Clicking on homes away from homes

AT 30, Ranajay Bose possesses a lovely house in New Alipore. His housing society has a decent gym, a swimming pool, a hall for parties and a cosy playground. Ranajay fixed the deal through the Internet.
Prapti Mitra, 28, working with an MNC, has just bought a house in Bangalore. Prapti stays in Kolkata but has invested in this Bangalore property as an asset.She bought this house through the Internet.
From Ballygunge to Behala, EM Bypass to Salt Lake, the brick and mortar structures are selling like never before through the virtual medium. According to the results of a study by the National Association of Realtors evaluat i n g marketing, demographic and other characteristics of home buyers and sellers, more and more buyers are using the Internet to shop for a home.
The study revealed that 62 per cent of buyers with access to the Internet surf it to buy a home, while 41 per cent of all home buyers use the Internet as a search tool. "Surfing the net to search for a property saves time a lot. I wanted to buy a house in Bangalore. But I did not have enough time to travel to Bangalore. There are many real estate websites which helped me," said Prapti.
"The Internet is also a preferred tool of first-time home buyers who grew up using computers and the Internet," said Rajit Agrawal, a city builder.
The new-age working couples are focussing on ways to increase their assets and it''s best to invest in real estate. "So they are looking for properties, sometimes even outside West Bengal," added Agrawal.
Developer A. Goel said that more couples in the age group 25-45 are looking for properties in cities like Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Pune and Delhi. "Kolkatans are buying 60 per cent of the residential space not only in Kolkata but also in other cities. This is more for investment rather than real occupancy. And the real estate websites are proving to be very useful," he elaborated.
subhra.sircar@timesgroup.com