Real estate developer Sobha Ltd has been voted as the number one choice of home buyers nationally, in Track2Realty’s Consumer Confidence Report 20:20. This is the fourth consecutive year that Sobha has won the top rank in the consumer confidence survey.
Sobha was the top choice of buyers countrywide, on all the 10 parameters of evaluation: Timely delivery; construction quality; matching promises; value for money; peer endorsement; trust and transparency; relationship management; brand reputation; safe investment; and amenities and liveability. In addition to this, the report also placed Sobha on top of the chart of real estate developers in south India, for the fourth time.
At a time when the consumer sentiment in the Indian real estate market has hit lowest in the last 10 years, the Track2Realty Consumer Confidence Report 20:20 found that developers who have been focused on the buyers, with quality projects and meaningful dialogue, have been rated higher by the consumers at a pan-India level.
Out of the total 500 developers nationally that were shortlisted for evaluation, buyers across the country dismissed as many as 412 developers as totally unreliable and worth avoiding. Only 88 developers have been voted by the consumers with some level of trust.
Speaking on the occasion, Ravi Menon, chairman of Sobha Ltd said, “We are extremely honoured and humbled, to be recognised as number one, in the consumer confidence report. What makes this recognition special for us, is the fact that we have been able to retain the top spot for four years. We are thankful to our stakeholders for acknowledging our efforts and the entire Sobha family, for helping customers realise their dream of owning an international quality home.” JC Sharma, vice-chairman and managing director, Sobha Ltd added: “It is a matter of great pride that despite the challenging environment, Sobha has been recognised with top honours. Sobha believes in paying attention and listening to customers’ requirements. We understand the laws and dynamics specific to a region and customise our product offerings accordingly.”
Other highlights of the Consumer Confidence Report
- The Consumer Confidence Report found that only seven developers could earn a ‘Positive Outlook’ at the national level. Five of these developers are from the south Indian real estate market (Sobha Ltd, Prestige Group, Brigade Group, Embassy Group and Puravankara) and two from the Mumbai market, including Godrej Properties, which was the only corporate conglomerate to get a pan-India positive outlook from the consumers. The other developer from Mumbai was Oberoi Realty.
See also: Indian realty sector’s future sentiments plummet to 39-month low
- Ten other developers earned a ‘Positive Outlook’ at the regional level but lacked national exposure, footprint and/or trust. These developers are DLF, ATS, Mahagun, K Raheja, Hiranandani, Omkar Realtors and Developers, Ambuja Neotia, South City Projects, Srijan and Tata Housing.
- In north India, other than the market leader by size, DLF, only ATS received a ‘Positive Outlook’. Godrej scaled up to Number 3, while Mahagun stood at Number 4.
- In west India, other than Godrej Properties and Oberoi Realty that took the top slots, K Raheja Corp was at Number 3, Hiranandani at Number 4 and Omkar Realtors and Developers at Number 5.
- In south India, six developers at the top of the table, Sobha Limited, Prestige Group, Brigade Group, Embassy Group, Puravankara Ltd and Godrej Properties, received a ‘Positive Outlook’ and these six names command the same level of respect, at the national level too.
- In east India, Ambuja Neotia was at the top of the table with a ‘Positive Outlook’, followed by South City Projects, Forum Group and Srijan Realty.
- Bengaluru remained the most bullish city, with 34 per cent of buyers having an optimistic outlook, while consumer confidence was lowest in Kolkata, at 12 per cent, compared to a national average of 28 per cent.
- Most of the consumer complaints were received from north India in general and Delhi-NCR in particular. The least number of consumer complaints were noted from the south Indian markets in general and Bengaluru in particular.
For the survey, a large sample size of 10,000 consumers were targeted, through one-on-one interviews across 20 cities – Bengaluru, Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Chennai, Coimbatore, Kochi, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Bhubaneshwar, Lucknow, Bhopal and Indore. The consumers were given a set of 25 open-ended and close-ended questions, to gauge their understanding of the real estate market, before focusing on likes and dislikes with the developers, as well as industry practices. The responses were grouped under five key areas: home buyers’ psychology and real estate understanding, buying pattern and preferences, likes and dislikes, outlook on the economy and employment, and appreciation potential and future outlook.