Prime realty up for sale but no takers

AHMEDABAD: Gujarat''s largest heritage hotel, located in North Gujarat, is up for sale. So is a restaurant-cum-cake shop in the prime off-CG Road area run by the owners of the oldest star hotel in Ahmedabad.
India''s largest denim manufacturer is looking for a buyer for its prime plot of land (around 20,000 sq yard) adjacent to a Honda dealer''s showroom on SG Road.
Also up for grabs are numerous properties on SG Road, including a multiplex near Gota and a sprawling resort, as well as a fully constructed building opposite Shree Krishna Centre at Mithakhali.
Sprawling plots of land (each measuring around 1 lakh sq yard) on the Kadi-Kalol road and numerous industrial plots in areas like Naroda, Narol, Rakhial, Vatva and Odhav too are sporting a ''For Sale'' tag.
"There are not less than around 50 major properties valued at over Rs 1 crore each - residential, commercial and land - up for sale in and around Ahmedabad. As for properties valued at below Rs 1 crore, there must be more than 100 properties doing the rounds of buyers," admits Arvind Shah, president (marketing), Agarwal Estate Organisers Ltd.
Apart from the fact that they have all been scouting for buyers for the past year or so, as is in evidence from the numerous repeat ''For Sale'' advertisements in local newspapers, they have one thing in common - No Takers.
Surprising, given that they failed to elicit any response inspite of the real estate market having witnessed a boom phase recently in the January-March 2004 period prior to the parliamentary elections.
But the reasons for good properties struggling to locate buyers are varied.
"While some properties like the heritage hotel in Palanpur and the resort on SG Road are over-priced, there are some which suffer from a locational disadvantage as well. For instance, the plot owned by the textile company is right opposite the new AUDA crematorium on SG Road," realty sources pointed out.
And in some instances, the property has inherent flaws like construction flaws or legal issues like title deeds not being clear or bank mortgage. "There are cases where the promoters are in trouble or are dubious," pointed out an industry source.
Several scam-hit co-operative banks, saddled with properties pledged to them either as collateral against borrowings or mortgaged against loans, too, have jumped into the fray.
According to sources, properties worth around Rs 150-200 crore in commercial and residential segments along with agricultural and non-agricultural land were with co-operative banks, pointed out sources.
"We have with us several properties where borrowers have defaulted, which we trying to sell off," acknowledged Ambubhai Patel, managing director, Kalupur Commercial Co-operative Bank (KCCB).
While KCCB has put on the block Rs 10.93 crore worth of such properties, it is negotiating with buyers for ''Construction House'' of Popular builders near Mithakhali.
Banks like Manekchowk Co-Operative Bank, Visnagar Co-operative Bank, Sabarmati Co-operative bank among others, too, are struggling to find buyers for such properties.
Even as co-operative banks are stuck with properties pledged by builders, investors or traders, nationalised banks are stuck with properties in industrial areas.
"Lot of nationalised banks are sitting on industrial properties because there is very little or no new industrial investment coming into the city. It is primarily residential and retail development that is driving the real estate market in Ahmedabad," pointed out a real estate broker.