VISAKHAPATNAM: As property prices continue to rise, potential buyers are exploring the option of purchasing resale or secondhand flats. Resale properties can offer a significant cost advantage, as they are usually priced lower than new properties. Additionally, buyers can also benefit from a larger carpet area compared to new flats.
The real estate market in Vizag City and across the AP has declined due to various factors but the prices of lands and flats have still skyrocketed.New flats are being sold for prices ranging from Rs. 60 lakhs to Rs. 1.5 crore, depending on their location. On the other hand, resale flats that are 10 to 15 years old are available for Rs. 35 lakhs to Rs. 60 lakhs, depending on their size. The affordability of resale flats makes them an attractive option for budget-conscious buyers who want the best value for their money. D Prasad, a builder in the city, stated this.
Builders say that resale flats generally have public amenities, thriving neighborhoods, and a well-formed cultural and social ecosystem. There will be schools, colleges, malls, and hospitals, besides others. Families with children prefer to move to such areas rather than the newly forming localities where everything is far away and also expensive.
The advantages of resale flats in good condition are no GST, additional amount for parking, or corpus fund compared to new flats. Moreover, the affordability of the middle class has shrunk with their income marking no rise over the past few years, including the pandemic condition period in which many lost their jobs as the companies removed many employees under the cost-cutting measures. Middle-class people with steady incomes and entitled to loan facilities are calculating the rents that they have to pay for decent accommodation are prefer resale flats.
A 2BHK new flat (1000sft) would cost Rs. 60 lakh to 70 lakh in the core city area and also busiest junctions in the city including MVP, Lalithanagar, Dwarkanagar, Waltair uplands, Chinna Waltair and Pedawaltair, Kirlampudi layout, Lawson’s Bay colony and others whereas it would be Rs. 50 lakh in outskirts such as Madhurawada, Kommadi, Yendada, Sagarnagar, PM Palem, Vepagunta, Simhachalam and its surroundings, and Gajuwaka, besides Gopalapatnam and Steel Plant areas.
“We have seen a sharp price rise in new launches over the last five to six years with an average base price of Rs. 5000 as compared to Rs. 3500 per sft. Now, the resale flats are at the affordable stage as the buyers are getting 2 BHK (in between 1000 to 1100 sft) for Rs. 35 lakh to Rs. 38 lakh,” another builder Ramaraju said.
He added that people are not focusing on newly constructed properties as the prices have escalated due to increasing building materials of all kinds. The city has more than 3000 units of 2BHK and 3BHK lying for sale for the past two to three years. At least 250 to 350 resale flats were sold out in a couple of years the city as per the real estate market.
Due to the proposed executive capital slogan, the landowners increased prices. Apart from this, state govt has also increased the land value and most of the builders are not going for new ventures, escalating the prices of the new flats. All these factors encouraged the resale market, one of the real estate brokers, N Satyanarayana told TOI. “ I sold out five resale properties in the last 10 months in Madhurawada, PM Palem, Kommadi, Vuda Colony, and other areas. Most of the people are asking for 3 BHK,’ he said.
