NEW DELHI (INDIA): India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is all set to present the Union Budget for 2017-18 on 1st February.This would be his third full-year Budget. So all eyeballs on his briefcase, what Jaitley is going to present for India.
Lets go through Omkar Realtors’s pre-budget expectations from Jaitley.
“Roti, Kapda aur Makan” are the basic necessities. Generally, Roti and Kapda are taxed very negligibly but Makan is taxed heavily. Process of real estate construction is subject to so many taxes and duties at all the levels. Local governments, State Governments and Central governments collect taxes from Real Estate. On the one hand it increases the cost and on the other hand it takes away the ease of doing business. Government should give a serious and radical thought to improve the situation. Small incremental steps will not bring desired results for masses.
• RERA requires higher capital for the projects. Budget should timely address this issue. Otherwise, this will lead to serious under supply and higher rates of real estate.
• Properly Incentivise the model of development of low cost housing for the developer to develop housing at lower cost so that there is enough supply.
• GST is an important area which needs clarity when it comes to real estate which will benefit the buyers at large replacing the hosts of taxes being presently levied
• Land acquisition for development is an important area which the budget should address. With the land prices being higher the cost of real estate ends up to be higher. Incentivising the same will result in real estate which is within the reach of the buyer.
• For REIT’s to become realty for the real estate industry the budget should reduce tax on income from REITs and waive the capital gain tax on transfer of property into REIT.
Gaurav Gupta, Director, Omkar Realtors.