Residential plots auction fails to fetch good price

[Salman]

Residential plots auction fails to fetch good price

ISLAMABAD: Bidders showed poor response on the first day of two-day auction of plots conducted by cash-strapped Capital Development Authority (CDA) on Monday.

The authority fetched a total of Rs87.132 million by selling seven residential plots in the auction.

The response of the bidders indicated that the real estate market in Islamabad still under severe recession as the bids offered by the buyers were said to be lower by at least five per cent as compared to that offered in the last auction of plots held by the civic agency.

The CDA Spokesman Ramzan Sajid linked the declining trend in real estate market with overall economic situation in the country.

`Overall market of real estate is down therefore we are satisfied with what we have fetched through auction,` he said.

On the first day of the auction, 10 residential plots were offered for bidding but seven were sold and the rest could not attract buyers and bidsgiven by some bidders were said to be `unreasonable` and thus they were not accepted.

The auction of commercial plots will be held on Tuesday.

In the last auction, 400 square yard residential plots in sector F-11 were auctioned for more than Rs45,000 to Rs50,000 per square yard.

However, the highest bid in Monday`s auction for a plot having same measurement in F-11 was Rs44,000 per square yard.

It was officially informed to the media that CDA offered four plots for bidding in sector G-10/2 and three plots in sector F-11/2.

Plot number 151, and plot number 153 in sector F-11/2 each measuring 400 square yard received the highest bid of Rs44,000 per square yard.

Whereas plot number 130 in sector G-10/2 measuring 233.33 square yard got the lowest bid of Rs35,500 per square yard.

Giving details of the auction the CDA spokesman said plot number 152, measuring 400 square yard in sector F11/2 received highest bid of Rs43,500 per square yard. Aplot number 130-C in sector G-10/2 measuring 233.33 square yard was auctioned for Rs39,000. Plot number 130-B, measuring 233.33 square yard in sector G-10/2 was sold for Rs38,500 per square yard.

Plot number 130-A measuring 233.33 square yard in sector G-10/2 received highest bid of Rs36,000 per square yard and plot number 130 measuring 233.33 square yard was sold at Rs35,500 per square yard.

This auction was supervised by a committee headed by Javed Jehangir, member finance, while Tahir Shamshad, planning & design, Khalid Mahmud Mirza, member estate, Syed Ibrar Hussain Shah, member engineering, director public relations, director estate management-I, director estate managementII, director one window operation, and deputy financial advisor monitored the auction as members of the committee.

The auction committee would submit its recommendations to the CDA board, which is the final authority for approval of auctions.