Prop News Time spoke with Cyrus Mody, CEO and Founder of Viceroy Properties, about the company’s development pipeline, its Mumbai-focused growth strategy and the changing dynamics of the city’s luxury residential market.
Discussing the company’s immediate priorities, Mody said Viceroy Properties is focusing on growth in both residential and commercial real estate. On the residential side, the strong response to its Versova project has accelerated its plans. Phase 1 witnessed significant traction within the first two months, leading the company to move ahead with Phase 2 sooner than anticipated.
The company is also building up its commercial portfolio, Mody said, with plans to undertake developments across approximately 1.5 million to 2 million square feet spread across several sites in Mumbai’s western suburbs.
On how Viceroy Properties is approaching differentiation in the competitive luxury market, Mody said it should not be based only on amenities or positioning. At Viceroy Properties, he said, luxury lies in quality embedded in convenience and day-to-day living.
The company does not believe in providing features simply for the sake of glamour. Instead, Mody said its most vital focus is understanding how a house can contribute to seamless living through proper design of parking lots, useful amenities, quick maintenance actions and strong service processes.
On the possibility of expanding beyond Mumbai, Mody said the company’s focus will remain on the city for the foreseeable future. He pointed to the significant opportunities emerging from infrastructure development, which is creating potential across various Mumbai micro-markets.
The company’s approach, he said, will be to identify these opportunities and steadily grow within Mumbai rather than focus on expansion outside the city.
Viceroy Properties has developed and handed over approximately 1.2 million square feet in the western suburbs. Mody said the company was conscious of not remaining concentrated in a single micro-market. This led it to evaluate locations with strong infrastructure-led growth potential, with Versova emerging as a logical next step.
Going forward, he said, the company will continue to be selective about residential opportunities while also expanding its presence in commercial real estate.
Addressing the outlook for Mumbai’s luxury and ultra-luxury housing market, Mody said the sector has recorded a consistent rise and has continued to exceed expectations on both monthly and quarterly levels.
Mumbai, he said, remains an aspirational destination and continues to attract buyer interest. Despite increasing income levels, the desire to upgrade to a bigger and better house remains a strong reason behind demand.
Viceroy Properties operates across premium, luxury and super-luxury housing and has identified multiple opportunities in these segments. However, Mody stressed that the company believes in taking the right approach when evaluating opportunities.
High demand, he said, should not be confused with oversupply. The company’s main principle is to remain selective when pursuing opportunities and ensure that projects conform to the specific conditions of each area.
Mody said the luxury segment can continue to thrive as long as demand exists and is supported by good-quality housing in the right locations.
Versova is among the micro-markets that Viceroy Properties views positively for luxury residential growth. Mody said the decision to invest in the area followed a detailed local area study, which indicated that the market had high potential.
The area is already undergoing a perceptible shift in terms of connectivity and buyer interest, he said. Improved infrastructure is enhancing accessibility and changing the way Versova is perceived within Mumbai’s residential landscape.
Mody believes these changes will continue to support the evolution of Versova as an important luxury residential micro-market over the coming years.
Looking at Mumbai’s luxury market more broadly, he said infrastructure will play a crucial role in determining future growth. The locations that record the highest growth will depend not only on the prestige of their addresses but also on the transport opportunities available to them.
Property prices in Mumbai do not have a common ceiling, according to Mody, as every micro-market is influenced by different factors.
Infrastructure, connectivity, availability of quality supply and the profile of demand can make a major difference to the trajectory of a location. Versova is an example of this, he said, with improvements in connectivity bringing a clear change in prices and buyer interest.
Mody said this shows that property price appreciation in Mumbai is often directly connected to the transformation of a micro-market.
Going forward, he expects price appreciation to rely on solid fundamentals. As prices increase, buyers are likely to become more selective, making it necessary for developers to justify their pricing through the quality of the product, location and overall living conditions.
Speaking about new formats and concepts in luxury housing, Mody said Viceroy Properties’ approach to innovation does not revolve around following fads.
While technology-enhanced features and ideas in luxury housing are gaining ground, the company believes the value of luxury should be measured by the genuine improvement it brings to residents’ lives.
For Viceroy Properties, Mody said, a more significant opportunity lies in creating a more customer-service-oriented living environment. This could include timely maintenance, concierge services, useful parking and provisions that are introduced because they meet customer needs rather than simply being added to a list of features.
The company also places strong emphasis on research and quality control while creating its products, including testing materials, he said.
Mody said Viceroy Properties will be able to adapt to changing buyer expectations while remaining focused on meaningful innovations that improve quality and people’s lives.
Viceroy Properties’ plans remain closely tied to Mumbai, with the company looking at both residential and commercial opportunities across the city. Mody’s views suggest that infrastructure will continue to influence the potential of individual micro-markets, while rising prices could make buyers more careful about what they receive in return. For the developer, the definition of luxury extends beyond amenities to include design, maintenance, parking and service. The company’s approach to Versova and its wider Mumbai strategy will therefore depend on identifying locations where these factors can translate into long-term value.
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