Our aim is to constantly surprise the luxury real estate buyer: Fernandes

 Though still young, he has carved himself a niche in the luxury residential space. In an interview with the Herald, he spoke about his projects, the industry and problems the industry faces. Excerpts of the interview.

HERALD: For how long have you been in the business?

Jonathan Fernandes: Horizon was incorporated in April 2008 however I begun actual operations only in 2009. Our presence in the real estate industry has been that of roughly around 6 years in the course of which we have managed to create a distinct niche for brand Horizon in the luxury residential space. My father Cosmas Fernandes has been my backbone, someone who has always believed in me when everyone else considered me a kid.

HERALD: Any new up-coming projects?Where are they located?Residential or Commercial?Size

JF: I nurture a dream of being Indias best luxury real estate developer. We are presently working on getting Goa’s most exclusive ‘by invitation only’ superluxury villa development. Our focus is to consolidate our position in the luxury residential market, commercial opportunities are being explored simultaneously but our core will always be luxury residential.

HERALD: What is the USP of your Projects?

JF: A home is no longer just a concrete space, the new era of home buyers desire a lot more and Horizon makes every effort to go that extra mile to deliver homes that inspire you in your journey of life. Every effort is made to ensure no two projects look the same. Our architects constantly innovate to try new styles of architecture that blend in with the landscape.

Our latest development Casablanca at Sangolda is designed around classic Spanish architecture, makes use of just 50% FAR, a low density and a building height of just 9metres coupled with amenities such as tree plaza’s, gym’s, jogging tracks, senior citizen sitouts etc and has recently won the “Business Goa Real Estate Project of the Year” award.

At Horizon my aim is to constantly surprise the luxury real estate buyer, we innovate with every project.

HERALD: Has there been any change in the way business is conducted from the time you started?

JF: Right from the day I first started I have always believed in ethical business practices if we have to grow. Builders are always looked at with a dubious eye by a home buyer and we have always strived to eliminate that aspect with our home buyers. We strive to make home purchases as smooth as possible.

HERALD: How has the market been in the last 2-3 years? 

JF: Mining and tourism, the backbone of the Goan economy, have both taken a hit in the past 2-3 years.The flow of money and spending power has hence been vastly curtailed, as such every commercial activity in the state has been affected and not just real estate.The market has seen a mixed bag with the affordable housing segment majorly affected, excessive supply coupled with constant increase in Govt taxes on new property purchase hurting industry. The luxury segment that we are in has always remained buoyant although its one of the slowest inventory moving segments.

HERALD: Has there been a correction in prices?

JF: Prices of real estate in Goa are dependent on various factors, apart from the construction and land costs a developers holding capacity has a major influence on the pricing of projects. There have been a lot of first time developers testing the waters and as such the overall slowdown has hit them hard resulting in price-cutting with bare minimum margins to survive. Major developers are able to hold on to inventory and command a price for the same. The recent reduction in FAR’s by the government has further upped the cost of land coupled with the increasing cost of raw materials and labour a gradual increase in prices is unavoidable.

HERALD: How do you see the next couple of years panning out for the industry?

JF: Housing being a basic necessity will always remain a buoyant sector, there may be times of stagnation as is in all fields of business and commerce but overall the sector has a promising future. With the growing trend of nuclear families coupled with higher disposable income with the younger segment of home buyers, the housing market is definitely on the growth path. What we require is the right government policies and ethical business practices on the part of the developer to further cement growth in this sector. 

HERALD: What are the problems plaguing the industry? How have you overcome them? 

JF: Government policies directly or indirectly always affect the real estate sector. The government has also not been able to come up with a formidable regional plan and as such has a large number of projects and investments stuck with no clarity on their revival, real estate being a capital intensive sector such a circumstance has hit developers hard. The recent ban on sand mining coupled with the escalating cement and labour costs has also driven construction costs up the roof with home prices remaining stagnant such a scenario has created a situation of gloom for the industry. Service tax, registration and stamp duty costs too have recently been hiked and have greatly dampened buyer sentiment. All these scenarios clearly indicate that the government needs to do a lot more towards making affordable housing a reality.

HERALD: What can the government do to improve the situation for the industry?

JF: First things first we need to have a proper regional plan for Goa finalized and implemented in totality, permissions and approvals once granted can not be revoked as per whims and fancies of the government. Every developer pays an infrastructure tax to the government during the course of obtaining permissions and hence it’s the government’s duty to provide the requisite infrastructure once it commits to the same. Another major factor that plagues the industry at present is the cumbersome and lengthy approval process, many a government has promised single window clearances but nothing really has materialized. The government also needs to have a major relook at the high registration, stamp duty and service tax costs which for an average home in Goa almost touch 10% in totality and is a huge deterrent to home buyers at the moment. Regulation with regards to raw material prices also will go a long way in stabilizing prices and growth for the industry.