Kainat Malik
Karachi’s real estate market has seen prices surge the past few months in an otherwise placid national realty scenario
Meeting the majestic Arabian Sea at its southern end, the capital city of the Sindh province has carved a name of its own over centuries. Be it the intricately patterned, softened colors of ajrak or the much debated political paradigm, the metropolis of Karachi is seldom far from headlines.
In fact, being the multi-ethnic, multi-lingual industrial and economic lifeline of the nation, Karachi contributes the greatest proportion to the country’s GDP.
But decades of political instability have dulled the sheen of this once cosmopolitan paradise, often referred to as the city of lights in its days of glory. Like other businesses in Karachi, the city’s real estate sector has also suffered immensely due to political bickering, rampant crime and the city’s notorious land mafias.
Property in Karachi – the greatest asset of the city, has been a clear victim of the metropolis’ political conditions, as prospects of living depend largely on economic opportunity and security of the land determined largely by the political milieu.
Despite the frequent political upheavals jarring the harmony of the city, real estate values of Karachi have managed to show remarkable upward trajectories. According to figures collected from the country’s largest property e-portal – Zameen.com – property values in the city have managed to show a positively consistent graph even in times when realties in Lahore and Islamabad went morbid.
Built on a strong performance in April and May, 2015, various localities of Karachi exhibited promising figures for property in H1, 2015. With an average price of PKR 58,910,586 for 1-kanal plots, DHA Karachi proved to be the top favorite locality for residential purposes, followed by Gulshan-e-Iqbal where prices for same size plots were around PKR 37,415,863.
Compared to the beginning of the year 2015, DHA Karachi has shown a noticeable 6.09% price rise while Gulshan-e-Iqbal’s property prices have gone up a healthy 12.36%.
Following immediately were the average price rates of DHA City Karachi and Bahria Town Karachi. With growth rates of 12.23% and 9.85% from January 2015 through June 2015, both localities secured high marks for value appreciations.
Divine intervention?
But the upward march of Karachi’s real estate sector hasn’t been triggered by a divine sleight of hand.
With a marked reduction in the city’s crime levels following a no-holds-barred operation by Sindh Rangers, real estate, like other sectors, has finally found the window of opportunity it longed for to perform well.
The indiscriminate crackdown on land mafia, land grabbers and extortionist has restored the citizens’ and investors’ confidence in the city’s future and silver linings have started showing up in almost all dark clouds hovering over Karachi for several years.
Investment has become safer again; fears of losing savings worth a lifetime, much more subdued.
Realty trading in the nation’s economic hub is gathering pace by the day, with abundant promises of profit and a reduced fear of exploitation.
The improving security across the city is set to remake Karachi the livelihood haven it was once known as, when it pulled in workforce by the thousands and offered everyone a piece of the pie.
The city’s progress will only bode well for its realty sector, which will see windfall gains in the wake of a rising workforce and enhanced demand for residential, commercial and retail spaces. Let’s hope the city’s security continues down the path of betterment.
About the author:
Kainat Malik is currently online marketing associate at Zameen.com, Pakistan top real estate portal. Prior to joining Zameen she worked at two of Pakistan’s top broadcast channels, Geo and Dunya TV. She has done her MBA from Lahore School of Economics. Kainat is a champion of social media tools and technologies, with a track record of creating and implementing successful social media programs.
