The face of luxury urban housing in India is changing rapidly. From apartments in the sky to villas, the luxury segment has seen many changes. The segment is now being led by bespoke homes on owned plots. As urban Indians increasingly look at two things – investments with high returns and an unmatched lifestyle – the demand for plotted developments is on a steady rise.
In fact, plotted developments have delivered stellar returns ranging from 13% to 21% per annum in the last three years, as per industry reports. This has added to the positive buyer sentiment, with cities such as Bengaluru, Gurugram, Hyderabad, and Chennai, leading the demand charts.
Balancing affordability with RoI assurance
According to a report, more than 42% of buyers today prefer properties that allow them to have bigger homes with enhanced lifestyle amenities. In the current economic environment, buyers aim to be more judicious with their investments and enjoy more liquidity.
Themed plotted developments speak to the traditional investment wisdom – land is limited and therefore, a lucrative investment – while offering affordability. They also offer access to state-of-the-art amenities, expansive outdoors, and high-value community interactions.
Top real estate players across urban markets are building such luxury residential projects in high-potential neighbourhoods, just minutes away from congested metros. Low on density and high on the appeal of sprawling homes in awe-inspiring landscapes, plotted developments are becoming a top choice for both, investors and self-use buyers.
Facilitating unique homes and lifestyles
For self-users, plotted developments offer the opportunity to build homes that reflect their personality. Right from design to amenities, they can customize every detail to match their sensibilities and style. For example, environmentally-conscious homeowners can choose to build their homes using green practices, integrate solar technology, and set up wet waste recycling and water harvesting in their backyard.
Similarly, homeowners who would like to integrate smart technology are spoilt for choice. There is greater use of smart technology in homes that are built from scratch than in apartments.
Offering a sense of belonging
As urban living becomes more digitized and remote, there is a growing demand for residences that offer a sense of connectedness. These themed lifestyle plotted developments, with their community-centric design and spacious outdoors, allow for interactions with like-minded individuals. Residents can choose to bond over personal pursuits, nurture a community, or simply step out to unwind at a moment’s notice.
As millennial buyers seek a primary home that satiates their need for vibrant living, close to their offices and families, plotted developments are becoming a popular choice. Additionally, unlike rentals or workcation homes, owning land gives buyers a sense of stability, an important factor in today’s volatile times.
More than a piece of land
The growth in demand for luxury plotted developments is led by the need to own unique, personalized assets. Buying plots in a plotted development gives the owner flexibility in terms of developing them. In case the owner would like to wait a few years before building their home, they can choose to do so.
With developers also offering amenities and all the necessary water/electricity connections that may be required, the land is ready for development, any time the owner feels like it. It helps that buyers can even choose to develop their properties in a manner that generates additional income while they continue to own and occupy the property. Such potential is especially appealing to younger home buyers, who prefer investing in assets with short- to mid-term returns and don’t want to compromise on their lifestyle.
Together, all these preferences have contributed to the coming of age for the plotted development segment. While the traditional lure of the land has re-emerged, homebuyers today want an asset that promises flexibility, sophistication, and appreciation. Themed lifestyle plotted developments allows buyers to access all of this, making it a truly inclusive housing and investment option.
What a customer should look out for
There are a few things one may need to be sure of before buying a plot. However, the ease with lifestyle plotted developments is that most require a RERA certificate and RERA conducts their due diligence before they certify a property.
With branded developers, there is also a sense of assurance considering there are other developments by the same brand that one can visit for reference. However, what some brands offer is more than just a plot. While some brands may just demarcate the plots and sell them other brands go a step further and add more value to the land itself by building clubhouses, offering amenities, and service lines which run underground offering the landowner a simple plug-and-play model which helps them ease into construction.
The Bottom Line
Plotted developments have been in demand for a very long time. Buying a plot in a plotted development gives the landowner the ease of living in a community, which one usually gets from apartments and the benefit of constructing the home of his dreams while having land to their name. The rising demand for personalized living spaces tailored to individual needs and preferences is projected to drive the increasing popularity of branded plotted developments from premier developers in the Indian real estate market.