This election season the team of Prime Property travelled Lucknow, which is one of the most keenly watched election battlefields in the crucial state of Uttar Pradesh. From a real estate angle, construction too is taking place at a frenzied pace with high rise apartments changing the city’s skyline.

The team also tracked Chembur, a town in Mumbai whichis emerging as a new realty hotspot.

Talking about lucknow, which is the heart of Uttar Pradesh, the state that has a whopping 80 seats on offer and is going to be the karmabhoomi for BJP leader Rajnath Singh this election. Singh dumped Ghaziabad hoping to find safety in a city that has been a BJP stronghold. So, with political parties promising to modernise the city and the state we decided to travel to the city to assess if the realty index is in sync with the political climate.

The city of splendour, Lucknow has emerged as a major realty hotspot. With rating agency CRISIL ranking it as one of the top ten fastest growing cities for real estate and a drive through the city is a testament of that. It is hard not to get overwhelmed by the frenzied pace of construction and the high rise apartment buildings dotting the skyline standing out.

Lucknow isn’t like most tier 2 cities. It has kept its tehzeeb and Awadh Heritage intact. Famous for its kebabs, biryani, zardozi and chicken work Lucknow in more recent times has emerged as a serious contender in attracting IT investments. Tata Consultancy Services ( TCS ) has a large campus in the city. Vodafone and Reliance also have big call centres. Besides that a 100 acre IT city near the international airport is on the anvil which will also house an IIT and a cancer hospital. However, like the rest of UP, industry fears a backlash in Lucknow when a new political regime comes to power in the state. Growing crime in the state is another concern. Experts say a strong MP can help Lucknow attract more investments.

Now, coming to the property market, there is a huge gap between demand and supply. Experts say there is a demand for almost 25000-30,000 units every year whereas the supply is almost half of that. Sensing an opportunity the country’s big builders like DLF, AnsalApi, Omaxe and Emaar MGF have all moved in.

There are buildings coming up in the outskirts of Lucknow on two sides of the 22km long road, the Amar Shaheed Path, connecting the international airport to the City Centre. More than 10,000 units are being built on either side of this highway, which also connects the five most prominent districts for new real estate investments. Here property prices are almost 40 percent lower than the City Centre.

We drive down on Amar Shaheed Path from the City Centre towards the airport. First up is Sultanpur Road that has already established itself as a prime realty hotspot. AnsalApi is the biggest player here with its 3500 acre integrated township, the Sushant Golf City. AnsalApi is selling 1bhk to 4bhk options for Rs 3000-4500 a square foot. It is also betting big on penthouses and villas but these are far more expensive with a price tag of Rs 3-5 crore.

Real estate portal commonfloor.com tells Prime Property, Sultanpur Road’s prospects remain good, despite recording a 40 percent price appreciation over the last two years. This is mainly on account of an upcoming 60 acre IT city in Gajaria Farms. The next locality to catch our eye was Gomti Nagar Extension. Here you will probably find the maximum number of options for affordable housing. 2 and 3bhk’s are available for Rs 2000-3500 a square foot. Emaar MGF from Delhi has launched the 225 acre Gomti Green. The company is offering plotted development at Rs 26000 per sq yd or Rs 2888 per sq ft for plots ranging approximately 1000 units (ranging from 194 sqyd to 957 sqyd).

However, if you want to spend that kind of money, also consider options in the commercial hub of Lucknow i.e. Hazratganj. Premium flats are available here for Rs 40 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

The trend of high rise apartments in Lucknow began in Gomti Nagar. DLF and Omaxe both have projects here. Upcoming infrastructure will be a booster shot for Lucknow’s property market. The city’s first metro is being built at an approximate cost of Rs 12,500 crore, incidentally by Sreedharan, the man behind the Delhi metro.

Commonfloor.com tells Prime Property, that Lucknow like many other cities has been suffering from a lull in the run-up to elections. Sales have fallen 30-40 percent in the last 3-4 months. The festive season of navratras in the first week of April was also disappointing. Commonfloor advices, now is the time to buy this as developers are willing to negotiate the final price and throw in freebies.