This was disclosed by HDFC managing director Deepak Satwalekar at a seminar on "Housing in the Next Millenium" organised by the Indian Merchant Chambers in Mumbai on Wednesday.

He said that framing appropriate foreclosure norms was the key to kicking off a securitisation programme. And once such norms were in place, HDFC would securitise around Rs 100 crore out of its debt portfolio.

Outlining the housing finance situation, he said that the property market today is one of volumes and lower margins. The days of 100 and 200 per cent margins in the building industry are gone. Satwalkar said: "It is the volumes that run the business today rather than margins."

In spite of the loss of optimism in the property market, theexperience of HDFC has been quite to the contrary. At HDFC, business grew by 50 per cent last year and 30 per cent this year. Therefore, prices have come down to realistic levels and individuals think this is the best time to buy.

According to him, the services sector, which accounts for 43 per cent of the GDP, should be attractive as it has the largest potential to grow.

He also felt that in Mumbai there are too many bottlenecks for the approval of a housing project. For example, he pointed out that in Mumbai one needs about 57 approvals for a building and nearly three months are needed to procure them.

Housing Urban Development Corporation chief economist Kiran Wadhva said that the government's proposal to give shelter to all by 2001 is only a dream and the need of the hour is to structure a long-term housing policy.

While developing a housing scheme, the planners should also provide for locational advantages and on- and off-site infrastructure facilities without which housing plans would fail, sheadded.

The Property Owners' Association executive president BR Bhattad said that the central and state governments should declare liberal new housing policies for instantaneous mass housing development.