As you all know, real estate in Pakistan is hot as hell these days. I always wanted to buy some land in Pakistan but was alway weary of some of the stories about “qabza group” etc I heard from people. However, this is not the case in most of the planned schemes bubbling up these days.
Have you bought land/plots in Pakistan? Which area? How much secure you feel about your investment while living in US and having no idea what’s happening there? I personally think of it as a long term investment and down the road may even build something instead of selling it although I do have commitment phobias . What do you think is a better term for investment? Some people say sell it after 5 years or so but I believe if you buy real estate then keep it. What do you think?
We have been buying a lot in the NWFP - around Swat area and someof the surrounding town areas. My husbands family is watching our investments, one of the reasons we are buying in that area, also the fact it is a tourist area. He believes (speculation, I know) that land is the best investment to make and value will always increase. I agree with him, as usual.
yeah i recall the real estate bubble burst in canada in late 80's early 90's as well.
minah, the investmentin pakistan is very highly dependent on the law and order situation of the country. Just a few years ago, property values had plummeted. Now in the long run its a good investment, but at the same time all real estate is not created equal and the appreciation rate in one region/country/city can be very diff than in others
Roman, they got you too eh? I'm not surprised...everyone is talking about real estate especially in Lahore. The funny thing is everyone is buying and selling. I'm actually surprised at the buying power..people buy it on cash and right away.
I'd advise you not to invest unless you are planning to go back eventually. If something goes wrong then your two week vacation is not gonna cut it. I wouldn't rely on relatives to go through court kechairi in your absence.
That being said, there are some good private colonies...Defense phase 9 and 10 are also a good long term investment. Bahria town was another one quite talked about…
Fayz, my theory about schemes like defense is that eventually they are not gonna be worth the investment unless you are buying to build a house there. They are overly inflated so larger pool of middle class can't eventually afford it. So that larger pool then will rush to other schemes that are newer and are bit farther since that's probably the only thing they'd be able to afford. Once this land rush diverts to those new scheme, in next few years (5-10) those schemes will become more lucrative but by that time schemes like defense won't be able to yield at the rate at which they are inflating now. So I think a land investment in Pakistan should be done with that time frame in mind instead of rushing towards something that's hot now.
True, but Lahore is expanding in a residential sense, not particularly industrial wise. People are going to be commuting to the city center for employment opportunities…The farther you go the more you limit yourself…With current transportation infrastructure and deteriorating economy, it will only add to the challenges. I’m not sure if prices in suburbs would jump like what we see now. I won’t be surprised if the mindset changes from ‘my own land’ to ‘my own flat in the city’ in 5-10 yrs.
Defence is for smugglers only these days.. i mean seriously have u looked at the prices? it's insane.. u could start a decent size business in that amount.
My dad is a property freak, he owns a lot in Lahore, Islamabad, Canada (which he sold), now Dubai. He owned something in Islamabad (I think in F-11???). It was actually supposed to be a house for us, but it was the only plot with no house on it and they were taxing him heavily. He sold it for way more than it was worth, and then the person who bought it sold it a month later for way more as well. As for selling, it can only go up. My dad has had property in Defence for around 10 years and it has not gone down. Hmm I don't know what exactly he has, but I can ask him if you have any questions? He is planning to buy some now in this planned estate being built in Islamabad.
Oh and umm he hasn't lived in Pakistan for more than 20 years. His brothers manage much of the property for him. Like all requests for buying the plot come to them and they pass it on to them. It always seemed a bit shady to me, because I don't think my dad even trusts his brothers much.
I’d be careful about it if you dont plan on living there and if you’re renting it out the house or apt to tenants.
In pakistan, there is this rule, that once a tenant comes into the apt or bldg or whatever, then you cant as the owner of the property - force them off.
We had issues with this one building in karachi - the guy who had a store on the first floor of it decided to do construction work on that part of the building without owner permission.
So my family was trying to get them to leave - they were just generally uncooperative, etc.
And they absolutely could not force the guy off the property. My aunt was managing the whole building and she even got in a couple of fist fights with this guy. Took him to court, nothing happened.
Eventually my family sold the building off because of tenant problems like that.
In KHI, I was asking if there is a lease system, that once your lease is over, you need to leave and they said there is no such system.
Although my parents told me that - I dont know if they have lease systems now.
buying a lot or house is very a very good idea now adays but only if u have someone there to look after it and u can trust them with it. buying an appt is a bad idea since it loses its value as the building gets older.
I haven’t read all the replies in the thread but does anyone know the ramifications of a non-Pakistani-citizen buying land in Pakistan? What extra paper work is needed and how to avoid any trouble in going through the process.
guys, look at pakistan real estate trends over the last 20 years before you get too excited. One political issue and the prices will dip. I am not trying to dissuade you from buying property or land in Pakistan, I own a flat there myself but from a real appreciation perspective you have to compare it to other areas and see where you can get higher returns or more safety, depending on how risk averse you may be.
and make sure that if you are going to be an absentee owner that you have some serious connections and some dependable people looking after the place. There are numerous stories of offices, houses and apartments taken over by squatters. dealing with that while being overseas is a nightmare and god forbid if the squatter is not just any joe schmo but some political party, then u are in a real mess.
and those talking about land being safer than properties, it does offer you some more safety but at the same time there are cases where land has been taken over and has taken years to resolve.
the big question that you have to ask is, ..is the current rate of appreciation sustainable. A very good indicator of that is annual salary to property values comparison, how many people entering the market would be able to afford housing? if salaries can not keep up with prices, then who buys the properties?
peopel already in the market are more able to change properties but it becomes impossible for new entrants.
I don't know about other areas but things have been getting better in some sectors in Lahore from security point of view. Of course, those properties will also cost you arm, legs, and few aanteiN. For example, Pace in Lahore, which is a pretty well known shopping Mall is run very well. If you've rented out a shop there to someone, they charge you a monthly fee (I think 10,000 Rs) a month for administrative related operation. This also includes taking care of getting your rentee out of the shop if you opt to sell/re-rent etc down the line.
This is actually because of huge influx of Kawaitis returning home and recent backward migration after 9/11 on part of man families who sold everything here and went back. To protect their investment and attract more investment, authorities established strict laws and enforcement for some of the well-planned schemes and those schemes are being developed in quite some number these days.
What will happen if someone like Zardari will come to power again? Of course we're screwed. So, VOTE not for Zardari!
. What do you think is a better term for investment? Some people say sell it after 5 years or so but I believe if you buy real estate then keep it. What do you think?