The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : Demand for commercial space up

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Friday, Jun 03, 2011
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

Demand for commercial space up

T. Lalith Singh

Observers attribute the demand to expansion of retail industry

Wal-Mart, Aditya Birla, Spencers, and Metro planning expansion
Office space rentals too have come down to a more agreeable level

HYDERABAD: The real estate sector while worried over the lack of recovery on residential space front has some thing to feel good about the commercial and office spaces.

Slowly yet steadily, these two segments have not only managed to come back in demand and according to the industry, look poised to keep growing this year. The main impetus has been provided by the retail industry which has come to spread its activities widely across the city and also the suburbs.

“A lot of super markets and retail outlets have opened up in the last year while some are in pipeline and more are scouting for adequate space in proper locations to open their outlets. This has really given a positive thrust to the commercial real estate,” says a developer.

The requirement for retail sector too had changed with the stress being on bigger and spacious ones. Since the rentals and lease prices happens to be more realistic compared to few years back, spaces to the tune of 60,000 sft and with preference for 15,000 sft floor plates were being sought.

From Wal-Mart to Aditya Birla, Spencers and Metro are all looking at expansion across the city and also the suburbs, says K.Sreedhar Reddy, director, Megasri Constructions and an office bearer of A.P. Real Estate Developers Association (APREDA). “Coming months are going to witness a major growth as different revenue sharing models are also in the pipeline on the retail side,” he says.

The office space rentals too have come down to a more agreeable level, says those in the real estate industry. The bare shell office space is now available at around Rs.30 per sft while the plug and play comes at around Rs.55 per sft. “During the boom time, the bare shell came at Rs.60 to Rs.65 per sft and the plug and play demanded more than Rs.80 per sft,” says Mr. Reddy.

Even the food industry is keen on expansion here and some of the leading brands are said to be scouting for appropriate spaces to launch drive-ins, a concept which could well catch up in the city.

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