AJIT JOHN
ajit@herald-goa.com
PANJIM: People still interested in coming into Goa and if one were to trawl certain web pages the interest is obvious to see. This is strange considering the shocking state of affairs now prevalent in the State due to the virus. People who were interested in staying in villas and those promoting the properties had a lot to say.
If one peruses sites like Off Beat Goa Stays or other sites what becomes obvious is that people are still advertising the availability of their properties on these pages and are soliciting business.
All kinds of properties are being advertised. It ranged from the single room apartment to luxurious villas with six bedrooms, with or without a villa. Conversations with people promoting these properties and those perhaps interested in coming over was very interesting.
Vipul Jadhav, who is a broker seemed bullish about business. He said, “People still want to come over to Goa. They want to either buy or rent. I am answering ten calls everyday”. When callers were told there was a lockdown in place they said the borders were not closed.
Jadhav said there were new projects coming up in the State. Builders from Delhi, he said were busy in Goa in parts of North and South Goa. Vipul said “I am getting enquiries from the usual cities in the country but also from places like Himachal Pradesh and Dehradun for rentals and outright purchase. The sale of land in Goa right now is crazy. The sale of properties over Rs 5 crore is booming. Everyone is interested in coming to Goa.”
Cecil Pinto, social activist and real estate consultant said everyone who had been postponing their decision were now coming into the state. He said “We all know what the state of affairs in the state is but the perception outside the state is that it is all fine in Goa. It is a safe place. Business is good for me. I operate in a limited circle amongst friends. Yes, people are making the move”.
Yes, people are interested in coming but then there are also those who had decided to move but then decided to hold back. Neha Roy, a visual designer in a corporate based in Mumbai had decided to move to Goa after the company informed its employees that they would consider returning to office sometime in March next year. She said, “I spoke to my friends based in Goa and they appraised me of the seriousness of the situation. I realised it would be a bad move and decided to stay put in Mumbai.”
Dawn Schuster, an expatriate based in Mumbai now living in Goa decided to return to Maximum City because of the state of affairs. She had booked her ticket and was expected to fly out in the next two weeks.
There are however trends within trends. Nihal Satpute who handles several properties in Assagao and Arpora said the people looking at the two locations were every different. The people who wanted to party were interested in staying in Arpora while those interested in staying a longer period of time would consider Assagao. Nihal said “I used to get a lot of enquiries from people living outside the state. Now that has stopped when the cases increased and the positivity rates rocketed. Now I get calls from people living in the state. Many of them want a change of address. Many of them have spent time in the South and now want to live in the North. For others it is a case of the place they are presently living in planning to shut down for the monsoons. And they have to move out.” The virus has also ensured a drop in rents he said. Nihal said, “A fully furnished studio apartment would now go for Rs 13,000 and drop even further with people negotiating very hard.
Hard negotiating of rents is now par for the course. Darryl Riberio who has a one BHK apartment and various options of his own in Miramar said he was entertaining calls from Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and a large number of calls from Bengaluru. He said many were not coming in because of the paperwork required but he expected to come in a month or two once the situation improved. Darryl said “Everyone who calls tries to drive a hard bargain with the rent. If a 20 per cent discount is given they tell me they are getting anywhere between 30 to 40% discount in other places. I have flats in housing societies as well as in home stays. Right now everything is down but I am confident it will turn around. Thankfully I get the odd call from people living in Goa who are interested in moving residence.”
Rajan Khanna who handles properties around the State said people from Mumbai were looking to stay in properties for six months. He said “It will materialise in two to three months for sure when the situation improves. We are getting calls from businessmen, tourists and people interested in looking to shift for a period of time. The rents start from Rs. 10,000 a month and go up to Rs 30,000. We have five bedroom and six bedroom bungalows for hire but despite getting all those calls we are being patient. We don’t want to bring people in who could add more problems right now”.
Some house owners have gone the extra mile by just not answering calls from people living outside. Nivedita Colaco who has a property in Siolim said she was not interested in entertaining anyone on her property now because the situation was so bad. She said “The phone rings everyday from people in Mumbai and other cities but I am not interested in taking a risk. I don’t need the hassle.”
Yes, Goa remains a hot attraction and people are still coming in but a large number it seems are waiting at the gates ready to come rushing in. One can only hope sanity prevails in all quarters.
