Budget 2017: Experts have hailed note ban's positive impact on real estate, says government

NEW DELHI: Brushing aside alleged reports of losses to the real estate sector during last quarter of 2016 due to demonetisation, the Centre today said experts feel that the move will purge the sector from the influence of black money, thereby making purchases affordable and within the reach of common man.

Minister of State for Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Rao Inderjit Singh told this to Rajya Sabha on being asked whether the government had considered various reports, which allegedly found that demonetisation led to decline in business for real estate sector during the last quarter of 2016.

Singh said although the government had not carried out any study to assess the impact of the November 8 announcement on the sector, the "experts have written about the impact of demonetisation on the real estate sector, wherein, they feel that demonetisation will purge the sector from the influence of black money, thereby making purchases affordable and within the reach of the common man."

The minister, however, did not name the experts.

He claimed that it had been opined by experts that demonetisation will give a fillip to the real estate sector due to price correction and transparency in deals, thereby creating a level-playing field.

"It has also been stated that demonetisation coupled with the Real Estate (regulation and development) Act, 2016, the goods and service tax law (i.e. Constitution (101st amendment), Act, 2016 and the Model GST Law) and the Benami Transactions (prohibition) (amendment) Act, 2015 will further increase transparency in the real estate sector and attract higher volume of foreign direct investment at competitive rates," Singh added.