Vying with metros, house rents skyrocket in port city

Visakhapatnam: Matching up with the metro cities, house rents inVisakhapatnam are skyrocketing. Cost of living appears to be high in any capital city. However, much before Visakhapatnam became the executive capital, house rents have gone up.

After Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy made an announcement of shifting to Visakhapatnam from Dasara, house rents in the city saw a surge once again.

Hundreds of apartments are available in several areas of Bheemunipatnam constituency and other localities in Visakhapatnam.

A double bedroom house, which was available for Rs 6,000 to Rs 8,000 till last year, is now costing more than Rs.12,000 in Madhurawada, Sagar Nagar and other areas.

If the camp office is shifted to the city as per the schedule announced by the Chief Minister, the rents are certain to increase even further, adding another Rs 2,000 to Rs.4,000 per month.

Already, rents at Visalakshi Nagar, one of the posh localities in the city, have soared. The area is much sought after among people as it is located between Rushikonda and the city. The rent of a double-bedroom flat in Visalakshi Nagar is Rs 12,000 upwards.

In the coming days, residents here fear that finding a house for rent will be a tough task in the neighbourhood. “For the past six months, I have been trying to shift house. But I am unable to find one in the same locality. Moreover, rent in the area has gone up and I need to cough up another Rs 5,000 minimum to pay the rent for a similar two-bedroom house,” says M Kranti Kiran, an IT professional, residing in Visalakshi Nagar for a rent of Rs 10,000.

Keeping the real estate boom in view, realtors have come up with hundreds of apartments in Visakhapatnam. Even as the Chief Minister has been making announcements repeatedly that he would be moving to Visakhapatnam soon, people are still not sure whether this will materialise or not. However, realtors pin hopes on the move and are taking big leaps towards their business which got adversely hit by the pandemic.

With the officials from Chief Minister’s Office visiting Rushikonda to inspect the villas and apartments, they are in touch with the owners to pay advance so that their shift to the port city would become a hassle-free exercise.

Among other areas, Madhurawada, Sagar Nagar, Visalakshi Nagar, PM Palem and Yendada top the demand list. However, top officials from the CMO evince interest in residing at Rushikonda and Yendada.

Meanwhile, a realtor from the ruling party constructed several apartment blocks in the city, while some are yet to be completed. According to a senior official, most of the apartments built by him were kept vacant so that officials from the CMO could make use of them during the initial months once they start functioning from

Visakhapatnam.