EMBASSY GROUP SIGNS JV FOR SENIOR HOUSING SEGMENT ENTRY

Realty major Embassy group on Tuesday said it has partnered with US-based Columbia Pacific group to foray into senior living housing segment, and will together invest ₹1,000 crore over the next four years to develop multiple projects for the elderly across various cities in the country.

Bengaluru-based Embassy group, which already has presence in housing, commercial, hospitality, co-working, co-living, warehousing and facility management segments of real estate, is venturing into the senior living space to tap rising demand in this asset class, especially after the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.

Embassy group has formed a joint venture with Columbia Pacific Communities, which is part of the Seattle-based Columbia Pacific Group. In India, Columbia Pacific has nine operational senior living projects. “We at Embassy are always bullish on residential sector, and senior living is going to be a big part of Indian residential segment. Senior living is at a very nascent stage. No developer is doing at a very big scale,” Embassy group chief operating officer Aditya Virwani told PTI.

Embassy group has expertise in real estate development and land buying, while Columbia Pacific has know-how of housing for senior citizens, he said. Virwani said the company has formed an equal joint venture with Columbia Pacific. “It’s a 50:50 JV. Investment will be also 50:50.” He said the first project would come up in Embassy group’s 300-acre township in north Bengaluru. In the first project, the JV will develop a total of around 400 units in two phases with an investment of about ₹400 crore.

The JV plans to develop 900 units, covering one million sq ft space by 2024 across various cities in India with a total investment of over ₹1,000 crore, Virwani said. Mohit Nirula, CEO of Columbia Pacific Communities, said: “We are entirely committed to building and nurturing communities for seniors, as we believe that community living, and social engagement is the strongest antidote to loneliness and a wonderful enabler of positive ageing”.

TOGETHER WITH COLUMBIA PACIFIC, THE JV WILL INVEST ₹1,000 CRORE OVER NEXT 4 YEARS IN SENIOR HOUSING