My new pet project these days is “HOUSE Hunting” and man………. is it tiring or what??? I am either on the field looking at potential apartments or researching them on the net. At other times I am thinking about them…… another very very tedious process. I haven’t touched my camera since Diwali night. None of the flats I see fall into the Mc Dream Home category. Finding a dream house is like falling in love with the dream person. I am sure you think I am gross comparing these two things but seriously…… its like you love somebody’s eyes or somebody’s smile or somebody’s dimples, somebody’s sense of humor, somebody’s ………  I’m definitely getting soft in the head!!!!
 
Just to clear the air I meant a mixture of Shahrukh Khan, Hritik Roshan, Amir Khan (not the dead singer), Salman Khan, Khalli…….?????? (now where did that come from???…… soft part of the head…… I guess!!!) whatever…… Coming back to the point….. Mc Dream Home!!! Every house I see has a certain feature that I like sometimes it is the living room sometimes the spacious bedroom sometimes the kitchen, sometimes it is the terrace or the view etc only you never find all of them in one single place.

Just like in the case with LOVE…….. even if you do find McDreamy and fall in love with him…… he should love you back….. here comes affordability.  So the search is on as I scour the streets of my city braving the cold evenings and the dry and hot afternoons. Result I am down with a bad throat infection. Sometimes when I speak I have to look around to make sure that the broken creepy croaky voice is mine and don’t even make me start as to when I am laughing….. I sound like the creepiest chudail (witch). I used to look like one now I even sound like one…… Any fancy dress shows coming up???

Coming back to Mc Dream Home…….. the construction companies are so sly that what they put up on paper and what they actually give are two different things. The built-up area and the available carpet area differs from what they put up on paper. Most of the under construction apartments that I saw are so tiny that I had to change my mind and go for the ready possession flats. Here I can buy what I see. So much more comfortable!!!!Plus the waiting period of the possession of the flat and the builder’s tantrums are something you wont have to endure. Most builders delay possession and charge an escalation plus the amenities mentioned in the brochures are grossly over rated for eg:  Landscaped gardens, children play area, Relaxation benches, senior citizens’ corner, lawns, open air fitness area and jogging tracks are actually a small little teeny-meeny grassy park with a bench and some winding lanes. Gymnasiums are actually areas in the club house where a little treadmill and exercycle is kept.

The only disadvantage at this point of time is the affordability. Finance is one hell of a competing sector. Since I have posted feelers about my intention to buy a property I have been totally bogged down by brokers selling properties and finance guys offering various schemes so much that my earlier silence loving and never ringing phone does not stop ringing and there usually is somebody waiting on the other line. I have got so confused that I agree to meet somebody and hand over documentation to another….. I negotiate details with one and end up asking no demanding loan features offered from a completely different bank. It is so confusing!!!!

To top it all the brokers have been offering me everything from heritage buildings to pigeon hole homes. Just today I was offered to view a home that was older than me !!!!Most of these flats have an array of single working people or students staying on rent. The reason……. they pay more money and vacate immediately. I recently saw one house where there were four burly unshaven less clothed men lounging in the living room and when I entered more and more men seemed to keep coming out of woodwork……. so many that i completely lost count of them. As I walked around to see the house more and more men came out. All of them looking at you as if you walked into the “never seen a female” male section of Tihar jail with very very HUGE eyes. I immediately was on my toes because the house was dirty and I rejected buying it. All I could think of was : RRRRRRUUNNNNNNNN!!!!

The female students/working professionals on the other hand are better they are really neat and clean but again most properties in the market for resale are not really worth an investment. The smooth talking brokers take the cake. They make the properties on resale seem like it is the next thing after Taj Mahal and the usual all it requires is a fresh coat of paint. What they mean is pull down the walls and the plaster and also re-tile the entire floor and change all the electric fixtures and bathroom fittings and install new woodwork……. THATS ALL!!!

So my basically hunt for McDreamHome is still on but now I am armed with lots of between the lines reading knowledge and clear specific requirements about what I want in my home. So I’m ready……. bring it on!!!!!