The reality of REALTY

Are we building HOMES or just SHOW CASES ??

It’s been a long journey from a dream destination, to a personality statement of sorts – but a little glimpse at any up-market magazine, real estate pages or even a stroll through the city malls on a weekend will reveal the change in the way the Urban Indian consumer looks at their home – the so called SWEET HOME.

Rising income levels, increased employment opportunities, tax incentive on housing loans, lower interest rates, double income, and transition from joint families to nuclear families are the reasons for this change. Add to this the rising aspirations of the urban middle class and an egoistic desire to own and enjoy things ‘now’. The result – an explosion in the real estate prices with metros and their suburbs witnessing over 30% CAGR over the last 5 years. The sector looks promising for the years to come.

But let’s talk about the more humane side of the picture; remember those HINDI movies of 70’s & 80’s with that typical ‘neelami’ scene, where the family ‘izzat’ was being auctioned off. What was being sold off was not merely a piece of land with a structure, but the very nest of one’s family. The place which was both the origin and the final destination, where you would be born and eventually die. The ‘khandan ka chirag’ would take over the reins thereafter. The home signified stability along with prosperity. Generations came and went but the family abode stood firm. A small confirmation of the same is that most of us, the Indian youth still quote their ‘parental home’ as their ‘permanent address’ when filling out various forms.

It mattered little that whether the home was big or small, decorated or simple; it was like a mother who is never beautiful or ugly, but just a mother. A home had little to do with beauty, as the family was the reflection of the home and not vice versa. At festive times, the home would be refurbished with a pretended newness. It needed to look well looked after rather than look beautiful. Even today a majority of us look forward to, and travel back to our ‘parental home’ in festive time, if only in the name of ‘quality family time’ and ‘taking a break out of our busy work schedules’.

Today a majority of the first time house buyers are between 30-35 years. They have a very strong urge to show off. The Indian youth today travels widely and sees what is available where. He/She wants to have everything to their taste and are willing to pay that extra buck for that. The idea of a home today is one of perpetual progress; the home is never fully realized, but always in the stage of becoming. We sell and buy our houses, see them as empty spaces to be filled with our tastes and loveliness, till it’s time to move into a bigger one. It has become a mirror of our evolving selves.

Today the Indian youth wants to shun off the label of mediocrity and wants to stand a brand apart. If Swiss watches, imported sedans, French Perfumes, Polaroid sunglasses & the latest Nokia are means to do that, homes are not left far behind. Every element of the home is today being used as a potential site to show off, from the positioning of the La-Opala crockery to the placement of the waste paper basket. The bathroom, which was traditionally placed outside the sanctity of the home, is now its shining jewel. ‘Good taste’ in an apartment comes from 3 shades of Italian marble, contrasting plastic paints on walls (gone are the days of cream and white) and a Jacuzzi sprinkled bathroom. We are living in a time where home is all about brand visibility; Legrand switches, HR Johnson tiles, Parryware sanitary, Bombay Dyeing home furnishings are loud advertisements of the esteem of the owner. Our pride comes from the individuality of the singular objects in the house, rather than the totality of the effect. Today the more is better, and we just keep filling the empty spaces, without a sense of what is appropriate and what isn’t, and more importantly what is required and what isn’t. The home has become a collection of objects and not a unified space.

Moving forward I believe that the idea of a personal signature should evolve, and personal confort shall become the key discriminator. Though the people will continue to speculate the value of the house owner based upon the visibility factor, but stuffing the home with objects will not be enough. The coming years shall see reestablishment of the idea of home coming - a place to heave a sigh of relief !!