My Visit To Zone 2 Societies

During the eid holidays i decided to visit the major developments going on in zone 2 to get a first hand view of what exactly is the situation on the ground. After reading the comments on this forum, following are the projects i decided to visit along with a brief description of my impression about each one of them for the benefit of those who might be contemplating buying here but haven’t yet had the chance to visit themselves. Due to the large content i will break it up into 2-3 posts and will also post a link to some of the pictures i took, at the end.

F-17: i started with tele gardens. My observations are: Pros: it’s a beautiful society with excellent development standards. There is plenty of house construction going on as well as commercial plazas in markaz. The quality of maintenance despite ongoing constructions took me by surprise actually. Managed to speak to a resident who seemed quite happy to be living there, although he felt the distance from zone 1 is an issue. The fatehjang interchange on m1 is only about 5 mins drive but due to heavy traffic on working days, it can take much longer.

Cons: railway line passing in front of main entrance and brick kilns across the road. There was security at the entrance but i didn’t see much security on the back side which is open and there are some abadis around the society. Spoke to a guard who told me they do petrol that area at night, but i cant be sure.

E-16/17: cabinet division employees housing society

Pros: it’s a large housing society located close to zone 1 with entrance on main gt road. The development has been done by habib rafique though its probably not their best project. Plot prices are still relatively low and some houses (about 20-25) are under construction. Electricity is available but there is no central water supply yet. Possession is available for those who want to construct immediately.

Cons: its still very deserted, there are too many plots and sale/purchase activity seems slow. There are quite a few high tension wires running through its area. No security arrangements visible. I think this society might remain somewhat dormant for at least another 3-4 years before any serious activity takes place here.

G-15/f-15/16: jammu and kashmir

Pros: i think j&k has so far been the star performer in zone 2 and not without reason. Location alone gives g-15 an advantage no other society can match, and with good development standards too. The number of built up houses and commercials is quite high, so its well populated now. Also the number of houses built in f-15/1 is quite appreciable. It also shows this society has got more genuine buyer interest than investors, as compared to any other society in zone 2. There is talk of development starting in f-16 shortly but nobody knows for sure when.

Cons: while development and occupancy wise g-15 is the best, but its quite expensive too. I was a little disappointed to see the quality of development work in f-15, considering it is the newer sector, it should have been developed much better but that is not the case. In fact, in my opinion, it is a couple of notches below g-15 and makes me wonder if development standards are falling in this society. But still, due to high occupancy and location, seems like a good investment.

In my next post i will have some details on b-17, d-18, sangjani interchange and margalla avenue projects along with the latest pictures. If i missed any detail, members are welcome to point it out.

Good job amjad! Looking forward to your thoughtful first hand research.

I totally agree mr syedamjad regarding jkchs. Good post and keep us atuned with the rest of societies. I have to say I also agree regarding cdechs as eventhough habib rafiq developed it, its not the same as what hrl have done in the past. Especially the prices of plots there, its not worth it in my opinion but each to there own!

From the perspective of development standard, I think cdechs is not behind jkchs. Infact, cabinet is somewhat better in. Development standard as compared to jkchs. But it is behind f-17 and B-17 in standard.

The reason why jkchs is the most expensive society in Zone 2 is its location (touching two major roads and before tarnol railway crossing) and secondly the population factor. With time, population will also come to cabinet society and sooner or later with population all facilities such as gas, ptcl will follow. At that time the price gap between jkchs and cabinet is likely to become narrow because cabinet is quite near to jkchs. The only society in between is F-17 which has beautiful development but average location on fateh jang road.

It seems jkchs and F-17 are already mature and prices are on high side. Similarly D-17 is also very high in price and populated. So the only other developed Zone 2 society left at pre mature stage with direct access to GT road is Cabinet where increase in population and gas supply will trigger the same kind of boom as we saw in jkchs. Already prices in cabinet have increased 60% in one and a half years. But still the prices are quite low if you look at its short distance from jkchs and Kashmir Highway.

My impression is that at current prices it has second highest potential in Zone 2 at the moment. The first is B-17 whose potential depends on the fate of the Margalla Avenue project.

Great work Syed Amjad, fair analysis. Looking forward to hear more from you.

Cheers

As pk1 has mentioned b-17 would be good investment but depends upon completion of marg ave. Similar also to the socieities close to new airport, as these are reliant on completetion of airport and road access there, as don't know whats going on with Kashmir highway extention, and new airport road.

thanks and keep us posted syedamjad.

For best ROI in Zone 2 WITHOUT RISK, I will vote for E-17/3.

For best ROI in Zone 2 WITH RISK, I will vote for F-16.

@Pardesi: Do you think that ROI in the case of F-16 (although risky) is higher than the ROI of E-17/3?

Yes in F-16/4 and F -16/3 the chances are better than anywhere else in Zone 2 - if developed soon.

Thankyou everyone for the appreciation. I am glad you found this content useful. Here are the remaining visit details. There is a link to the pictures at the end but I would suggest you should read my comments to get a better idea of what is being shown in the pictures.

B-17: MPCHS

Pros: It's a beautiful society with excellent development (probably one of the best in Zone 2), located on main GT road, but you need to choose your block carefully here! Personally, I found block B to be the best and the most populated (about 50 houses). A block is decent but at a greater distance (about 2 km). C block, although new, is a bit of a letdown. Maybe some further development work will still take place here but presently, C block seems way behind A and B in terms of development standards. All civic services are available and overall infrastructure of the society is pretty good.

