The Pros and cons of furnished apartments- II

Furnished apartments: The cons

1. Your rent and security deposit might be higher. Unlike an unfurnished apartment, when you rent a furnished place, you’re not just renting some empty rooms – you’re renting all the furniture and amenities that are in them. Your landlord spent money to equip that place, so of course that cost is going to be passed on to the renter.

2. You face a higher liability. In an unfurnished place, you might not get your security deposit back if you accidentally bust a hole in the wall or your kid draws all over the walls with crayons. In a furnished place, you have to consider the furniture as well. Did you tear the upholstery in the couch? Scratch the dining room table? That stuff doesn’t belong to you, so you’re going to have to pay to get it fixed. Better be careful!

Tip: Take a video inventory of everything the landlord provides in a furnished apartment before you move in. Take note of anything that’s broken. That way, you’ll have indisputable evidence if your landlord tries to charge you for something you didn’t break.

3. You’ll have no control over most of your decor. If you don’t like the couch in your furnished apartment. You could go out and buy a new one, but you’ll have to figure out what to do with the old one, and you’ll have to make sure if it is OK with your landlord. You can hang art on the walls and add other personal touches around the place, but you won’t have complete control over the look of your apartment.

4. You’ll have fewer apartments to choose from. Furnished apartments simply aren’t as plentiful as unfurnished places. You won’t have as many choices when you look for a furnished pad, but they’re out there if you’re up to the task.

References:

http://www.primelocation.com/discover/landlords-developers-and-investors/furnished-or-unfurnished/#Ym1EreTc6zC1MGAc.97
http://blog.torontofurnishedrentals.com/unfurnished-vs-furnished-apartments-pros-and
http://homeguides.sfgate.com/drawbacks-renting-furnished-apartment-40077.html
http://firstquarterfinance.com/the-pros-and-cons-of-renting-a-furnished-space/

The Pros & Cons for Furnished Apartments- I

Whether you’re renting your first apartment or just moving on up, you might ask yourself a question that many renters face: Furnished or unfurnished? Furnished apartments are far less common, but it might be the right choice for you if you’re a student, a travelling professional, or you just don’t want the hassle of buying and moving furniture.

Furnished apartments usually come equipped with furniture, basic kitchen appliances and tableware, bathroom necessities such as a shower curtain, a washer/dryer set, and possibly a few other amenities. The exact items will vary depending on the landlord and what kind of place you’re renting. Here are few pros and cons to consider before you decide if furnished or unfurnished apartment is right for you.

Furnished apartments: The pros

1. Moving will be a breeze. If you’re a frequent mover, you definitely want to keep your stuff to a minimum. Renting a furnished place means you won’t own most of the big items in your place, and it’ll be easy for you to pick up and move on short notice. Bonus: You’ll never experience the joy of moving a couch up a flight of stairs.

2. You’ll save money on buying furniture. Be careful, though – furnished apartments often cost more per month than unfurnished places, so you’ll have to do the math to see if you’re really saving money. It might pay off in the long run to just buy your own furniture and rent an unfurnished place. But if you don’t want to own furniture, this is a way to get out of buying your own stuff, but you’ll still have a place to sit.

3. They’re good in a time crunch. Ideally, if you’re searching for a new apartment, you should measure your existing furniture and then pick a place that will fit your stuff. This can be a problem if you’re relocating on short notice or if you’re moving across the country and can’t make the trip to see your new place in person before moving day. A furnished place takes the hassle out of moving in a time crunch – all you have to do is show up.

4. Sometimes you can get a shorter lease. Most furnished apartments won’t require a year-long lease, since they cater mostly to students and travelling professionals who don’t stay at one place for too long. If you’re not ready to commit to one place for too long, a furnished apartment might be for you.

Vastu Compliance for your Property

According to Vastu Shastra, a property which complies with Vastu, promises wealth, good health, contentment and prosperity. The designs of the construction should be in line with the tenets of Vastu Shastra, based on the alignment and direction of household objects. The tenets of Vastu Shastra are mainly concerned with construction and architecture. 

• A plot on which a house is built must be rectangular or square in shape. Plots, which are irregularly shaped, not only look odd and have bad designs, but also they may leave bad influences on occupants.

