Govt meet to help NRIs resolve real estate woes with developers

With the meteoritic growth in real estate sector during last few years, the property and real estate business also became more complex in structure and more international in scope, which created the shortage of trained real estate professionals. Then, the industry recognised the need for specialised real estate education. Also presently, at the taking off stage when real estate in India has again started moving up, Indian real estate requires people who have very strong professional skills across the spectrum of property business, for example, the property and real estate business in India today requires not a sales manager who has experience of selling everything but a sales manager who has studied real estate and is therefore expert in selling properties.

Infact, the Indian real estate industry leaders including top real estate developers, multinational real estate consultants, housing finance institutions etc have repeatedly aired their concern at the total absence of courses in real estate in India. Infact, there is no system of real estate education in India, which is visibly affecting the quality of human resources available to the Indian property market. Also, though real estate is one of the largest employers and there are thousands of vacancies at different levels and in different areas, developers are forced to spend huge time and money on selecting and training candidates from other sectors. Moreover, once trained, these people leave immediately for other opportunities and therefore the cycle of spending time and money on recruiting and training candidates from other sector continues for the developer.

In view of the above situation, IDS National Institute of Real Estate Management (IDS NIREM), www.nirem.org, has launched a one-year distance learning Post Graduate Diploma Program in Real Estate Sales & Agency Management (PGD-RESAM). This is the first such specialised real estate sales & marketing course offered in the country. Property market analysts also attribute launch of this specialised courses to qualitative growth of Indian real estate market and its movement towards next state from the nascent stage.

The course objective is to provide the participants with thorough knowledge and practical skills to plan & execute successful sales & leasing strategies for different types of properties, plan & manage real estate agencies and carry out basic appraisal.

This high impact, industry-driven and employment-oriented program offers both the fresh graduates who intend to pursue a career in real estate and the working professionals, an unequaled educational growth and career advancement opportunity. Further information can be obtained from www.nirem.org

Notes to Editor

About the Institute:

IDS National Institute of Real Estate Management (IDS-NIREM) has been established by 'The Industry Development Society for Real Estate', which is a real estate sector development and promotion body. NIREM is planned as a Centre of Excellence in Real Estate Education, Training, Consulting & Research. The institute is mandated to provide degree, diploma and certificate courses in addition to MDPs, Consulting and Research in different areas of real estate.

In addition to Learning & Capacity Development Initiatives, IDS-NIREM, aims to develop benchmarks for real estate sector, provide with comprehensive market data to end-users, retail & institutional investors and other stakeholders, facilitate simplification of asset acquisition and investment process, promote adoption of international standards including the financial and other disclosure norms, best practices and corporate social responsibilities etc.

IDS National Institute of real estate management is India's first real estate institute that offers courses in real estate in the following areas:

1. Commercial Real Estate
2. Real Estate Finance
3. Real Estate Sales & Agency Management

Apart from the above, Post Graduate Diploma courses in real estate management, development, real estate marketing, real estate finance, real estate investment, valuation & appraisal etc shall be introduced in next few months. These courses are aimed at developing potential candidates for different careers in real estate. A unique feature of IDS National Institute of Real Estate Management is that it provides a platform to start career in real estate to both-the fresh graduates and the experienced professionals already working in real estate and/or allied sectors.The ministry of overseas Indian affairs is bringing together real estate developers, government officials, both from the Centre and the states, and Indians living abroad in a first-of-its-kind seminar aimed at resolving property disputes in Delhi on Monday.
“The seminar would cover the role of different government and private agencies, measures to prevent disputes…and speedy way of disposal,” said a posting on the website of the Indian consulate in New York.


Indians living abroad are a “major source of foreign exchange remittances that has led to the present state of comfortable foreign exchange reserve in the country”, the posting adds, and a substantial amount of money earned by non-resident Indians (NRIs) is spent on buying property back home.


The ministry has been receiving a lot of complaints from Indians living abroad, mostly in the US, the UK and Canada, about properties not being delivered on time or usurped by local people, said Vayalar Ravi, minister for overseas Indian affairs. “This is an attempt to help NRIs and PIOs (persons of Indian origin) resolve disputes with property developers and state bodies in India,” he added.


The ministry is trying to start a “constructive dialogue” between NRIs and real estate developers, and include in it lawyers and government officials, according to an official responsible for holding the seminar.


“We need cooperation of the state governments as well,” said this official who did not want to be named because he isn’t authorized to speak to the media. “Only Punjab and Kerala have special cells to address problems faced by NRIs… We have been pressuring other states to start similar cells, launch fast-track courts and so on,” he added.


The meet could benefit thousands of NRIs, who on their own, can do little to pressure property developers to finish construction on time. Some have formed online groups to start collective bargaining but because they live abroad, haven’t had much success in securing their rights.


“It’s hard-earned money that we have invested back home,” said Asim Debnath, a US-based Indian who had bought a flat in a condominium in Rajarhat on the outskirts of Kolkata, which was sold only to NRIs. The property isn’t ready yet, and the developer is blaming the lack of civic infrastructure in Rajarhat township for the delay in completion.


“There isn’t much we can do,” said Debnath. “Local authorities and politicians do not seem to appreciate our concern.”


The attempt to bring together NRI home buyers and real estate developers should benefit “all stakeholders”, according to Pradeep Sureka, president of the West Bengal chapter of Confederation of Real Estate Developers’ Associations of India (Credai)—an industry lobby.


“But involvement of local government officials is crucial because real estate developers face a lot of problems with civic infrastructure, which slows construction,” he said. “While we are ready to be governed by regulations, we expect such regulations to be binding on agencies responsible for creating infrastructure.”


The seminar will give NRIs an opportunity to voice their problems, said Kaustuv Roy, executive director of property consultant, Cushman and Wakefield. However, such initiatives should be backed by strong legislation. “The biggest problem that overseas investors face is discrepancy between what is sold to them and what they receive in the end,” he added.