Looking Forward To Course Correction In Budget
Sanjay Dutt, MD & CEO, Tata Realty and Infrastructure Limited Set against the backdrop of the pandemic, Budget 2021 will be crucial in determining the long-term growth of every sector. In order to truly revive the economy, we hope that the Government is able to efficiently implement Covid-19 vaccination, stimulate demand and accelerate job creation related initiatives and continue the thrust on infrastructure development. While last year’s budget certainly had some highpoints, it unfortunately did not address numerous issues that the real estate sector has been facing for a while. With the government trying to revive the sector through initiatives like maintaining an accommodative stance on repo rate, six-month moratorium on EMIs, SWAMIH fund, stamp duty reductions in Maharashtra and stimulus 3.0 package, we sincerely hope that Budget 2021 too brings some much-needed relief to homebuyers as well as developers. As the sector’s growth relies heavily on the upcoming financial amendments, we look forward to measures for course correction, like granting industry status to the real estate sector and a single-window clearance mechanism for faster completion of projects. One GST, One or No Stamp Duty regime and reduction in registration charges across States are some of the other recommendations which will make a significant difference to the cost of a project and will definitely encourage home buyers to invest. RERA implementation should also be given more emphasis to protect the interest of all stake holders. The sector has been stressed for the past few years; the pandemic surely aggravated the problems but now there are some green shoots of recovery visible. Promoting growth of the sector could have a multiplier impact on the economy. For this to happen, we anticipate reforms for affordable housing, joint development and encouragement of foreign investment in completed residential properties. Another major problem that we hope be addressed is liquidity in real estate, For Eg. REITs are a viable solution since they enable investors to diversify their portfolio. Increasing the deduction for interest on housing loan to at least Rs 5 lakh and GST waiver for under-construction homes would also help tremendously in boosting the demand in the sector and attract potential buyers.
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