Posing as a major challenge to most developing nations has always been “Housing Delivery” and the government to facilitate housing development has repeatedly intervened through policies to promote housing, particularly in urban areas. This blog will study the case of Noida - A rapidly emerging urban hub nestled in the suburbs of Delhi, The National Capital Region/Capital of India. Its initial development led to the creation of an industrial town as per the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Development Act 1976 to ease the urban pressure on Delhi.
The establishment of the Delhi-Noida Direct Flyway toll road connectivity with upmarket south Delhi back in 2001 followed by the laying of the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway’s foundation stone opened the doors to what would become a booming urban center teeming with stellar residential and commercial spaces aided by the best roads and a verdant landscape in abundance.
Furthermore, in a landmark 2006 auction Unitech Group (An Indian real estate development company) won about 1.38 million square meters of land for a price at par with the developed cities in the world.
Fast forward to the year 2007, one of the largest shopping malls in India emerged at the heart of Sector 38 Noida - Great India Place, and growth kept marching on at breakneck speed Noida was connected by Delhi Metro in the year 2009. This meteoric rise gave way to the Buddh International Circuit (An Indian motor racing track situated near the town of Dankaur - Situated on the Yamuna Expressway) in 2011 and the Yamuna Expressway in 2012 followed by the construction of high-rise and affordable residential development between 2013 and 2017.
Land is a prerequisite for any building company to thrive. In Noida’s case, instead of buying land directly from the owners i.e., the farmers (Noida was primarily an agricultural area), the Noida Authority (Falls under the Infrastructure and Industrial Development Department of Uttar Pradesh Government) acquires land and allots land pockets ranging between 40,000 to 80,000 square meters through a two-bid system - Technical and Financial. This method sets down the lowest price i.e., the reserve price, over and above which bids are made. Moreover, the land allotment policies before 2006 required the allottees of land to deposit 30% of the land cost to the authorities at the time of allotment. Between the period of 2006-2017, policies saw further amendments which were rather pliable and gave a lot of builders a sigh of relief.
Sr. No. | Criteria | Before 2006 | Between 2006-2017 | 2017 and Beyond |
1 | Percentage of land cost to be deposited with the authority at the time of allotment | 30% | 10% | 30% |
2 | Moratorium to pay EMIs | None | Two-year installment relief | No instalment relief |
3 | Balance instalments | To begin immediately | To begin after 2 years | To begin immediately upon allotment |
4 | Registration amount | 5% | 5% | 10% |
5 | Interest on instalments | - | 12% | 12% |
If you carefully observe, land allotment policies adopted a more pro-housing approach between 2006 to 2017. Additionally, this period witnessed a lot of new entrants in terms of builder groups bidding for land for housing development.
The initial recorded property prices in Noida were ₹100-150 per square meter for residential plots (Row housing) between the 1970s and 1980s. Progressively, multi-storeyed houses were introduced through cooperative societies, priced affordably at Rs. 1,200-1,700 per square meter in the 1990s. Over the next few decades, prices further rose by 60-70% with property rates experiencing the highest appreciation rates as of 2024.
Drafted under the "Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016" RERA turned out to be a foundation for the methodical regulation of real estate. This law ensures:
Complete transparency in dealings
Zero charges by builders on excess area
Prohibition of project delays
Buildings with no defects
Non-usage of money for other projects by builders
And much more! Since Noida falls under the ambit of the Uttar Pradesh RERA, its functions are as follows:
To ensure all developers duly disclose their properties within the state
To register real estate agents and hold them responsible for their services
Every undergoing construction has to be mandatorily registered within the confines of Uttar Pradesh
To offer timely real estate-related grievance redressal
Establishment of an appellate tribunal to address appeals promptly
Noida’s booming housing market growth is a testament to the fact that no city is too small or underdeveloped. With the right kind of infrastructure, road connectivity, and correct regulatory measures any city can witness a meteoric rise. The introduction of RERA has made things easy for high-paying end-users, salvaging them from the uncertainty of underdelivered projects and at the same time helping builders make more profits.
Furthermore, with the recently introduced affordable housing measure in the interim session of the Budget 2024 by Finance Minister Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, Noida will witness a huge influx of population making Noida a booming economy.
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