DLF sells out West Delhi project after stepping up discounts

DLF Ltd, the country’s largest developer, has sold out its entire West Delhi housing project by selling flats as much as 32 per cent lower than market rate.

The New Delhi-based developer, which launched a residential project at Shivaji Marg (better known as Najafgarh Road) on April 7, sold out all the 1400 apartments on offer. 

The developer had priced its project at Rs 6000-7000 per square feet (basic selling price) and offered an initial discount of Rs 1000 and additional discount of Rs 500 for timely payments. DLF additionally offered an 8.5  per cent discount to the customers if they paid the entire amount of the apartment within a month of the initial booking, bringing down the effective price of the apartment to Rs 4075 per square feet.

However, in addition to basic price, customers will also have to pay preferential location charges (PLC) varying between Rs 500 to 1,250 per sq ft depending on the locations they choose and parking charges varying between Rs 300,000 to Rs 675,000.

Brokers, who Business Standard spoke to said customers still wishing to buy the project would be added to the waiting list. A DLF spokesperson confirmed the sale of all its apartments in the project but declined to say anything further. 

Though local brokers in Delhi say the pricing is good compared to current market prices in the area, they say developers are cutting prices to clear their stock quickly to create liquidity. According to data from property consultant Cushman & Wakefield, the current market price in the nearest comparable residential area is Rs 6,000 per sq ft. 

"Apartments are not getting sold easily today. If they have to sell immediately, they have to sell at cheaper rates,'' said Anil Singhal, a property broker based in Delhi. 

The project is being developed on a 38-acre parcel of land, for which DLF had paid Rs 1,675 crore in a 2007 auction, making it the biggest land deal of that time. The project will be a ground plus 18-floor structure. Each apartment is between 1,200 and 1,525 sq ft, with the final price of Rs 60-91.5 lakh.

DLF has been forced to drop prices in some projects after facing opposition from customers. In the past month, it has reduced prices in Chennai, Bangalore and Gurgaon projects by 10-20 per cent.