The Fe Round Table Conference - Real Estate, January 2008

The Real Estate sector is buzzing activity, and why not. The market is expected to grow at a compounded rate of 33% over the next three years and is expected to be worth $50 billion. The demand for real estate will emanate from all directions, residential, commercial and the booming retail sector. Valuations of real estate companies are scaling new peaks everyday. Funds worth billions are waiting to be invested in real estate projects in India.

But the dreaded question still lurks behind real estate investments -- is this a bubble or is the optimism in the real estate sector really real. Even the central bank is concerned on the overheating in the real estate sector. Skeptics believe that once supply catches up with the demand, prices would plummet and much fancied valuations would take a hit.   And then there are other bottlenecks as shortage of material supply, issues over quality of construction and participation of government in order to steady prices and reserve land for social purposes.