The pandemic has brought every one of us down in the pit. When the Prime Minister announced the first-ever lockdown on March 24th, 2020, it seemed like someone hit the pause button. The player broke since, and now it is just going on and off. In the last two years, every industry took a major hit with its revenue. Some tried to build it back, while others gave up. Indeed, a tragedy, but we must keep moving forward as giving up will not feed our stomachs.

The Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India or CREDAI found solutions to get out of their pit. With several surveys and statistics, they have managed innovative occurrences to help their Real estate business. In this article, we will talk about the significant impacts caused by the second Covid wave and some solutions that may be plausible:

• Around 78% of the developers said that a reduction in stamp duty waivers would create demand.
• 75% think that ITC on GST, among other things, might help the financial viability of the projects.
• 66% of them said that loan restructuring would free up some space from financial pressure.
• And finally, if projects are approved at once, the work will begin faster and thus expedite the completion.

After much discussion over the above terms, it seemed like it was not enough. Hence there were some additional propositions made by the developers.

Extend the validity of all existing approvals of various authorities

The government of India is trying hard to vaccinate every individual in the country. But, until that happens, no one will be able to move around or work as freely as before. Therefore, the wise thing to do would be to extend the validity of the approvals for at least nine months. These include the time-bound approvals by the different land owning agencies, municipal corporations’ building plan approval section, environmental committees, state pollution control board and airport & railway authorities.

Relief package for Covid 19 affected.

Different classes of loans like SMA 0, SMA 1, etc. will aid the ones affected by this pandemic. More so, the working class will have enough money to visit cities if they are satisfied with the safety of their families. The Covid relief packages are designed in various ways for the various need of the people. The relief packages range from:

• Aiding in providing various raw materials for cooking and preparing necessities in foods.
• Providing support in re-settling various refugee problems during natural calamities.
• Assisting various migrant labourers throughout the country who are stuck due to the lockdown imposed by the government.
• Enabling smooth processing into relocating people stuck in refugee camps

Amendments in GST by the real estate industry

There are multiple options available under this category. First, one can choose to get great benefits to the tax.

• There is a 12% of GST, which will enable an 8% increase in making houses affordable. It also calls for a non-ITC option with 5% of the composition scheme and 1% affordable housing.
• GST on work contract services: There is a division concerning the goods and service tax in this scenario. 18% is applicable on non-governmental works and contract services. The second division is where the private work contract should be reduced to a 12% GST under section 2 of the Central goods and services tax act (2017)

Moreover, if possible, the GST over raw materials like cement should be lessened. This will provide additional aid to the workers and the developers’ altogether.

Impact of COVID in respect to Property Pricing

The second wave of COVID has yet not been able to mark any movements related to the pricing of properties. The developers continue to withhold prices to garner the limited profits, same as the previous year. The liquidity constraint might have the chance to weaken the prices in a long-term procedure; however, no chances of any form of a shift in the prices in the shorter term.

This is the result of the entire real estate industry being hesitantly optimistic yet cautious. The industry, however, has been reported to recover since the opening of the lockdown.

Conclusion

The country’s real estate developers are trying their hardest to achieve the best out of the worst situation. The brains behind most of the innovative solutions should be applauded. It is important to stick together at this time of crisis and keep the revenue chain within the country’s boundaries. However, these mentioned areas can benefit this country and, in turn, the citizens.

During the time of the pandemic, there has been a rejuvenation in all sorts of life. Every business, along with various organisations, had to rethink its way of business. Amidst all this chaos, the initiatives and the solutions have indeed helped the country at the time of the need.