This week, I took a look at a project closer home. When I went to see the project, I should say, I was quiet surprised to see that so much space is available for development in Aundh. As you get to the site, it looks like an entire pocket of land was just discovered, right in Aundh!
Aloma County is a project by the Pride Group (from the Pride-Purple of Park Street and Park Royale) and Naiknavare Housing Developments. Both groups have been in the business for more than 15 years and have had a good number of projects completed both individually and in partnerships, though I am not sure if the two groups have worked together on a project before.
The Location
Over the last few years Aundh has turned out to be one of the prime suburbs particularly in west Pune. The place has turned out to be a nice residential area with different pockets offering different options. Since, it is an already developed place; there is no dearth of shops, supermarkets, restaurants, clinics etc. There are also a few hospitals like the Medipoint hospital and Kotbagi hospital which may not be great, but are good for basic care. There is also a DAV school apart from the options of other schools in the near vicinity. Aundh is also well connected by buses and rickshaws are available in plenty. To sum up, one will not have to go through any pain after moving into a place like Aundh.
The project is located next to Medipoint hospital and is a on the new proposed road to Baner. Spread over 45 acres, this will be one of the bigger projects in Aundh. Though the location right now is almost in a corner of Aundh, once the road that links up to Baner is complete, I think this place will start buzzing with activity and somehow shift from the corner inwards!
Click here to see the loaction on Wikimapia
The Project
Aloma County (www.alomacounty.com) the name comes from the ‘Aloma’, the French word for dove, representing peace. The large 45 acre project has been conceived to be a residential complex that provides peace and tranquility within the bustling suburb of Pune. Being located on the sides of the road that links up to Baner, how peaceful the place is going to be remains to be seen. However, the project being spread over such a large area may be the reason why they chose to position it like that.
The project has 4 phases with bookings currently open for Phase 1 for Irene Towers I and II having a total of 8 buildings of 12 floors in the first phase. The possession promised is by July 2011. Construction has already begun and buildings are between 1st and the 8th slab levels of construction. With such a range, I don’t think all buildings will get completed by July 2011. Each phase will have its own set of amenities. Apart from the standard amenities like the clubhouse, swimming pool and children’s play area, there is more space dedicated to amenities like multipurpose courts, cricket nets, putting green for the golfers, skating rink etc., which are good additions and differentiators.
Apart from these, the project is to house a school and also promises multipurpose halls, conference rooms, business centres etc. The amenities put together, the project promises to offer a luxurious lifestyle.
While the offering with the above mentioned description may look very impressive, there are a few points we must look at with caution. Firstly, though overall there may be a good amount of non apartment space, but for each phase (looking at what is offered in Phase 1), it is not very impressive. Further, the complete township is slated to be completed in 6 years from now. That is a lot of time! That is a lot of time particularly for those who book now and move-in in some time and continue to see and live around the construction activity for a few years.
The Flats
The project offers spacious 2 and 3 BHK flats in the Irene Towers which is now open for bookings. Further phases will also offer 4BHK flats. The 2BHKs have an area between 1181 and 1206 sq. ft. and the 3 BHKs have an area ranging between 1553 and 1609 sq. ft. As it is obvious from the areas, the rooms are pretty large. The specifications look good and lean towards the premium offerings. The layouts also seem good with minimal wastage of space. I particularly liked the layout and the area of the 2BHK. However, in the 3BHK I would have preferred a slightly bigger living room and bedrooms. Illustrations of the flat layouts are available at their website.
The Cost
The quoted rate as of today is Rs. 5000 psf and a premium of Rs. 200 for garden facing flats which takes the cost of the flat to around 70 lacs for the 2BHK and 88 to 94 lacs for the 3BHK inclusive of stamp duty and registration, parking and other charges. My understanding is that the running rate in Aundh for a new ready apartment (which is very rare to find) is around Rs. 5000 psf. For an under construction property, the quoted rate is on the higher side. A little back of the envelope calculation makes me feel that the cost of a flat in Aloma County is roughly about 10 to 15 lacs more than the closest readily available comparison. Are the additional amenities and the overall feel worth this? This is a question only a home seeker can answer. The project is approved by all major financial institutions. I’m sure the developers took extra pains to get these considering the prices!
My Take
The biggest selling point of the project is its location. Being in a developed locality, this is not certainly a project for everyone. Also, being in a developed locality, I don’t think the appreciation of the property is also going to be much in the near term. Further, I don’t think there is a project in Aundh that offers all these amenities. This is probably why the developers feel they can charge higher. However, even if I were to think of it as a premium property for which one would pay so much, even though the overall project might be great, the flats don’t give me that feeling. They are spacious, but paying so much I would want some more grandiose in my flat. Overall, this is a good project, but for a select few who can afford to pay so much or for those who might be selling their current property and upgrading to a newer place. The question is.. are you one of them?
Aloma County is a project by the Pride Group (from the Pride-Purple of Park Street and Park Royale) and Naiknavare Housing Developments. Both groups have been in the business for more than 15 years and have had a good number of projects completed both individually and in partnerships, though I am not sure if the two groups have worked together on a project before.
The Location
Over the last few years Aundh has turned out to be one of the prime suburbs particularly in west Pune. The place has turned out to be a nice residential area with different pockets offering different options. Since, it is an already developed place; there is no dearth of shops, supermarkets, restaurants, clinics etc. There are also a few hospitals like the Medipoint hospital and Kotbagi hospital which may not be great, but are good for basic care. There is also a DAV school apart from the options of other schools in the near vicinity. Aundh is also well connected by buses and rickshaws are available in plenty. To sum up, one will not have to go through any pain after moving into a place like Aundh.The project is located next to Medipoint hospital and is a on the new proposed road to Baner. Spread over 45 acres, this will be one of the bigger projects in Aundh. Though the location right now is almost in a corner of Aundh, once the road that links up to Baner is complete, I think this place will start buzzing with activity and somehow shift from the corner inwards!