• Your property should have a well (tube well or other water source) to the North East before construction commences.

• Ample space should be given towards the eastern & northern directions and lesser space must be kept towards the western & southern directions. The East is where the sun rises and empty spaces in the direction would make your rooms be naturally illuminated with sunlight.

• Open spaces towards the North West and the South East must be equal.

• Trees must not be planted on the north-eastern corner, as both the directions must be kept free.

• More numbers of windows must be kept towards the North and East.

• Avoid construction of doors along straight lines.

• The plot’s western side should be more elevated compared to the eastern one while the southern half of the plot must be more raised compared to the northern side.

• The North East side of the plot is where construction should be started. From thereon, construction should move to the East, North and finally West and South.

• Building of pillars must be started from North East direction.

Unless you are constructing an independent villa or a house on a plot, following all these tenets may be difficult when you are picking out an apartment. There are quite a few tenets for apartments that must be followed for a prosperous family life. Avoid having a Puja room right beside the washroom or the main entrance. It should be in the East, North, North East, South East or the North West. The number of windows and doors in your apartment must be an even number. If you can match up to these Vastu tenets, then, you can expect a peaceful and happy lifestyle.

Reference:

http://www.vaastu-shastra.com/vastu-for-happy-life.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vastu_shastra
http://www.vastucompass.com/vastu-shastra/

Downsizing of Apartments to Achieve Affordability

The rising levels of inventory and weakening sales along with unaffordable prices of housing have pushed real estate developers to reform their product strategies. Builders across various markets are building apartments with smaller configuration sizes to make houses more affordable to buyers. They have adopted this strategy rather than reduce capital values.

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region including Navi Mumbai, Thane and Mumbai has seen maximum reduction in the sizes of apartments on an annual basis. The average size of 2BHK flats has been reduced by 26.4 percent in the last five years. The trend of 1.5 BHK and 2.5 BHK is becoming popular in many projects. This approach offers needed facilities in compact configuration.

Developers have decided to follow the same line of production as FMCG companies did with sachets. Even though developers cannot alter property prices whenever they feel like it, they have considerable control over the sizes of flats and can redraw them to fit the budget of consumers.

Developers are currently focusing on all those things that are required by buyers hence are reducing waste of space. They have changed their strategy because affording unnecessary luxury is not the cup of tea of every buyer. As per a report released in the CII annual realty conference, preference of home buyers is altering over time.

More numbers of urban home buyers are seeking property close to their offices. This is mainly to reduce the time taken to commute to and from work. But the flats are more expensive than the suburbs. So, they do not hesitate to compromise on the size of the property. They would rather live in a unit that suffices the entire family’s need. For enjoying larger homes with better amenities, consumers have to move to peripheral areas.

References:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/news/builders-reduce-apartment-sizes-to-suit-buyers-affordability/articleshow/48265786.cms
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/wealth/news/builders-trim-average-flat-sizes-by-upto-26-in-last-5-years-jll/articleshow/48543805.cms
http://marketingstrategy-sai.blogspot.in/2010/03/sachet-revolution.html
http://www.moneycontrol.com/master_your_money/stocks_news_consumption.php?cat=realestate&autono=2571341

Furnished Property or Unfurnished One?

There’s always a dilemma when buying a home on choosing between a furnished and an unfurnished property offered by a developer or an individual seller. It’s not just the cost difference that will play in your mind, but also whether the finished product will comply your needs and taste. With many developers today offering fully furnished properties for buyers who always wanted to give their personal touches to their house, it’s a decision that demands some thinking.

With both unfurnished and furnished houses having their own merits and demerits, we will, in this article, take a look at the factors based on which you will be able to easily decide which one suits you best.

Furnished Houses

Furnished houses come in a selection of styles. Some are all inclusive and have everything you need from a bed, sofa, appliances, plates and cutlery.

Pros for Furnished

Moving into a furnished house is so easy since all you have to do is bring your clothes and personal articles. There is no need for lugging up heavy furniture or packing and unpacking. Additionally, you do not need to spend any time or extra money shopping for anything-it is there already.

Cons for Furnished

Furnished houses cost more to rent because everything is easily accessible. The furniture may be an outdated style. There is a chance that an item might get broken or dented, and if that does happen, the renter is responsible.

