Want a discount on your home? Lose weight

Imagine a home in the outskirts of Mumbai with an Olympic-size swimming pool, a US Open-certified tennis court, sprawling badminton and squash courts or everything else you could dream of to keep yourself in top shape. Does it sound unbelievable?

With less than 2 per cent per capita space and bursting at its seams, Mumbai and its suburbs are gasping for open spaces, making it difficult for its residents to lead healthier lives.

Catering to this need, canny real estate developers are building projects with fitness as their USP (unique selling proposition).

One such project is Nirmal Lifestyle's Sports City at Thane. Chairman and managing director Dharmesh Jain said it was a conscious decision to promote an active lifestyle.

"Any customer who books a flat with us will be given a dietician and a trainer. If you lose weight, you actually get a discount," Mr Jain told NDTV Profit. The buyers also get certificates from leading sports bodies as well as guaranteed professional training.

"It's not just about children but about people of all ages... you need to be young at heart and you can enjoy your game. What we are essentially promoting at Sports City is that there are other forms of entertainment beyond television and dinner at a restaurant. Please indulge in them."

Other projects catering to this niche are Highland Park, Dosti Imperia, Parwoods, Lodha Luxuria and Hiranandani Estates.

However, with most premium projects offering spacious flats with similar amenities, developers have devised innovative schemes to lure customers.

With Mumbai sitting on a pile of unsold projects, there are doubts over the city's appetite for such projects.
However, real estate experts said the market is big enough for such projects to do well.

"If you are innovative and you price it right, I think there will be enough buyers. The market is big enough in Mumbai for such projects to do well," said Ashutosh Limaye, head of research and REIS at Jones Lang LaSalle, a global real estate consultancy.

"If you come up with a good project, you'll always get your price. The critical things here are how you differentiate the product and how you bring in something unique to appeal to the customer."