Click here to see the loaction on Wikimapia
The Project
Aloma County (www.alomacounty.com) the name comes from the ‘Aloma’, the French word for dove, representing peace. The large 45 acre project has been conceived to be a residential complex that provides peace and tranquility within the bustling suburb of Pune. Being located on the sides of the road that links up to Baner, how peaceful the place is going to be remains to be seen. However, the project being spread over such a large area may be the reason why they chose to position it like that.
The project has 4 phases with bookings currently open for Phase 1 for Irene Towers I and II having a total of 8 buildings of 12 floors in the first phase. The possession promised is by July 2011. Construction has already begun and buildings are between 1st and the 8th slab levels of construction. With such a range, I don’t think all buildings will get completed by July 2011. Each phase will have its own set of amenities. Apart from the standard amenities like the clubhouse, swimming pool and children’s play area, there is more space dedicated to amenities like multipurpose courts, cricket nets, putting green for the golfers, skating rink etc., which are good additions and differentiators.Apart from these, the project is to house a school and also promises multipurpose halls, conference rooms, business centres etc. The amenities put together, the project promises to offer a luxurious lifestyle.
While the offering with the above mentioned description may look very impressive, there are a few points we must look at with caution. Firstly, though overall there may be a good amount of non apartment space, but for each phase (looking at what is offered in Phase 1), it is not very impressive. Further, the complete township is slated to be completed in 6 years from now. That is a lot of time! That is a lot of time particularly for those who book now and move-in in some time and continue to see and live around the construction activity for a few years.
The Flats
The project offers spacious 2 and 3 BHK flats in the Irene Towers which is now open for bookings. Further phases will also offer 4BHK flats. The 2BHKs have an area between 1181 and 1206 sq. ft. and the 3 BHKs have an area ranging between 1553 and 1609 sq. ft. As it is obvious from the areas, the rooms are pretty large. The specifications look good and lean towards the premium offerings. The layouts also seem good with minimal wastage of space. I particularly liked the layout and the area of the 2BHK. However, in the 3BHK I would have preferred a slightly bigger living room and bedrooms. Illustrations of the flat layouts are available at their website.The Cost
The quoted rate as of today is Rs. 5000 psf and a premium of Rs. 200 for garden facing flats which takes the cost of the flat to around 70 lacs for the 2BHK and 88 to 94 lacs for the 3BHK inclusive of stamp duty and registration, parking and other charges. My understanding is that the running rate in Aundh for a new ready apartment (which is very rare to find) is around Rs. 5000 psf. For an under construction property, the quoted rate is on the higher side. A little back of the envelope calculation makes me feel that the cost of a flat in Aloma County is roughly about 10 to 15 lacs more than the closest readily available comparison. Are the additional amenities and the overall feel worth this? This is a question only a home seeker can answer. The project is approved by all major financial institutions. I’m sure the developers took extra pains to get these considering the prices!
My Take
The biggest selling point of the project is its location. Being in a developed locality, this is not certainly a project for everyone. Also, being in a developed locality, I don’t think the appreciation of the property is also going to be much in the near term. Further, I don’t think there is a project in Aundh that offers all these amenities. This is probably why the developers feel they can charge higher. However, even if I were to think of it as a premium property for which one would pay so much, even though the overall project might be great, the flats don’t give me that feeling. They are spacious, but paying so much I would want some more grandiose in my flat. Overall, this is a good project, but for a select few who can afford to pay so much or for those who might be selling their current property and upgrading to a newer place. The question is.. are you one of them?
Good Analysis Tony, as it starts with 70 lacs for the smallest block surely this project is for handful even in IT/Automobile world of Pune. Considering the size of project it will take good amount of time for this to complete. But as rightly pointed out, if one has the MONEY then a chance to buy in Aundh where rates have above 5K and almost zero new projects.
ReplyDeletewell
ReplyDeleteTruly very perfect analysis considering cost and total development time of 6 years....
1. I would say, Project is at corner of Aundh under Aundh/Baner postal code.
2. Personally, those who will spend 70 lakh for 2bhk won't like public of area medipoint
3. think of its developing in opposite direction of medipoint. if its having good scope then go for it, considering it will connect to Rakshak chawk in future for going office.
4. i won't like to pay huge money now and see development for 4 more years... total disturbance.....
5. instead of this, i would opt to buy 40 lakh land and then do construction in wakad, vishalnagar, baner area...
6. In short, i don't see worth paying so much money when u can get ready houses in less prices in center of aundh in sanewadi, aundh iti road or in front of mc donald....
Tony , good report indeed, and very good initiative
ReplyDeleteJust couple of point to add for potential buyers - There is big sewage water treatment plant situated just opposite to the site, you can see it just across the road on the way to site-office. Aloma county might have to renamed as “Aroma” county
The project was soft launched @ 4000 rs/sq ft in Nov 09, In Jan 10 they revised it to 4500/sq ft and now they hv officially launched it at 5000/sq ft. That’s appreciation of 25 % in less than 6 months!
I agree with Tony. My comments:
ReplyDeletea. I did not like the sample flat simple because the smaller living room and bedrooms. Even the master bedroom is small. I am comparing it with Park Royal and Pride Platinum.
b. The price is too high comparing this is no further scope for price hike.
c. The entire project will take 6 years time so I assume the entire area would be congested after 6 years time.
d. They are offering 8 buildings in 5-6 acres space which is very less. It should be minimum 10 acres area. The entire amenities would be to congested in near future.
e. The idle rate should be 4250 psf not more than that.