Mumbai: Expressing his concern over the high costs of housing and the anomaly of growing housing needs whilst there are thousands of unsold flats in cities, and who would build the houses needed by 600 million Indians who will be living in urban areas by 2030, HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh on Thursday said the solutions to these problems have been elucidated several times. “Faster approval processes will reduce overall costs and on-line approvals will bring in the much needed transparency,” he said.
Pointing out that approvals take between 18 to 24 months and there are at least 50 approvals required across different authorities, he said, “If there is consensus that fewer approvals and interventions reduces overall costs, compresses timelines and ultimately benefits the home-buyer, then fast-tracking of approvals is imperative.”
He said, “developers should shun ‘speed money’ and focuses only on ‘speed’ in delivering projects to the customers as it would go a long way in improving affordability in the housing sectors.” Mr Parekh asked regulators to allow banks and ho-using finance companies to fund land purchase meant for residential purposes. He said those who understand that housing is a unique asset will work relentlessly towards this goal.
