Maharashtra Govt asks private developers to collaborate with MHADA for the development of Affordable Housing.

Maharashtra’s government is encouraging private real estate developers to collaborate with its housing authority Maharashtra Housing & Area Development (MHADA) in constructing affordable residential projects across the state, said Jitendra Awhad, state housing minister.

The State governments of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and West Bengal have already explored this pattern.

“We (MHADA) will be delighted to be associated with private developers, we will be equity partners in the project and likely to take risks,” the Minister of Housing said. “I’ve declared the day I took charge that I’m pro-builders. I’ll do everything necessary to build affordable homes. We’ve only been facilitators so far and now I feel we need to adjust our strategy. I want the builders to join us.”

In these projects, MHADA would pick up equity and promote faster approvals, apart from additional project support. The modalities for these partnerships are likely to be decided, he said at the CII real estate conference.

Dubai-based listed realty firm Emaar Group has shown interest in developing projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) by reaching out to the government. A meeting is expected to take place between the Minister and Emaar’s delegate in two weeks’.

The joint ventures of government and private developers for affordable housing projects would receive good support from both investors and homebuyers, says an industry expert.

“This will be a lethal combination because MHADA adds credibility, reliability and quick approvals to the table, while private developers get a design, performance and agility rendering it a win-and-win for everyone. As the state government body gets engaged at the project level, it can also be simpler to finance,” said Anuj Puri, Chairman, Anarock Property Consultants.

The government plans to take away some vacant portion of land in Special Economic Zones (SEZs) that will be used to develop affordable housing projects. The government would pay the same price that they had charged for these SEZ developers while having the land from the government, he said.