Lodha Group to invest Rs 2,500 cr on affordable housing

Realty major Lodha Group will invest Rs 2,500 crore to develop three affordable housing projects in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) in a price range of Rs 25-50 lakh per unit, its Managing Director Abhishek Lodha said on Monday.

These three projects -- located at Thane, Bhiwandi and Taloja -- will be launched this financial year under a separate brand 'Crown', he said.

"We are launching three high-quality affordable housing projects at a well-connected locations with complete social ecosystem. Most of the units will be sold in a price bracket of Rs 25-50 lakh and only some at around Rs 75 lakh," Lodha told PTI.

The first project at Thane, spread over 10 acre comprising 2,800 units, will be launched on October 2.

Mumbai-based Lodha Group will develop 4,000 housing units at project in Taloja and 2,000 units in Bhiwandi.

Lodha said the company aims to cater to families with a monthly income of just Rs 50,000 onwards.

Asked about the investment, he said the total cost on these three housing projects is estimated at around Rs 2,500 crore and the same will be funded through internal accruals.

"We believe that the recent initiatives of the government will revive the economy and, hence, we have embarked on this ambitious new round of investment," Lodha said.

He expressed confidence that the projects under the new brand would change the entire dynamics of the real estate industry.

"We believe Prime Minister (Narendra Modi)'s vision of 'Housing for All' can be best served with high-quality housing at affordable prices which will not only lead to an improvement in health and lifestyle but will also help with wealth creation for middle-class families as these homes appreciate in value," Lodha said.

Lodha Group is India's largest residential real estate developer by sales and construction area. The company clocked net new sales of over Rs 7,000 crore in 2018-19 with collections of over Rs 9,000 crore.