Following the footsteps of Nariman Point and Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), Lower Parel is coming up well as the Extended Business District (EBD) at Mumbai’s commercial real estate scenario. From decaying chawls and jam-packed lanes to high-rise office buildings, housing some of world’s biggest corporate houses, the area has undergone a massive change.

Lower Parel is advantageously located at the inroads to South Mumbai’s CBD, BKC and the Secondary Business Districts (SBD) such as Malad, Andheri, Thane and Navi Mumbai. It also has domestic and international airports in close proximity.

Due to the huge tracts of land available, development in Lower Parel is significantly taking place in a planned way. Of late, Lower Parel has witnessed entry of big enterprises in the compounds of the departed mills. State-of-the-art office buildings such as Phoenix Towers and Marathon Heights laid down the standard for more superior and premium commercial projects like Raheja Atlantis and Marathon NextGen.

When Morgan Stanley struck a deal in the swank Peninsula Corporate Park for Rs 410 a sq ft, i.e. Rs 50 lakh per month for 12,000 sq ft, the industry took the notice of prospects in Lower Parel.

The rental values, across Lower Parel, Nariman Point and BKC, have been soaring since past few years. Rentals are between Rs 250 and 350 per sq ft in Nariman Point and between Rs 250 and 275 per sq ft in Lower Parel. BKC, for now, commands between Rs 300 and 315 per sq ft. As per industry reports, the office space supply during early 2008 is going to be sturdy with approximately 2.2 million sq ft of space getting available at Lower Parel which is going to stabilize the prices.

The two huge developments coming up in the vicinity of the Lower Parel area includes projects by prominent real estate developer DLF and Indiabulls. Service Apartments are being developed and luxurious residential buildings are also coming up and redevelopment of several buildings is on track as well.

With this, Lower Parel is expected to boast of an exclusively new skyline. According to the real estate industry experts, the success of any new commercial or residential property project depends mainly on location. Considering that, Lower Parel is ideally placed to become the new commercial real estate hub of Mumbai.