What makes homes in an integrated township unique? – Deepak Yewle

October 29, 2015
Every individual wishes to buy their dream home. Buying a reasonably priced home in a decent area can sometimes get tricky. It is easier said than done as there are not many affordable properties in the main urban areas. Locations that lack quality infrastructure are developed by private real estate companies who expect the local ecosystem to evolve with time. Even homebuyers are expecting the same. But what if the area fails to develop as planned? That is where integrated communities and townships come to the rescue and minimizes the risks. Most luxurious apartments in India are built within these spaces. Read further to know why buying a flat in such townships is essential and beneficial.

• What are integrated townships?

Integrated townships span hundreds of acres. They are clusters of residential and commercial businesses with correlated infrastructure. Some of them are independent houses, apartments, offices, schools, hospitals, shopping malls, water treatment plants, drainage and sewage facilities that are developed in the urban centers. A few places even have police and fire stations. With more crowds migrating to urban areas, integrated townships have been correctly identified as a potential solution. With land being a state subject, numerous laws have varying policies on integrated townships. Today state governments are promoting integrated township projects by proposing the easing of development norms for such projects.

• How is it a solution to urban challenges?

Most of the cities have exhausted lands in the central location. Hence, an extension of land is the only possible solution to accommodate the increasing population. Such peripheral sites suffer from a poor quality of physical and social infrastructure. Development of integrated cities comprising of luxurious apartments in India could solve the infrastructure bottleneck in such places. The surge in attention of integrated township projects also translates into higher anticipated returns associated with such projects. With the vast commercial space running alongside residential units, there is more drive for demand and high appreciation of property value.

• What value does it provide to end users?

Luxury apartments in India are aesthetically crafted, and these integrated projects are built within the periphery of cities due to the availability of large tracts of land. The ease of external commercial borrowing norms for such integrated townships is also expected to give such projects a boost. In large cities, people are open to residential solutions that enable them to circumvent infrastructure deficit and improve their lives. Also, the presence of private and commercial spaces leads to faster development as the two create demand for each other. Thus, valuation grows faster in such cases as compared to stand-alone properties. These townships serve multiple purposes such as offering high-quality accommodation to a high volume of end users, solving critical problems of urbanization, and emanating unplanned past expansion. It should be noted that in India, the degree of reality development outpaces the velocity with which civic amenities and cultural infrastructure evolves in a location. Many upcoming real estate areas still suffer from underdeveloped social infrastructure thus, resulting in end user inconvenience. In such cases, the concept of integrated township seems to be a useful alternative. The presence of multiple facilities in the form of retail and entertainment options also help residents to save time, which would have been spent in commuting to such places.

Apart from adding value to their economic prospect, such townships are mass development. The total cost of maintenance that is distributed among a large population is less as compared to that of stand-alone luxurious apartments and villas in India where the cost is shared among a limited set of residents. Potential investors and the real estate fraternity are upbeat about the prospect of townships keeping in mind its endless benefits. In the coming years, integrated townships will constitute a significant portion of Indian real estate.