to doubling of prices in Delhi, 1.78 times in Mumbai and 1.72 times in Kolkata city during the same period. Housing prices in comparatively smaller city Bhopal has also risen by 1.79 times, more than even in Mumbai over the five-year period.

Commenting on rising housing prices, real estate giant DLF Executive Director Rajeev Talwar said, "Prices in cities like Bangalore have risen because of development in IT sector and less supply of property as compared to rising demand.'' Another builder said the housing index would introduce transparency in housing market and curb the role of black money.

The RESIDEX is likely to emerge as an indicator for home buyers aiding them in their purchase decisions by enabling comparison between cities and localities over time. The index, which will be updated every six months, is also expected to enable the sta te governments to collect more revenue through stamp duty on registration of properties, as it would not be easy for buyers and sellers to under-voice the prices. - PTI

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