20 September,2017 09:32 AM IST | Mumbai | Chetna Sadadekar
MHADA's costliest homes in plush Lower Parel and Powai localities receive applications by the hundreds
City View Apartment at Lower Parel. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar
'Costliest' and 'MHADA homes' seem strange in the same sentence, but the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority does have some pricey houses on offer in Lower Parel and Powai. And do they have any takers? You bet!
The other end
The two in the plush South Mumbai locality's City View Apartment, measuring 475 sqft and priced at a whooping R1.95 crore, have already received 11 applications in just three days. While its 740-sqft houses priced at R1.39 crore in Tunga have received 109 applications so far.
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This is for the first time since the real estate industry is at its peak that a government agency, set up to provide affordable housing to citizens, has come up with such exorbitantly-priced homes. Further, the authority has not spent anything in developing these dwellings, as it's the surplus housing stock that has been handed over to it.
Annual lottery
MHADA announced its annual lottery after a delay of about four months - 819 houses will be up for grabs, of which 204 are valued above Rs 1.3 crore, the highest being the ones in Lower Parel. The lottery will be drawn on November 10.
Also read: Bad news for home-buyers in Mumbai! MHADA lottery to be delayed by two months
In City View Apartment, 34 houses have been handed over to MHADA, each measuring 364 sqft and priced at R1.42 crore. MHADA has received 15-odd applications for these homes. In all, it has received 4,383 applications for the 819 houses in various categories - Economically Weaker Section, Lower Income Group, Middle Income Group and Higher Income Group.
Also read: Sorry Mumbaikars! MHADA is holding back the cheap, affordable homes
Subhash Lakhe, CEO of Mumbai Board, MHADA, said, "We are expecting a much bigger response, as MHADA is selling houses at rates much lower than those prevalent in the market."
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