DLF starts phased payment plan in Gurgaon project

The real estate developer is starting with a 20:20:60 plan, may extend to other projects

The slow real estate market is driving large developers to offer a staggered payment plan. The latest is DLF. While realtors have been extensively using the scheme as a marketing tool to attract buyers, DLF has rarely done so. It said it had come out with a ‘20:20:60’ plan for a Gurgaon project.

According to the scheme DLF is offering, a buyer has to give 20 per cent of the total cost within one month of booking, another 20 per cent on application of occupation certificate and the remaining charges on offer of possession.

ABOUT THE SCHEME

• A buyer has to first give 20 per cent of the total cost within one month of booking
• After this, another 20 per cent on application of occupation certificate
• Then, the remaining charges on offer of possessions  
• The project is under construction at Sector 90 in Gurgaon
• Clients are seen breaking down large piece of works and awarding those to multiple vendors to acquire best of the breed technologies
• Trend is expected to continue going forward

The project is under construction at Sector 90 in Gurgaon. However, before launching the scheme, the unit prices were increased, sources said. A house here could be priced between Rs 6,000 and Rs 11,000 per sq ft, depending on the features and amenities.

When contacted, DLF refused to comment. Some brokers, tracking Gurgaon, say DLF might extend the scheme to other projects, too.

Despite a slowdown, prices have not come down significantly in the National Capital Region (NCR). Prices have been mainly stable but there is scope for correction in many locations, according to experts.

“In the current market situation, DLF has increased the prices by three per cent to four per cent in one of its projects. It shows the confidence of the developer, a good sign for the market,” a realty consultant, based in the NCR, said.

In March, DLF had for the first time offered discounts across 16 projects in Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Kochi, Lucknow, Panchkula, Bhubaneswar, Kasauli and New Chandigarh.

It has been trying hard to sell its inventory in a market where sales have been declining and supply piling up. It has also been reeling under huge debt, currently pegged at Rs 20,000 crore. It had to divest many non-core assets to generate cash and focus on its core business of real estate.
 

Developers began cutting prices about two years ago to revive the flagging sales in order to beat the slowdown and generate cash flows, that had dried up after banks piped down funding to the sector. 

DLF has been in the news for wrong reasons as well. Last year, DLF was penalised by the competition regulator for allegedly abusing its dominant position by imposing "unfair and discriminatory" terms on its buyers in several of its projects. The case is now being heard in the Supreme Court, but DLF had to deposit the penalty amount of Rs 630 crore with the court during pendency of the litigation. In February, two fresh probes were ordered by CCI against DLF involving its Skycourt and Regal Gardens projects in Gurgaon.