unique

What Shakti Nath, chairman of Logix Group , shows us with a swing of his arm is a stretch of barren land along the Noida expressway, holding out the promise of a home. We are building a sports city here. You can learn horse riding, or engage in fishing or even butterfly breeding, he says, pitching his project above competition. Nath, a real estate developer, knows these are difficult times — construction costs are rising, home loans are becoming expensive and the demandsupply gap is widening due to a supply glut. His bait for the buyer is therefore not just the home but the fishing academy and the butterfly breeding course that come with it. In a market, which is lacking the spur, leisure homes are just another way to lure the buyer. Some developers are offering interesting concepts and themes. You can send your kid to an inhouse cricket academy, control your home appliances from a distance with an Ipad-like gadget or jog on your terrace while its raining. Or you can hitch a ride on a speedboat in the adjacent marina and spend a lazy Sunday in the shade of a fruit orchard. Having a theme helps in creating differentiation in a market that has been deluged with launches of residential projects, say experts. If a certain themed project also involves a sufficient concentration of economic activity at its location, either in the vicinity or actually generated by the project, it is bound to generate end user as well as investor interest, says Sahel Pramendra , head-markets , Jones Lang LaSalle India , a real estate consultant. The unique selling point for a new apartment complex being built by IREO in Gurgaon is an innovative home control technology, whereby residents can control most aspects of their homes using a central console. With the iHome Pad, you can pre-set electrical gadgets like the washing machine , dishwasher or air-conditioning , remotely unlock the front door or control mood lighting. The company has maintained this unique feature in all adverts, knowing well it will force the buyer to at least explore the project , says Saurabh Raheja of Raheja Realty , a brokerage firm based in Gurgaon . Sports is a big differentiator. Jaypee Infratech, for instance, is building a sports city in Greater Noida , which includes a Formula 1 racing track and a full-sized cricket stadium. The 3C Company has recently announced its Sports Village , which will also have a cricket stadium, hockey, squash and even boxing. The 200-acre Logix Sports city too will have a golf course. We studied the sports city concepts in Dubai and other international markets to understand the right product mix. There is a big demand today for sports based infrastructure , says Nath. Across the expressway , Jaypee is building a 1,200-acre Wish Town, with luxury homes around an 18-hole and a 9-hole golf course. Wish Town will also have swan lakes, fruit orchards , meditation huts and gazebos. In Ahmedabad, Pranav Shah is building a golf property in Sanand, ahead of Tatas Nano plant. The project will have an 18-hole Jack Nicklaus designed golf course and around 800 farmhouses. But more than that we will have several lakes including one which will be bigger than the Vastrapur lake in Ahmedabad, says Shah, managing director of Navratna group. Such developments are a big draw, especially for the well heeled, but even the young want a space there. These new concepts catch the eye of the buyers, he says. Some of these projects have managed to garner additional demand for these developers even in a low market. Amrapali , which launched its unique sky bungalow concept in its Heartbeat City project about three months ago, has already managed to sell 870 of the 1,400 apartments it launched in the first and second phase. Homes in this project will have a private elevator entrance , a private garden and no common walls. The project offers an exclusive feel, says Shiv Priya, executive director at Amrapali Group .