Massive Infotech parks, more than 20 swanky shopping malls, plush commercial centers and mega residential complexes…. The face of real estate, like none other, is fast changing in the otherwise conservative Chennai.

Artwork on the streets of Chennai- Photo Credit

With a reputation for being a hub of cultural activity in South India, for decades, the city of Chennai is reinventing itself into a sought after destination for luxury real estate developers and investors. And why not? An enormous Information Technology phenomena sweeping the city with the likes of Infosys, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, Ascendas, among others, and IT-enabled and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) services setting up shop here, on top of international automobile and telecom companies such as Ford, Hyundai, Motorola and Nokia, has all fueled an unparalleled consumer centric culture, a new lifestyle befitting the high disposable incomes never witnessed in the city before. The result, a multitude of implications for realty growth. And how?

Across the realty spectrum. From Infotech Parks, townships, hyper-marts, shopping malls, residential complexes with world-class facilities like golf courses, club houses, pools and security systems, luxury villas et al. What’s more, close on heels of city realty companies like Indus Group cashing-in on the new expansion, Delhi and Kolkata companies, like the Merlin Group, for instance, are tying up with local promoters, the Rajathi group to develop stylish residential and commercial properties at East Tambaram, Sriperumbudur and Ocheri.

PS Group, another Kolkata company, has invested Rs. 15 billion in various projects, including housing complexes at Old Mahabalipuram as well as near the Infotech Park at Siruseri and a huge shopping mall at Velachery. L&T South City Projects Ltd. launched Eden Park, an integrated township off the Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR), the IT corridor, in January this year.

Besides, many foreign firms are also seeking to make a mark in Chennai. Dubai-based ETA Ascon, has announced an investment of US$ 923 million to construct a 100 acre info-tech park in Chennai. Israeli firm Elbit Medical Imaging Ltd too has put in close to US$135 million for both commercial and residential projects. Far East Organization, a Singapore real estate conglomerate, is also looking keenly at the Chennai property market.

Needless to say the ‘real’ prices are soaring in recent times. A deterrent, no, properties are being sold out in hours of being announced. Guindy, Velachery, OMR, East Coast Road and most of the southwest part of the city are hot property. The modernization of the airport will further stimulate prices in Saidpet and around the Inner Ring Road, which connects city localities like Kodambakkam and Mambalam with the airport.

A beautiful coastline, a comparatively lower cost of living and a stable market, is what makes Chennai an attractive property proposition.