India Investment Property

India’s struggling real estate sector is set to come under further pressure in the coming weeks as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has made it tougher for banks to ‘restructure’ loans, forcing them to cut house prices or risk being starved of bank funding. Banks often resort to restructuring loans — a practice aimed at preventing loans from being classified as bad — when they sense their borrowers are facing difficulties in repaying loans. In a typical restructuring, banks give borrowers more time to repay the loan by extending the loan tenure, and sometimes, even at reduced interest rates.

Such an exercise enables banks to keep their non-performing assets (NPA) ratios under check and their books clean of the stigma of dud loans. But in a little-known directive issued earlier this year, the central bank has ordered that the moment a loan to a builder is restructured, banks must classify the account as an NPA.

However, for restructured loans in all other sectors, the account can continue to be treated as a so-called ‘standard asset’, thus sparing banks from having to make large provisions in their profit and loss accounts. The inability to restructure loans easily is forcing banks to put pressure on builders to cut prices, sell properties and service loans. Builders are usually left with little choice as an NPA tag will make it difficult for them to approach other banks for funds.

“We are putting pressure on the real estate sector to reduce property prices. In such times, even if they are able to keep their head above water, it would be fine. They have all had a good innings so far. Now, they have to learn to live with thin margins,” said TS Narayanasami, chairman & managing director of state-run Bank of India, and the chief of industry body — Indian Banks’ Association.

“Just banks reducing interest rates will not help in reviving sentiments; builders will have to bring down prices for buyers,” Mr Narayanasami added.

Bankers say demand for home loans has fallen because buyers are waiting for property prices to fall. “Banks have taken the initiative by cutting home loan rates. Prices of cement and steel too have fallen, but builders have not reduced property prices,” said MV Nair, CMD of Union Bank of India.

Although the RBI relaxed some bank lending norms for the building sector last weekend, it has remained quiet on the issue of restructured loans of builders.

Analysts have expressed concerns over the financial health of the real estate sector. City-based retail broking firm, India Infoline, fears the liquidity situation of developers could worsen further if banks refuse to refinance maturing debts of real estate companies and maintain the credit freeze on their accounts.

“We reckon that debt maturing over the next 12 months for developers like Unitech, Sobha and Puravankara is higher than our estimate of these companies’ revenues over the corresponding period. The situation with Omaxe, Parsvnath and Ansals also remains precarious, owing to large land advances and high receivables”, it said in a research note.

The building sector has seen a raft of credit downgrades amid refinancing concerns and bankers say the sector has little choice but to cut prices. “If a builder does not pay, banks would either initiate a recovery proceeding or restructure the loan. A recovery proceeding often results in lower realization. This, hopefully, should indirectly put pressure on builders to bring down price and go for negotiated sales,” said SA Bhat, CMD of Indian Overseas Bank.