Palm Beach Road plot fetches record price, but half of the CIDCO plots receive no bid

A recent auction in Navi Mumbai's Palm Beach Road area saw a record bid of ₹6.46 lakh per sqm, nearing rates in prime Mumbai locations. The demand for land in the area remains high, leading to increased prices. Developers are forming companies to bid for plots, and the competition is raising concerns about unrealistic bids and the impact on the market.

NAVI MUMBAI: The unprecedented demand for land in Navi Mumbai’s coveted Palm Beach Road area persists as a recent CIDCO auction saw a record bid of ₹6.46 lakh per sqm, nearing the rates seen in prime Mumbai locations.

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Situated at plot number 23 in sector 4, right at Nerul’s entrance from Palm Beach Road, the 2,459.33 sqm residential cum commercial plot with an FSI of 1.5 has once again drawn attention. Previously auctioned at a record ₹6.72 lakh per sqm in March, this plot saw Falcon Electro-Teek Private Limited emerge as the highest bidder at ₹6,46,803 per sqm, resulting in a total cost of ₹159.07 crore plus 18% GST.

While the current bid is slightly lower than the previous auction, it remains substantially higher than the previous record of ₹5.54 lakh per sqm set in November 2022 for another Palm Beach Road plot in Sanpada’s sector 20.

Realising that the Palm Beach road plots are much in demand due to the lack of availability of land in the area leading to the record bid last time being 6.5 times more than the base price of the plot, CIDCO this time increased the base price to ₹5,18,328 per sqm.

Explaining the high bid, Vasant Bhadra, president of the Builders Association of Navi Mumbai (BANM) said, “These rates are for the location of the plot. There is a huge demand for big flats from 3 BHK to 6 BHK here. However, there is no plot left on the Palm Beach road, and hence anything that is offered is grabbed.”

He added, “Several developers have been coming together to form companies and bid for such plots. It helps if they want flats in the building to be constructed as it makes them cheaper for them and a large stock gets automatically sold.”

Haresh Chhedda, former president of BANM, expressed concern about the competitive race among developers, citing unrealistic bids fueled by CIDCO’s manifold increase in the base price. Manohar Shroff, senior vice president of CREDAI-MCHI, Navi Mumbai, warned about the impact on the market, emphasising that such prices align with those in premium Mumbai locations like Juhu, near the Bachchan bungalow.