“Campus developments with multiple amenities are corporate choice” [Feb 2012]

According to Cherag Ramakrishnan, CEO, Equinox Realty, “Corporate clients are looking for better facilities, proper management and reliable landlords when it comes to commercial properties”
Present status on real estate sector in India and activities at Equinox RealtyThe current scenario is challenging for the industry. Realty has an amplified effect to this basically because of the capital intensive demand that it throws out. So while there is abundant capital in the market, the sheer risk perception of the industry due to the extremely high debt burden taken on by the community at large, makes the capital both expensive and very hard to find. Capital is the single largest challenge to the sector as a whole.
The other challenge that the industry faces which is macro in nature and seems to be a longer term menace, is the inability of the state to come up with single window solution to get projects off the ground faster and cleaner. If the sheer time taken to get approvals both for acquisitions and subsequent developments is not only reduced but simplified we will have resolved a large part of the supply chain problems. The industry will then be able to counter shorter term market dynamics better as any other sector with the overall visibility of execution and hence funding and revenue realisation more easier to predict.
I think the industry is maturing at a very fast pace. We are seeing newer financial instruments coming that will allow larger pools of capital being available across different product types. This will suit all kinds of developers and / or developments. So the financial piece for the industry will be the largest game changer in the coming years to come.
Equinox Realty is doing well as per our plans.  Out trophy asset – Equinox Business Park in Mumbai has been doing well and we managed to sign up some very reputed clients this year. We are now all set to launch the last phase of our park which will have about 500,000 sq.ft. of office space. Our signature residential project- Water’s Edge in Bangalore is also shaping up well and we have received some very positive initial vibes from the market. We will be launching it in the first quarter of 2012. So overall, our aim of having a sustained revenue stream through capital and annuity inflows is working well. 
Key ongoing projects and order bookings under various infra segmentsWe are already well set in the commercial segment with Equinox Business Park, our 1.2 million sq.ft. commercial development in Mumbai. We are all set to launch the fourth tower of the park, which will be the last phase of the campus.  We are also adding some key amenities to the park in addition to the ones already there, to take the user experience to higher levels. As mentioned earlier, we will now be entering the residential segment with our signature project ‘Waters Edge’.  It is coming up in Hebbal area of Bangalore and is planned to be luxury housing project with an excellent location added. It will feature towers that will be amongst the tallest in the city and will be a blend of well-planned apartments, ingeniously crafted interiors, international standards of quality and a range of exclusive services and recreational amenities. Our other captive projects are also doing quite well.
Major trendsetters in 20112011 was more of a year of consolidation for the industry after the recovery from the slowdown a couple of years back. Though the commercial sector did pick up during the year; rising costs, bottlenecks in permissions and in some cases unreasonable pricing resulted in skyrocketing prices and hence reduced traction towards the end of the year, especially in the residential segment.
One trend that has emerged is that campus developments with multiple amenities are becoming the choice of corporate clients when it comes to choosing office space. Clients are looking for better facilities, proper management and reliable landlords when it comes to commercial properties. This is where projects like Equinox Business Park score over the stand-alone office buildings.
Mission 2012Our vision remains the same – to offer quality products which offer the clients a value proposition.  We are optimistic about the year 2012. With two launches scheduled for the first quarter and more projects in the pipeline, we are quite confident of a good year. However, it will be cautious optimism as the effects of the market conditions cannot be ignored. A good product and reasonable pricing strategy will go a long way in moving ahead.

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