Cons: The distance! Its just too far and probably the most dependent of all societies on Margalla Avenue project. If and when that road is completed, I would not be surprised if prices go up here 2-3 times, at least in B block. A block is close to the quarrying site on the hills where hearing loud explosions is not uncommon (according to a resident). The new blocks being developed are further away from the GT road.

D-18: AWT Housing Scheme

Pros: This society is owned and managed by the Army Welfare Trust (obviously a big advantage in this country) and was developed way back in the 90s. The M1 motorway passes through the society. Development is complete with immediate possession for construction. All civic facilities and infrastructure is available and security arrangements are good with the entire society surrounded by boundary wall and patrolled by Askari Guards. The society had access problems which are now being resolved with a newly widened direct link to GT road and the Sangjani Interchange, which is in fact being built inside this society (hence the advantage!). Consequently, prices are picking up.

Cons: There has been little or no house construction so far due to the access problems and therefore there are no functional commercial areas in the society. The electrification system is external. With the new infrastructure projects developing around the society, it might be great for investment due to rising prices, but will take some time to become good for living.

Sangjani Interchange:

Work on the interchange has been going on for a few months and the North loop has now reached the main fence on the motorway (without carpeting). I met a society related person just after Eid who told me they had been waiting for NOC from NHA to cut the main fence which has now been received so the construction work will now resume. You can see this in the pictures also that I took.

The overhead bridge is already operational. Construction of the second loop will start after Eid as they first had to build a culvert over a nullah. I asked the official if there were any financial issues related to this project also but he told me that there were none whatsoever and the society had already made the entire amount available for the project. The interchange is expected to be opened in January 2014.

Margalla Avenue:

To be honest, Margalla Avenue onsite doesn’t look much different from how you see it on google earth, a long dusty pathway at the moment. However, when you look at the sheer length of this road, you appreciate that this in itself is a major development. I met an official related to the project at the site who told me that more than 60% of the Earthworks were complete. The main issue is now funding by CDA which is in a financial mess, and some administrative issues related to acquisition of some land near D-12.

He told me that CDA is now trying to secure direct federal funding for the project through PSDP but at the moment, nothing can be said for sure. Technically however, the road can be opened for traffic in 20 months if other issues are addressed. With CDA planning to launch C series sectors, there is reason for hope.

You can view some of the pictures I took which I bundled together in a video at:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTPUe8A8iBY&feature=youtu.be

@Pk1: I think our views are not too different regarding cdechs....as I also feel that it will eventually pick up, but it will require another 3-4 years plus some further developments which you rightly pointed out, to gather that momentum. I wasn't aware of the recent price increase that you mentioned, but we will have to see if its sustainable for now.

@Pardesi: I am sure your assessment must be correct for I have never been too good at speculation and therefore more risk averse. However, I do feel that in a country where even the govt can launch "ghost schemes" like park enclave just to collect people's money by creating a hype, the word "IF" sounds like a big risk! (or atleast to a conservative investor like myself).

@SyedAmjad sb., just finished watching your video of pictures :) Thank you so much for a sincere and unbiased effort... But sir where are pictures of G-15/F-15/16 and also B-17. I think you should dump all pictures you have in this video if thats not a problem for you... Also forgot to mention and now re-editing... You have selected one of the greatest national song for its music - a perfect fit. I have to hear this song right now.

Have you visited any more societies recently syed amjad saab? if so, can you keep the pictures posted and info coming in. Thanks

@Intern. Sorry I just saw your post, Thankyou for the appreciation. Actually the video file had become too big already, it took me some 30 mins on broadband to upload it on youtube becoz of proxy. I will however try to gather rest of the pictures and post them shortly and maybe even get some fresh pictures, as I am hoping to get a chance to visit the underconstruction airport in the near future through an acquaintance.

P.S. I dont have any pictures of F-16 as there is no development on ground yet and the roads leading into the sector had also been blocked off.

B-17 will be the king of zone 2.

Very informative. Thanks a lot Mr Amjad.

Thankyou Aziz Khan sb. Sheikh sb havent yet had the chance to step out due to heavy official commitments, but after reading your post I am thinking maybe I might need to take a break from work and get away from my computer :)

@Nasir Khurshid. I agree that B-17 is a great society and certainly has the potential. But for now, the crown in Zone 2 belongs to JKCHS and I dont think they are giving it away anytime soon. For B-17 to challenge that position, completion of margalla avenue is essential. We will have to wait and see how things develop.

JKCHS has the location advantage at the moment. But the prices are also high as compared to B-17. So, I would say that the future of B-17 is very bright.

Regards

I agree with your assessment that JKCHS is the king for the moment because of population growth, commercial markets development and all facilities being available.

On top of all of that it touches two roads - GT Road and Kashmir Highway. As soon as the road link from JKCHS and Interior society is opened on Kashmir Highway, the prices of plots will take a jump and rental value will also become very close to G-13 and G-14/4 inshaAllah.

B-17 is still considered far and away. I think B-17 cannot be the King (because JkCHS has location advantage of direct access to Motorway and GT Road) but it will become the queen if Margalla Avenue is built inshaAllah.

If you want to make B-17 the king instead of Queen, then Margalla Avenue should be extended to cross GT road and reach M-1 Motorway. If the horizontal road in B-17 can be built longer so that it touches the Margalla extension between Motorway and GT road, then yes B-17 will take the crown from JKCHS.

Price are high in JKCHS but the good thing is that they are still rising and the future prospects look good. If B-17 catches up with JKCHS, it would require a big jump, which as Pk1 has rightly pointed out, can only come through better access, which at the moment is its main weakness.