It was a busy weekend morning, when a few hundred visitors were placing queries at stalls at a five-day housing fair on the international trade fair ground in Agargaon yesterday.
Many visitors came with their families to see the best offer made by the developers, and most of them were looking for payment information such as terms and conditions of down payment and instalments.
“I have come to the fair to have a general idea about the price of an apartment. And since it’s not possible to roam around the city in a day to get all the information, the fair is an easy answer,” said Majeda Zannath, a pediatrician came all the way from Uttara.
“I am planning to buy an apartment soon, so I am actually trying to find the best offer at an affordable price,” she added.
Zannath collected a few brochures and was calculating her savings, and finally came to a decision to go for a spot booking for a 1,500-square-foot flat at Uttara.
But many visitors could not find the best offers from the 304 stalls at the fair, while many planned to wait for the rest two days and discuss with their family members before booking.
Abdus Sakur, a retired government official, said higher apartment prices forced many people to shelve their plan. “My daughter wanted to buy a flat within Tk 20-30 lakh. But now it seems quite impossible to find a three-bed flat within this budget,” he said.
“She has now decided to invest in the capital market instead.”
Apart from that, many participants said the overall sales of apartments slowed in the last one and a half years mainly due to the late effect of global financial meltdown. They also claimed that the rate of spot bookings is lower than the previous housing fair.
Mohammad Nasir Uddin, senior assistant manager of Manama Developments, said the apartment sales declined by 10 percent in the last one and a half years.
“The high prices of building materials have made the apartments costlier,” he said.
However, top realtors like Building Technology and Ideas, Navana, Concord, Rupayan, Asset Development, Bay, Assurance Developments, Dom-Inno, Structural Engineers, and Sheltech witnessed a huge crowd at their stalls.
They were also receiving a good number of advance bookings, according to their officials.
Mohammad Nasifur Rahman, assistant marketing manager of Sheltech, said his company logged 14 bookings in the first two days of the REHAB Vision Fair 2010.
He saw no reason to get less spot orders at the fair. “People come to these fairs to compare different offers, and finally choose the best offer that includes a trusted name that delivers apartments without any hassle and on time.”
Biswas Builders Ltd, another reputed company, bagged eight bookings in two days, said ASM Solayman, senior executive of the company.
Meanwhile, many firms have come up with discounts and instant cash-back offer to attract more customers.
Building Development and Design Ltd (BDDL), one of the top realtors, has received eight spot bookings in first two days, said Mehebub Hasan, senior executive of the company.
BDDL is attracting customers with a 25 percent cash-back offer on booking money for spot orders at the fair.
A total of 306 participants, including two financial institutions, are showcasing their products and services at the fair.
The show will remain open from 10am to 9pm with an entry fee of Tk 50 for a single person, and Tk 100 for a five-day package.
