Tuesday 6 April 2010

A whooping deal .....

It's one of the most expensive deals ever to take place in India - a sea-facing duplex flat in a prime locations of South Mumbai near Haji Ali was sold in an open auction for Rs 90,600 per sq ft totalling a whopping Rs 33 crore.
The duplex flat, belonging to ABN Amro Bank, at Samudra Mahal, measures around 3,640 sq ft and is situated on the 19th and 20th floors of the building. Several high profile celebrity residents are believed to be staying at Samudra Mahal. According to Pranay Vakil, chairman, Knight Frank, a global property consultancy firm, who was present at the auction, the flat has a very small percentage of loading. "Most of the area is at carpet price and faces the sea. The flat comes along with two covered car parks," he said. He added that there were a number of bidders for the duplex but an unknown party managed to bag the auction deal at Rs 33 crore making it one of the most expensive deals in the city.
Vakil added that the rate at which the flat was sold was utter madness. "The government needs to do something about the supply situation in the city. If things continue like this, a common man cannot even dream of buying a flat in the city," he said. He added that as the flat has just around seven to ten per cent of loading area, the rate per area comes to around Rs 90,600 per sq ft. Vakil believes it is very difficult to determine if this would be the costliest deal in the city. "There are places, which have around 30 per cent loading area. If the same flat was in some other area, it would have been marketed as a 5,000 sq ft built-up area flat. So the per sq ft rate would work out to Rs 60,000. It would be difficult to determine the actual cost per sq ft," he said.
Yashwant Dalal, president of the Estate Agents Association of India, says the properties in the area do command such exorbitant rates. "Firstly, duplex flats do command that kind of premium rate. Secondly, the height at which the flat is situated also commands a premium. And factors like sea-facing view and celebrities living there also determine the rate of the flat," he said.
Dalal added that tainted stock broker late Harshad Mehta's property, which is next to Samudra Mahal and measures around 17,500 sq ft, was sold for just Rs 32 crore by the state government to recover its dues. "The flat was sold at one fourth the original value of the property at an open sale, which was getting no takers," he added.
On November 21, 2007, a four bedroom flat was sold for Rs 34 crore. At nearly Rs 97,000 per sq ft, it was the highest price ever paid in India at the Apsara Co-operative Housing Society - the NCPA apartments in South Mumbai.
Also, a deal at El Plazzo at Malabar Hills, South Mumbai made big news last year after a reported deal between actor Vinod Khanna and a firm took place for Rs 1.20 lakh per sq ft. But the buyer backed off at the last minute.

BUILDING NAME: Samudra Mahal
BELONGS TO: ABN Amro Bank
FLAT SIZE: Around 3,640 sq ft
FLOORS: 19th and 20th
PRICE FACTOR: Sea-facing view and celebrity residents
TOP DEAL SO FAR : A four bedroom flat at the Apsara Society in South Mumbai sold for Rs 34 cr at nearly Rs 97K/ sq ft on Nov 21, 2007

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