Housing development

India’s property market, where prices have risen as much as 29 percent in major cities, will escape the kind of collapse that afflicted Dubai, believes Keki Mistry, the new head of the nation’s oldest and biggest home loans company HDFC (Housing Development Finance Corporation). Mistry, 55, was appointed the chief executive officer (CEO) of HDFC in the beginning of December 2009. A veteran at HDFC, Mistry was earlier the vice-chairman and managing director.

Keki Mistry: prices driven by demand

In India, the property market is largely end-user based; in Dubai, it is largely investor-based, Mistry is quoted in The Times of India, December 19, 2009. Gains in Indian property prices have been driven by demand for homes in a nation with an estimated shortage of as many as 30 million units, Mistry observed.