The Five Year Plan and real estate developments in Kochi

Again in the Fourth Five Year Plan, it was observed that the government intervened in slum clearance, development of housing units for industrial workers and also the creation of dock labor housing units in urban centers.  With the growing urban population and acute housing shortage in the urban areas, funding for land development projects in urban areas was vigorously followed during this plan period. 
 
The States’ housing institutions and housing boards channelised available limited finance for housing low and middle-income groups.  However, in view of rigid guidelines followed by the institutions, housing finance mostly did not reach the intended group but perhaps reached the higher income group.  Evaluation reports on the Sixth Five Year Plan indicate that the middle-income families were occupying the public housing units built for low-income groups, as the low-income groups could not afford to pay the monthly installments. 
 
The plan also recognized the need to reduce the cost of houses sold by lowering the levies and other charges.  In the Seventh five Year Plan, the government of India for the first time released the minuscule contribution with respect to total housing investment in the country (about 75% of the total investment is being made by the private sector) and left the major responsibility of house construction on to the private sector.
 
This policy decision heralded the continuous developments in real estate in states like Kerala.  The maximum development in this regard was seen in the city of Kochi.  Properties in Kochi have appreciated in value and are the hot favorite of investors from other destinations in the country and also from other parts of the globe.  Perhaps no other city in Kerala could attract so many investments into real estate as Kochi.