Cooperative housing and Ernakulam real estate developments

Finance is the backbone of any business venture.  When considering the fast developments in Real Estate Ernakulam district is a frontrunner mainly due to the prominent role played by the financing institutions.  In the emerging housing finance scenario the cooperative housing sector can play the role of the apex home-loan institution at the state and district level.  It can also provide a strong component to the financial system, especially if it adopts more dynamic resource mobilization policies, recovery system and monitoring system.

The Cooperative Societies, for their resources, remain mortgaged to the annual release of funds from the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), General Insurance Corporation (GIC) and the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO).  There are over 41,000 housing cooperatives in the country with a membership of 31 lakh.  The cooperative housing movement has to its credit seven lakh housing units and another seven lakh are under construction in different parts of the country.  Every year, 10,000 new cooperative societies are being formed with a total membership of about one lakh.  The Apex Housing Finance Societies in 24 states and Union Territories, had advanced Rs.1,500 crore so far.  At present Rs.150 crore is being advanced annually.

In Kerala alone, out of the total cooperative group housing societies, 2,019 societies were registered since the concept of the formation of the group housing societies took shape in 1970-71.  The government had gone in for group housing societies as the Urban Development Authority had failed to meet the rising demand for housing.  Although Urban Development Authority had made bookings, yet its delivery has been tardy and the quality of its construction poor.  On the other hand, the group-housing concept had the advantage of people’s involvement in construction, design and proper administration of the finished product.