HDFC arm taps realty brokers, small broking offices to boost growth

HDFC Realty, the real estate advisory arm of HDFC, is working on aggregating the services of local property brokers to boost its business.

The company's new strategy comes in the backdrop of the prolonged slowdown in the real estate markets in the country.

“If we set up a large distribution network with brokers in multiple cities, developers can market their projects in many cities instead of restricting it to their home markets,” said Vikram Goel, chief executive at HDFC Realty in an interaction with Business Standard.

Online real estate advisor PropTiger’s India Realty Report FY2016 reveals that housing sales across top nine cities fell as much as 33 per cent, even as prices saw a marginal increase of only two per cent during the year. In fact, real estate in the National Capital Region market was the most affected, with sales down 51 per cent in FY2016.

Goel said brokers also get more opportunities to sell various projects across different cities and get consistent supply of projects to sell.

“Brokers also get to sell properties beyond their micro markets,” he said.

He said the company has sold properties worth more than Rs 10,000 crore in the last four years and seeing a growth of 50 per cent every year.

“If the configuration is right, pricing is right, property sells in the market,” he said, adding that except Mumbai, properties with a price tag of Rs 3,000 to Rs 5,000 a sq ft are selling well in most of the cities.

Goel said the company wants to establish a monopoly in selling and leasing small offices of 800 to 2,000 sq ft and a ‘active player’ in larger spaces.

He said it has helped companies procure 200 units or about 400,000 sq ft of smaller offices in the last two years and expecting a similar number this year.

HDFC Bank