Do Dream Homes Remain Dreams?
Santhosh Kumar
For four years Gayatri Nandakumar has been cherishing for a home of her own since her joining with an IT firm in the Infopark, Kochi as a software engineer in 2008. Her dream became an obsession soon after her marriage with Nandakumar, a bank employee, since a couple of years back. As both could now afford to have their own home, the couple went on searching for their dream home together. Most of the times it was Gayatri who took the initiative to identify a trustworthy builder who can build a home of her dreams in Kochi.
Gayatri began her search for a convenient and affordable home through the internet as she was more proficient in online searching than her hubby. Initially she searched for a plan for her home online. When both got time to visit some of the reputed builders in the metro, they made their routine visits to most of them. But things never fell into place; when the plans fit their needs, the cost of their house exceeded their budget. If the cost was well within their budget, the plan of the house lacked some convenience. Gayatri was adament on the conveniences than the looks of the house she always wanted to have. Nandakumar was more interested in the aesthetics of the building than the convenience.
What bothered Gayatri was the utter confusion and indefinite delay involved in choosing a typical house that met all their needs. She has even decided to have their baby only after settling in their own home! "In fact, every time I came across with a builder who offered a house that was well within our budget, I was more confused," said Gayatri. "Sometimes the work area of the house seemed too small or sometimes the dining area opened directly into the work area. Even some builders do not provide a kitchen that can accommodate the fridge inside it. Instead they provided provision for the fridge and washing machine in the work area which is usually covered with iron grills."
Gayatri, like many women of her status, disagreed upon the amenities provided by many builders. But most of them were prepared to shell out a little extra funds if the amenities and the looks of the flats met their dreams. "It is in these situations that we opt to construct our own houses," said Gayatri. "But constructing a house of your dreams is more a matter of time and investment than anything else. Construction can be considered if you have your own land.If you do not have your own property it is better go for the flats or ready made villas. "
"Now I know it is better to go for a flat or small villa than building your own home," Gayatri said emphatically. "Owning a flat or villa depends upon many factors like security, privacy and location of the place you want to live on. Choosing a location is more important for us since we both have to travel to our offices", added Gayatri. "If a convenient location is found, there would be no flats or villas available there. If both the location and the flat are okay, travel to our workplace and back is another problem. Nothing seemed working for us for a time being."
So the problems seemed never ending for the couple. The more they focused on their comfort and conveniences the less likely they could find a flat to live in.
However, Gayatri and Nadakumar at last decided to take the plunge. "It was all a compromise," said Nandakumar."I gave full freedom to her to decide whether to go for a flat or villa or an independent house. In fact that responsibility gave her more sleepless nights." Nandakumar laughed.
Last week they occupied their own flat someway in between their workplaces. And in a couple of days Gayatri had made the house look like a home of her own dreams! To add to their convenience Nandakumar has already booked a small car too. "I find a good home needs a car too, " said Gayatri. "After all life is full of compromises, right?"
As I walked out of their brand new flat, I started wondering how the young generation look at life in terms of material comforts irrespective of their resources. In the battle against survival, the younger generation conveniently ignores the simplicity of life. They always want to be alienated from their older generations. But they do prefer a flat life.
The true names of the couple have been changed for privacy sake.Must Read
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The author can be reached at santhoshk07@gmail.com
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