Prime Altamont Road property of US consulate sells for 342 crore

Mumbai: Leading realty company Lodha Developer has finally acquired Washington House, the three-storey residential building owned by the US consulate on Altamont Road, for Rs 341.82 crore. Lodha beat three rival developers including Mahindra Lifespaces and Tata Housing whose bids ranged around Rs 300 crore, which was far below the reserve price of Rs 350 crore fixed by the consulate. 
    Dubbed as the billionaires' lane, Altamont Road is among the 10 costliest addressess in the world and is home to some of the richest Indians, including Mukesh Ambani and several Bollywood stars. 
    Property experts say Lodha's bid, although below the reserve price of Rs 350 crore, is in tune with current sluggish market conditions. "Though the property is located in an upmarket locality, the economic market is not in tune with the ground conditions. The consulate must have therefore, thought it prudent to accept the best price,'' said an expert. 
    The three-storeyed Washington House covers 2,702 square metres, or nearly three-fourth of an acre. It is listed as Grade III property and falls under the Coastal Regulation Zone II. The plot has aroad reservation of about 293 sq mt. 
    Early on Tuesday afternoon, Abhishek Lodha, managing director of Lodha Group, sealed the agreement by handing over the full and final payment of Rs 300 crore to the consulate. The developer had earlier paid Rs 40 crore. 
    The sale agreement was then signed and registered at the Old Customs House, Fort, in the presence of Lodha and Paul C Cox, a senior official and the authorized signatory from the US embassy. Lodha reportedly paid a stamp duty of about Rs 17 crore to get the property transferred in his name. Under the rules, the ministry of external affairs had on May 3 approved the consulate's request to sell the property to Lodha. 
    With a developable space of almost 1.2 lakh sq ft—including unconsumedFSI—Lodha is all set to construct a super-luxury residential tower of 30 floors. Confirming the sale, Abhishek Lodha said the deal was in line with thecompany's growth strategy. "We have already appointed well-known Iranborn German architect Hadi Teherani to design the building. 
    Considering its location —on top of Altamont Road and offering an unparalled view of the Arabian Sea—we are planning to house exclusive apartments of 3,000-4,000 sq ft per floor,'' said Lodha, who is set to launch the project as early as March 2013. Property rates in the immediate vicinity currently range over Rs 70,000 a sq ft. 
    Meanwhile, the US consulate sought time till Wednesday to respond to queries on the deal. 
THE WASHINGTON HOUSE DEAL 
Property | Washington House Location | Altamont Road Owner | US consulatePurchaser | Lodha Developer Area | 2,702 sq m, or 3/4th of an acre Type |Ground plus three-storey Use | Residences of US consulate staff Sale price |341.82 cr 
Reserve price | 350 cr 
Stamp duty | 17 cr 
What next | Lodha plans to construct a 30-storey luxury residential tower on the plot 
Prevailing property prices in the area | Over 75,000 a sq ft LINCOLN HOUSE 
    The American consulate properties have generated considerable interest in Mumbai's real estate circles. It is said that Tata Housing has envisaged keen interest in purchasing another consulate property, Lincoln House, which has been put on the block in Breach Candy. Spread over 2 acres, or 8,345 sq m, the consulate has set a reserve price of Rs 850 crore for the sprawling seafacing property. The consulate has relocated to its new premises in Bandra-Kurla Complex 
    The property has a large piece of open land in its sea-facing backyard, which currently houses a tennis court and a small garden patch. Like Washington House, Lincoln House, too, is a listed Grade III property and falls under CRZ II. The US property sales will have to be cleared by the Union external affairs ministry and state/local authorities SOME OF MUMBAI'S OTHER BIG-TICKET PROPERTY DEALS OF 2012 
    A 3,320-sq-ft, 28th floor flat in Tahnee Heights on Nepeansea Road sells for around 39 crore, at 1.2 lakh a sq ft. Developers Bhimjyanis sell the flat to Jindal Drugs (S K Jindal) 
    A 2,550-sq-ft, 13th floor flat in IL Palazzo, Malabar Hill, is sold by Citibank to a diamond merchant for about 28 crore. The flat goes at between 1.10 lakh and 1.13 lakh a sq ft 
    In a major deal, steel magnate Sajjan Jindal purchases a building and a bungalow spread over an acre on Nepeansea Road for about 500 crore 
    Standard Chartered sells a duplex 3,638-sq-ft flat in Worli's 28-storey Samudra Mahal for 40 crore, at 1.1 lakh a sq ft, to a senior management executive of Citigroup