Columbia Pacific Communities, a US senior living community operator, plans to invest more than Rs 200 crore to widen its presence in India by entering Pune, Hyderabad, Kottayam and Kochi in FY25, company director Sivakumar V told Moneycontrol.
“In Kerala, we are doing four projects, currently in the process of finalising the land parcels and design for two projects. In this case, we are partnering with Asset Homes where the developer will develop the project and be serviced by us,” Sivakumar said.
Each project will require an equity investment of Rs 50 crore. The company is currently not looking at fundraising, he said.
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Additionally, the company plans to start renting out senior living apartments for the first time in India. CPC plans to add 800-1,000 senior living homes every year, with a potential revenue of Rs 150 crore-200 crore per project.
“In Hyderabad, we are scouting for new developers and in Pune, CPC has partnered with Nyati Group. For Pune, we have already acquired the land in Undri and further development is ongoing,” he said.
The company is also looking at land in Mumbai and tier-II cities such as Hosur near Bengaluru. The company plans to deliver 300 senior living units in FY25 and launch an additional 1,200 units.
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Senior living projects are apartments built for older people, with special facilities such as wheelchair-friendly doors, anti-skid flooring, and assistive care to deal with age-related issues. Such projects have come up across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Coimbatore.
Currently in a nascent stage in India, the senior living sector is set to grow to $30 billion by 2030, up from $2 billion last year, CBRE said in a report. The key companies in this sector include CPC, Vedaanta, Ashiana, Paranjape (Athashri), Primus and Antara.
A report by JLL India showed that senior living properties in India command an average premium of 10-15 percent over regular residential pricing because of the amenities and services offered by the developers to meet the specific needs of senior citizens.
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Exploring new business model
While most properties have been via joint ventures with developers, CPC is exploring a new avenue – a fee-based model.
“In this model, the developer will build the assets and sell them. However, we will provide the designs and market them. Most of our upcoming projects in Kerala will be fee-based, while the others will be joint ventures,” Sivakumar said.
CPC is also looking at a rental model for senior citizens for the first time in India where they can rent out apartments after paying a deposit, similar to renting out standard residential apartments.
The company said it has identified a plot in Bengaluru for its first rental project and an announcement is to be made after the general elections.
