A TV ad promoting a certain brand of cement has a father very clearly showing his displeasure on his son’s choice of land for building his house. “A house is built only once in one’s lifetime,” the father says.
The son however goes on to make a house at the same very site and is overheard instructing the contractor to use only that brand of cement for which the commercial is made.
When his father asks him about his preference, he reminds the father about his sage words:
“A house is built only once in one’s lifetime!”
I have no reason to disbelieve the assumption that for generations, the idea of owning a home has been deeply ingrained in the Indian psyche. People without exception aspire to have a place they can call their own, a place where they can build their lives and create lasting memories.
Owning a home provides a sense of stability and roots in the community. It is not just about having a physical space; it’s about being a part of the neighbourhood.
Slogging ages to save the money required for constructing one’s own house, people have endured years of patience and struggle before they were able to build what they could rightly call an abode of their own.
Some twenty, twenty-five years back, it was not unusual to have people moving into their unfinished houses and many would, over a period of time, complete the entire structure, brick-by-brick, staying within its confines. After all it was their house!
Though not exactly financially sound back then, my wife however coaxed me into going in for a house of our own.
Her argument was quite simple!
Instead of shelling out ridiculous amounts as rent month after month, the same amounts could well be adjusted as EMIs against the loan we would raise for our house. She finally had her way!
And now when I think back about these days!
I can still remember the knock - or should I say the series of disjointed raps - on the main door of our flat on the fourth of every month, as our landlord arrived to collect the rent.
As compared to those good old days (no intentions of romanticising the past here) where a lot of thinking used to go into the whole exercise of deciding on the purchase of a house, the rapid urbanization of our cities has changed the real estate landscape now - there is so much to choose from!
However, buying a house is a significant commitment that requires patience, due diligence, proper research, and demands thoughtful consideration.
Back then it was not all that easy to get finance for houses or flats, while banks these days are liberal with their lending policies. The process of availing loans too has been simplified to quite an extent. Nowadays, most of the builders too have tie-ups with various banks making it all the more easier for a potential buyer to avail the benefits.
I concur with the view that owning a home is more than just a financial investment. It definitely has emotional and psychological benefits. My house has certainly provided me a sense of belonging, stability and pride. Pride for the simple reason that after years of struggle, I managed to put up a roof over my head.
However, it is a matter of general observation that constructing a house is not just a once-in-a-lifetime occasion. For that matter, even the significant expenses involved hardly deter people from creating masterpieces in cement and concrete, with eye-catching interiors.
Besides, it is observed that people are not content with just one house!
Of course let us not make any mention of stars and celebrities who own a number of mansions and swanky apartments across the globe. No, let us restrict ourselves to that class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status.
Owning a bungalow and two-to-three flats is the in-thing now!
The new trend goes beyond the old concept of having a roof over your head. It’s now a symbol of achievement and prosperity. Having a number of residential addresses adds to one’s status, or so they feel.
While many may contend that buying a house is not an investment at all, others have started making a business of buying and then renting out the premises to prospective clients.
More so in the coastal belt of the state, where people, in a bid to exploit the tourism scenario in the state, have started investing in constructed properties to later let out the accommodation to tourists who throng the state.
Even otherwise, the unoccupied status of many of the apartments in the multitude of high-rise buildings which have come up in the state over the past few years speak their own stories.
Another modern-day fad observed in Goa is the fondness for building huge houses only to have most of the family members eventually moving abroad. With just some elders staying back in the house, maintenance of such houses becomes a Herculean task.
We have to understand that a house is a setting that you give life to.
I can easily relate with the following few lines I came across while I mused over an appropriate topic to elaborate upon.
“A house is like an entity with a life of its own. You give life to it the moment you make it yours, taking care of it, giving it affection, filling it with your belongings and the sound of your daily life. But often, for a space with four walls to be your real home, you need the people you love.”
If you are with the people you love, even a cabin can become a palace!
