India - Top 10 research resources

Our series of articles on the best online research resources for emerging property markets around the world continues with a look at India. The world’s second-largest country by population has massive potential as an investment destination despite some tight restrictions on property ownership.

Land and property ownership in India by overseas buyers is mostly limited to two groups of people – Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), with strict definitions governing who is eligible. But with the number of Indian expats estimated at around 30 million worldwide, including over 1 million in the UK and 3 million in the USA (with many employed in senior jobs with high incomes, this international audience of buyers is huge and well worth targeting.

But even this population is dwarfed by the expansion of India’s own middle class, which management consultants McKinsey estimate will grow ten-fold by 2025, to over 580 million people. With such extraordinary growth in population and buying power anticipated, there is exceptional potential for companies selling real estate in this fast-developing country.

We’ve looked at hundreds of websites relating to property in India and selected what we consider to be the ten best. If you think we might have missed any useful sites from our list, please feel free to post your comments at the bottom of the page:

1. The Hindu Business Line. Free-to-access news on the real estate sector from the Hindu, a respected daily based in Chennai. The wide-ranging news content includes a dedicated property and construction section as well as economic and political stories.
2. Reserve Bank Of India ownership guide. Eligibility for ownership of land and property is a key issue in the Indian property market. This is a detailed and clearly explained summary of the rules and regulations surrounding property ownership in India. Eligibility, transfer of ownership and inheritance are just some of the topics covered.
3. Realty Plus Magazine. Indian consumer publication operated by Exchange4Media. Anyone unfamiliar with the domestic Indian property market will gain a great deal of insight with its regional profiles, interviews and new development news. Though the print version is unavailable overseas at present, the website and a subscription newsletter are free to access.
4. Property Bytes.  Extensive blog, operated by Indian property portal IndiaProperty.com, covering a wide range of real estate-related topics, from land prices to interiors and home loans. An extensive archive is being expanded daily by a healthy number of up-to-the-minute articles.
5. Indian Real Estate Forum. A busy forum with a number of active threads on news, developments, popular locations and general enquiries – a good place to find out what consumers and the trade are talking about.
6. Global Property Guide India Buying Guide. The most concise summary of the buying process and typical costs involved in buying and selling property in India that we’ve found. The wealth of other data (very recently updated) that is available free-of-charge is an added bonus, for investors and professionals alike.
7. NRI Realty News. US-based website with property and investment articles aimed at an NRI audience. The articles cover domestic and international markets, with special focus on India, and other finance-related topics affecting the Indian expat audience, like tax and banking. The city guides should also appeal to the non-NRI visitor.
8. UK Trade & Investment “Doing Business” brochure. The India section of the UK Trade and Investment site doesn’t have much to offer specifically for the real estate professional, but this free brochure is an excellent general guide to business etiquette and culture in the country. When it comes to making faux pas, prevention is always preferable to cure, particularly in India, where “sari” often seems to be the hardest word.
9. Cityscape India 2008. Exhibitions can be a good source of leads. The organizers boast that over 5,000 people attended last year’s show, a B2B event focused on all sectors of property development in India. The Mumbai-based show takes place in December this year. MIPIM and REIW also organize regular trade-facing events covering the Indian real estate market. Those agents who want to investigate potential partners on a smaller scale could also attend one of a number of local consumer Indian property shows such as those in London and Dubai in the mean time.
10. India Catalog City Guides. Definitely not the prettiest website in the world, it does have a number of general guides to India’s major cities, which should provide the uninitiated with an overview of potential property hotspots. There are some useful directories on the site too.

India - Top 10 research resources