Pay ₹10K before Nov end to express interest in Chandigarh’s Sec 53 housing scheme

To guage public mood on its costliest general housing scheme in Sector 53, the Chandigarh Housing Board (CHB) has decided to charge confirmation fee from interested buyers even before launching the scheme.

In a public notice issued on Wednesday, the CHB sought response from buyers by November 30 and stated that those interested in one to three BHK flats will be charged ₹10,000 while for EWS category flats, the fee is ₹5,000.

As per board notice, the said fee is being charged as confirmation fee and will be adjusted in the earnest money after the scheme’s launch. The board clarified that the scheme will be launched only after receiving adequate public response.

The money will be refunded without interest by January next year if the board abandons the scheme due to poor response. It has also clarified that if the board launches the scheme and some applicant does not wish to participate despite applying for it, they will not get a refund.

The decision to charge confirmation fee was taken after the governing council expressed doubts over the number of takers the scheme would be able to garner in view of its skyrocketing prices.

COSTLIEST EVER

As compared to previous schemes, the flat rates have increased manifold in the board’s latest housing scheme in which 492 flats are to be constructed. Of these, 192 are 3-BHK flats, 100 are 2-BHK, 120 1-BHK and 80 EWS flats. The cost of a 3-BHK flat has been fixed at ₹1.8 cr while for 2-BHK, it is Rs1.47 crore. A 1 BHK flat is priced at ₹90 lakh and EWS flats are for ₹50 lakh.

In the last housing scheme launched in Sector 51 in 2016, which comprises only 2-BHK flats, the units were offered at just ₹70 lakh, far cheaper than Rs1.47-crore price tag for the same flat in this scheme.

The price difference is even larger when compared with the Sector-63 housing scheme, floated in 2008, where the offer price for 3-BHK flat was just ₹47 lakh, ₹29 lakh for 2-BHK and ₹18 lakh for 1-BHK flat.

Uncertainty also looms over the housing scheme floated for 3,900 UT employees, due to similar high pricing. They recently approached the Punjab and Haryana high court, pleading for the allotment at lower rates. The local real estate industry is wary of the high prices of the proposed scheme as it could inflate the market value of existing properties, resulting in a decline in demand.

WHO ARE ELIGIBLE?

The applicant should be a bona fide resident of Chandigarh on the date of opening of the scheme. However, the bona fide resident condition will not apply to serving defence personnel, pensioners/family pensioners of defence forces personnel, employees of the Government of India, Punjab Government, Haryana Government and the Chandigarh administration and their boards, corporations and undertakings apart from their retired employees  

The applicant or the applicant’s spouse or minor children should not own a residential plot or house, in full or in part, in Chandigarh, Mohali or Panchkula.

If, however, the individual share of a person in the jointly owned plot or land under the residential house is less than 100 square yard, he/she will be eligible for allotment of a dwelling unit by the board.