Compact Homes: India’s New Urban Living Standard
By Kishor Pate, CMD – Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd.
The parameters that drive urban living in India have been changing constantly. People from other parts of the country have been migrating into thriving cities like Mumbai and Pune to avail of the better job prospects there. While real estate developers have been attempting to cater to the rising demand for housing, urban land prices have been rising and with them the cost of homes. This has given rise to the trend for compact homes near these cities’ main office locations.
Perfect residential solution in urban areas
The affordable prices of smaller homes are not the only reason why compact flats are now the first choice of people living urban areas. Of course, the price differential does play a major role. After all, bigger apartments of 3BHK and 4BHK configurations are very expensive. At the same time, 1 BHK flats are considered too small for growing families. This is why 2BHK apartments are now in highest demands among urban families. Particularly designed for the working middle class, such flats are more suitable as well as affordable for nuclear families. In fact, the compact 2BHK apartment is now considered the new luxury standard.
Projects with 1BHK, 2BHK and 3BHK options are not new in a city like Pune, but they have some inbuilt limitations. The biggest limitation is that such projects result in very disproportionate neighbourhoods, with several families having bought homes in different budgets. However, projects comprising exclusively of compact 2 BHK flats – a new trend that is catching on in a big way in cities like Pune – provide a setting where all home buyers come in at the same level. This results in uniform neighbourhoods whose residents are evenly matched at a socio-economic level.
Why Compact Homes Rock The Middle Class
– The size is right: Compact 2BHK flats are small enough to be manageable for small nuclear families, yet large enough to accommodate their future growth in terms of children.
– Makes ‘space’ for other investments/expenses: Home buyers who are on a budget but still want to enjoy the benefits of a good, well-connected location prefer such flats. Real estate developers who focus on this demand segment are able to achieve economy of scale by building vertically on relatively smaller plots.
– Cheaper than larger apartments: While investing in a property, the primary concern for the Indian middle class is price. Not only are large properties that are extremely expensive out of reach for them, but the money that is saved by buying a smaller home can be invested elsewhere or utilized in some other manner to achieve yet another important lifestyle goal. Today’s upwardly mobile young Indians want to travel, invest in nice cars and get the best possible education for their children.
– Smartly designed compact homes maximize space: One of the first things one notices in many larger flats is that lots of space is wasted, or not being utilized optimally. Because space saving is not only a virtue but a necessity in urban areas. Compact 2 BHK homes can be designed in a manner that provides space for everything while no space is wasted. Such smart designs help in using smaller areas in the most effective manner.
– Easy to maintain: In today’s extremely busy and hectic life, they watchwords are convenience and low maintenance – especially in one’s home. Compact homes are easier and more cost-effective to handle and maintain than large apartments. Electricity bills and maintenance bills can be reduced significantly in such homes. Also, they require less furniture and décor.
– Freedom and flexibility to design the home: The interior design of compact homes can be designed easily and cost-effectively. Guided by the latest trends in compact home décor, young Indian families are able to transform their smaller flats into extremely stylish spaces within small but intelligently allocated budgets.
– Great savings on transportation: Transportation expenses can be reduced greatly with compact homes which are located in well-connected areas. Because the developers of such projects locate them in close proximity to commercial areas like offices, banks and shopping malls as well as, schools, colleges and hospitals. Thanks to their better connectivity and social infrastructure, well-located compact homes are becoming first choice of home buyers in urban areas.
– Higher scope of resale on the property market: The demand for compact homes in well-connected urban areas is rising constantly, with more and more people looking to purchase such properties and benefit from their many advantages. Therefore, the resale value of compact homes is always high and such homes are sold very quickly, as there are always prospective buyers. This means that owners of compact homes can exit their investments easily and at a good profit if they find the need to relocate or move into larger homes.
Small in not only beautiful but eminently practical and sensible for the contemporary urban citizen. With so many advantages to owning compact homes in well-connected neighbourhoods, this is one real estate market segment that will not only hold its own but grow exponentially in the years to come. Such a home is the ultimate place to live in, as well as a matchless performing asset from the perspective of real estate investment.
(Kishor Pate, Chairman & Managing Director of Amit Enterprises Housing Ltd. is the driving force behind one of the most successful real estate development firms in Pune and beyond.)
