By Vipin Agnihotri
It was once the nerve centre of all corporate activity until it collapsed after the property market crash over a decade ago. But at this point of time, Nariman Point- the Mumbai’s first commercial business district is not only back on its feet, but its real estate seems to be once again booming.
When I visited Nariman Point yesterday, I realize that there is virtually no office space available here. It’s quite surprising because barely two years ago there was 25 percent vacancy in most of the buildings here.
“Between January and December 2006, property prices and rentals in Nariman Point have appreciated by 70 percent to 80 percent. There is no availability for large floor space offices since the last six months. Only a few small offices 500 to 2000 sq ft in size are available,” pointed out property consultant Kulshum Mustufa.
Few of the experts are expecting the all time high record of a Nariman Point property transaction to be broken in the coming months. It is worth mentioning in this regard that in October 1995, at the height of the then raging escalating property prices boom, the prime real estate of Nariman Point recorded two transactions at the rate of Rs 38,000 a sq ft in Maker Chambers.
It has come into the notice of The India Street that from Nariman Point to Malad and Powai, rental values have appreciated because of limited supply of office space. Theoretically speaking, space taken up by real estate funds, investment banks, insurance and corporate sectors has led to a significant drive for rental values for grade A quality space.
Prices in Nariman Point, with no new development, have sharpened 100 percent over 18 months. At present, lease rentals here are in the range of Rs 225 a sq ft to Rs 275 a sq ft. Point to be noted here is that at the beginning of the year it was around Rs 100 to Rs 250 a sq ft. Reclaimed from the sea in the 1970s Nariman Point was one of the most costly real estate enclaves in the world. During the property boom in the early 1990s, average property prices here were in the region of Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 a sq ft.
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