CDA land auction: Buyers prefer bidding on smaller plots

Plot in F-10 Markaz fetches highest bid.

ISLAMABAD: On the second-and-final-day of the Capital Development Authority commercial land auction, buyers preferred to offer bids for smaller, cheaper plots in Margalla Town. However, the highest bid recorded was for a plot in F-10 Markaz.

During the two-day land auction, which concluded on Thursday, the CDA received bids worth Rs6.72 billion against a total of 24 commercial plots.

On Thursday, the buyers offered bids amounting to Rs4.04 billion against 18 commercial plots — 15 of which are in Margalla Town and are reserved for the construction of shops.

On the first day of auction, six commercial plots fetched bids of Rs2.68 billion.

“If all the bids are approved, The CDA board, which is expected to meet on Friday, would be able to ensure the availability of funds for the CDA to meet non-development expenditure for the next financial year,” said a CDA board member.

On the second day, the highest bid of Rs2.78 billion was offered for a plot measuring 11,750 square yards in F-10 Markaz. The plot is meant for the construction of luxury apartments.

Collectively, the authority received bids of Rs385 million against 15 commercial plots in Margalla Town. Most of these plots are 133.33 square yards.

Similarly, a plot in Sector I-8 Markaz reserved for a hospital fetched Rs356 million, while another plot at Markaz G-11 received a bid of Rs515 million.

The auction committee, headed by the CDA finance member, will submit the details of bids to the CDA board for final approval. Generally, a bid is only declined if the amount offered was less than the reserve price for the plot.

CDA Chairman Maroof Afzal said that the two-day auction fetched much higher prices compared to past auctions, which testified investors’ confidence in the CDA’s transparent and investment-friendly policies.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2014.