Islamabad Airport Impact Series – The Faisal Town Story

The New Islamabad International Airport is one of the biggest developments that the capital city has seen of late. It has had a deep impact on the real estate market in the city; price hikes in nearby areas have been noted by many, just like the looming threat of land being overtaken for its expansions has made itself obvious. Our impact series will look at different housing societies in the vicinity in terms of how they will be affected by the new airport.

Islamabad is one of the major cities that saw serious problems after last year’s tax regime hit. However, projects in the vicinity of the new airport have been doing well of late. If you look at the real estate activity in the rest of the city, and compare it with the current situation in these project, you will notice a stark difference. This article will be focusing attention on Faisal Town, a small project that has benefited from airport induced price escalations.

Faisal Town, a project of Zedem International, occupies a good spot on the Rawalpindi-Kohat Road, also known as the Fateh Jang Road. The society is just a few kilometres away from Tarnol Interchange on the Islamabad-Peshawar Motorway (M-1). It is one of the most promising housing societies of the neighbourhood as it has all the required no objective certificates (NOCs) from all concerned departments, including the Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA).

Despite its small size, Faisal Town’s developer has ensured the provision of many facilities and amenities that would be needed by the residents. It features underground electrification, three full-fledged parks and a mini lake. In addition to that, ample space has been reserved for schools, colleges, hotels and commercial plots.

At the moment, it has two blocks, i.e. Blocks A and B, where investors can acquire 8-, 10-, and 14-marla plots. For people looking for slightly bigger property, 1-kanal options are also available.

Development status

Block A is completely developed, and possession was given to owners around five months ago. And development work in Block B is currently ongoing at a satisfactory speed.

Around 150 houses are under construction in Block A at the moment. Many of these units will be ready for inhabitants in the coming few months. Many of these houses are being built by individual owners, which also means that the society will be inhibited soon.

Looking at the pace of ongoing development work in Block B, the developer will be in a position to offer possession by the time the airport becomes functional in August this year.

Current rates

Property rates in Faisal Town have been increasing constantly since the last four months. The announcement of the airport’s inauguration date caused property rates to shoot up by 25%.

Have a look at the current prices:

Plot Size	Price Range
8 marla (30×60)	PKR 3,200,000 – PKR 4,500,000
10 marla (35×70)	PKR 4,000,000 – PKR 5,500,000
14 marla (40×80)	PKR 5,500,000 – PKR 6,500,000
1 kanal (50×90)	PKR 6,000,000 – PKR 7,500,000

Is it in the danger zone?

Faisal Town has little chance of finding itself in trouble because of its proximity to the airport. While it is in the same area, it does not fall into an area that may be needed for future airport expansions.

This is something that has worried many investors, as the Senate itself has highlighted even societies with valid NOCs in the past, for being too close to the airport. I would be surprised if Faisal Town’s NOC is cancelled for expansions, however, since it most certainly is not in the eye of the fire.

What to expect?

Considering how prices for different projects near the airport have been travelling upwards, property rates in Faisal Town are still reasonable.

Real estate experts believe that these price hikes won’t stop even after the facility is inaugurated, and price appreciation here will continue for the next five years. This projection applies to Faisal Town as well.

The society can attract short-term investors as well since it promises decent price appreciation in the next six months. Block B’s possession is yet to be offered, and rates of plots in this block can increase by a decent margin. Combine this with the launch of the new airport and we have a tempting 40% figure.