Realty reforms a big draw for foreign investors: Colliers

BENGALURU: India’s real estate sector is likely to see increased interest from global investors and higher allocation of long-term capital in the next five years, a top executive at a global commercial real estate services firm said, on improved regulations and policy reforms and a healthy demand-supply balance.

Global investors remain bullish on India’s property market owing to regulatory reforms, said David Hand, CEO-APAC at Colliers International, which recently acquired a controlling stake in a Blackstone-backed property management firm in India. “We are all aware of the short-term headwinds due to regulatory reforms, but India is one of the healthier markets globally, and every emerging market goes through growing challenges,” Hand said.

Investors may look beyond rent-yielding offices to bet on demand-based sectors such as logistics, warehousing, data centres, co-living and student housing, build-to-core offices and urbanisation projects, he said.

Investments into real estate are expected to touch $6.5 billion in 2019, with office investments garnering the highest share. Investors are gung-ho about the commercial office sector, which is witnessing robust demand, according to a recent report by RICS-Colliers.

The real estate sector will also become more sophisticated with long-term capital entering the market, Hand said.