Unfurnished Houses

Unfurnished Houses do not consist of furnishings such as beds, couches or anything else. Also, some may not have any appliances at all.

Pros for Unfurnished

An unfurnished house gives you the liberty to decorate it the way you wish. You can paint the wall personal colors, add memorable artwork and pick out your own style of furnishings. Meanwhile, you wouldn’t have to be bothered with the idea of causing damage to the landlord’s property, in case it is rented property.

Cons for Unfurnished

Unfurnished houses can be annoying if you have no patience for shopping, or have no idea how to decorate a home. Furnishing an apartment is quite expensive, and a bother to deal with is bringing up bulky pieces. At the same time, it is your responsibility to move everything in and then once your lease expires, you’d have to take it all out.  

References:
http://www.housingadviceni.org/advice-landlords/furnished-or-unfurnished
https://www.perfecthousing.com/rent-your-apartment/furnished-unfurnished
http://www.themovechannel.com/guides/Renting/Looking_for_property/Furnished_v_Unfurnished/
http://blog.ratedrents.com/unfurnished-or-furnished-which-one-is-better-for-you/

Advantages of Real Estate Investment

Real estate is usually held as part of a larger portfolio, and is generally considered an alternative investment class. Real estate fits well as part of a portfolio because it has several qualities that can enhance the return of a larger portfolio, or reduce portfolio risk at the same level of return.

1. Cash Flow

Advantage of real estate investing is the rent derived from rental property. It can result in ongoing, additional income. Positive cash flow is derived from the revenue collected in the form of rent. The cash generated by a real estate investment will always be a much larger percentage cash-on-cash return than any other investment. Over the time, additional income may enable you to take a dream vacation, buy a long-awaited speed boat or grow your retirement fund.

2. Leverage

Leverage is the ultimate power of investing, and the fact is that there is no investment where the application of this tool is more powerful than real estate. In real estate, the leverage is based on the asset itself, and even the notoriously conservative banks will loan up to 75-80 percent and sometimes higher of the total asset value. Banks are comfortable lending large sums of money for the purchase of real estate because they know it is one of the safest and most profitable investments available. Also when you leverage an investment, you reap the benefits of appreciation on the total asset value, while only having a small percentage of your own money in the deal.

3. Appreciation

Real estate generally is a long term investment, and its benefits are best realized over the long term. It takes time for real estate to appreciate in value; however, while the property is being appreciated the residents are paying down the mortgage. On top of this, the rental income grows on a percentage annual basis.

4. Hedge against Inflation

Many people feel that the commonsense thing to do is to take your money and put it into a savings bond or bank account that yields 2 to 3 percent per year. The main argument for this type of investing is that it is “safer” than real estate or other types of investments. The problem with this strategy is that you do not actually make any money, due to inflation.

Inflation is the price we pay for goods measured against a standard of ability to purchase those goods. Consider a case where the inflation rate is 3.5 and you have invested your money into some investment option that yields only 2 to 3 percent, this earns you no purchasing power in the future. You are actually losing wealth because inflation is higher than your returns. The gain in form of interest is wiped out by the rising cost of living. You are not becoming wealthier; you are becoming poorer because the cost of goods is growing faster than the value of your money.

The beauty of real estate is that it is a tangible asset. Meaning it will generally rise either at the rate of inflation or much higher. Historically real estate has risen at 5 percent per year -a full 2 to 3 percent higher than inflation. And that is just appreciation. That does not take into account the cash flow generated, nor the tax advantages such as depreciation, refinance, and tax deductible mortgage interest.

5. Depreciation

Depreciation is an income tax deduction that allows a taxpayer to recover the cost of wear and tear, deterioration or obsolescence on an annual basis. For real estate, it is non-operational expenses that can be used as an advantage during the tax time.

Reference:http://www.investogram.net/real-estate-investments/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-real-estate-investing/
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/228506
http://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-investing-in-real-estate/
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2012/09/real-estate-101-the-benefits-of-investing-in-real-estate.html
http://www.yourinvestmentpropertymag.com.au/buying-property/35-reasons-to-invest-in-real-estate-120946.aspx