[DCEite]

Originally Posted by madbullram

Hi all,
Thanks for all your help, after searching a lot and seeing various things, i ended up buying a flat. I bought a flat in velachery 1400 bhk for 60 lakhs . Hoping to renovate and move in by Nov 1.

Wow 1400 is a lot of bedrooms!

BTW did you go for finance or down payment ?
If finance, could you let me know the rate of interest and loan amount, tenure, EMI?
Thanks

[hellstar]

I was based out of chennai about three years back and at that time i was put up with four of my friends in a 2 BHK house near besant nagar bus depot rent was rs 6500 includive of water. This was so close that we could actullly see the Bus Depot from our house. We got this house after a lot of toruble as all of us were bachelors and all were mallus so here goes the reasoning...

It became really desperate when we once liked a house and went to pay the advance in the Adayar - Besant Nagar Area, the owner casually ask us where we were from and we proudly announced that all of us were from Kerala. And even as he was counting the money for the advance he stopped midway and returned the money saying that he cannot give the house to us for rent as it seems mallus are notorious for 1. eating beef 2. bathing more than once a day ( what the heck) after this we stopped looking around by ourselves and employed a broker who landed us a house the very next day...phew

[redrage]

Originally Posted by Mission_Safari

Where in chennai are you relocating to?

Where is your workplace going to be ?

Please refer to the Map and i would like to locate myself in one of those highlighted areas, that would be

(Preferred Choice)
Guindy
Beasent Nagar
Anna Nagar
Indiranagar
St Thomas Mount
Adyar (you must be thinking with my budget i must be dreaming of this place, but whats there in trying)
Mylapore
T.Nagar
Anna Naga
Alwarpet

For the time being i would be operating from my residence and my work would involve travelling to Hyundai, Ford, Ashok Leyland factories once or twice in 2weeks.

[madbullram]

Mission/Bakiya: The flat is 6yrs old, its built by Cee Dee Yes builder. The apartment is called Regal Palm Gardens. The flat is 7th floor. The flooring is good and also the apartment has complete woodwork done including pooja. Though I am going to scrap the kitchen woodwork and do a good modular kitchen.

I am yet to register the flat working on loans and other details.

DC: LOL, meant 1400 3BHK guess was so tired forgot to add. I working with all banks. Axis has offered me 11.5 for 40 lakhs loan for 20 yrs. No pre-closure or part payment charges and .5% processing fees. SBI is 12.5% and LIC Housing is 11.25% with 2% pre-closure charges. I am yet to finalize will be doing it this week.

Red: Also look for velchery, u have bye-pass connecting to tambaram and will make it easy.

[bblost]

Hey MadBullRam. first of all congrats.
Velachery has developed quite a lot in the past few years.


It would be great if you track the mods you will be doing to your house. With pictures, prices and the options that cropped up.
Will be very helpful to anyone who is planning on sprucing up their homes.

Thanks.

[madbullram]

BBlost: I will, to start with I am posting the current pics.

L Shaped Hall:


Hall with the existing TV Cabinet, I am going to throw it as its BIG and makes the hall look small,


Hall another view


View from Balcony, thanks that there aint anu slum around and also night view is very nice


View from the dining


One bedroom with balcony










Modifications Planned:
1. Knock the toilets off and relay tiles, fit new closets and wash. (3 toilets)
2. Do a complete patty finish and repaint with some good colour schemes. The existing tiles is good so not changing it.
3. Modular kitchen
4. Redo electricals, switches, and lightning so that it doesnt reflect with the glossy floor tiles


Have asked for quote from 2 design agencies will keep all posted if you guys are interested

[bblost]

Thanks.

This is a thread I shall follow very closely.
I might be getting involved in a flat renovation.
However the final decision is pending.

There are a couple of things I found.
A visit to Hometown, a retail supermarket in Hyderabad introduced me to some new solutions.

Wooden flooring. Cost Rs 51 per sq ft. This is the price for residential flooring. Total install time is under 5 hours. Should last atleast 5 years without showing signs of wearing out. Great in the low foot traffic areas like Bedrooms.

Designer Wall paints. Valpaint Decor (India) Pvt. Ltd. Cost is from 50 to 200 per sq ft.

Kitchens: No idea about modular kitchens. But from what I have heard its easy to build your own cheaper. Most of the stuff that goes in is available off the shelf and you can save a lot of money by simply buying it off the rack and getting them installed with a good craftsman. Instead of paying for a fully assembled kit.
The cost of steel has gone up. A steel sink starts from 5000 onwards. I have a weakness for granite slabs in the Kitchen. If you plan to use granite then be very careful about getting the color match. Tiles from the same batch may have significant differences in color.

All the best.

[Mission_Safari]

@Madbullram

Is this the one next to the Sutherland building? My friend was staying in one of the flats there and the design and quality of construction was really good. I really loved the night view from the balcony. Are you changing the ceramic tiles to vitrified tiles?

[flipsyde]

@Madbullram : I really think you should reconsider changing the floor tiles to a lighter shade vitrified tile. The cost of tile+material+labour should be around Rs.75 - 85/sq.ft.

If your pockets are deep visit Allied or Studio Infiniti on Khader Nawaz Khan Road in Nungambaakam. They have a really good collection of bathroom tiles, accessories and fittings. Personal Space on Mount Road opposite Sun TV office have recently renovated and have quite a range from TOTO and Duravit. If your looking at something a little more pocket friendly you can try Hindware showroom next to Citi Centre.

Switches again try Crabtree, Anchor Roma, Litaski and Siemens. They are all modular switches and Litaski is the cheapest of them all. Siemens has their new Delta Vega series which is really good but costs more.

As Bblost rightly said you can get most of the kitchen trays, shelves and accessories directly if purchased separately. All you need is a good carpenter to nail them together. Brand to try - Hettich, Mepla, Ebco, Halefele etc. You can get the cabinet doors readymade of post formed as per your requirement.

You should definitely consider Laminated wooden flooring for the Bedrooms. It gives a nice warm feel. Good ones cost you upwards of Rs.85/sq.ft.

EDIT : I also suggest you look at Wallpaper for any one wall such as a feature wall. They come in so many designs now and makes more sense than textured walls. Its a pretty straight forward job. Should cost you around Rs.150/sq.ft.

@Bblost : Which Laminated wooden flooring do you get for Rs.51/sq.ft?? The lowest I know of is Wiparquet and even the discounts they give Architects don't bring the price that low.

[bblost]

Originally Posted by flipsyde

@Bblost : Which Laminated wooden flooring do you get for Rs.51/sq.ft?? The lowest I know of is Wiparquet and even the discounts they give Architects don't bring the price that low.

Hometown (PanjaGutta, Hyderabad) had two different types of laminated wooden floorings available.
Commercial/ Residential: These were from Rs 70 per sq ft. In residential usage the sales guy told me it will last at least 7 years without discoloration.
Residential: Rs 40 per sq ft. It will last at least 5 years with minimal or no discoloration.

Installation charges were Rs 11 per sq ft including labor and material.

Hometown is part of the FutureGroup.
Unfortunately their website is not yet up.

[Rotorhead]

Hey madbull, congrats on your appartment but looks like you have landed a great deal here. 1400 sq ft for 60 lakhs in velachery to me looks like real great deal since last i heard that prices were sky rocketting at velachery. And when my cousin was looking for an appartment they were quoting anywhere between 50-55lacs for a 1100-1200 sqft apptmnt. Which part of velachery did u get your flat?

[jraj]

Originally Posted by Rotorhead

Hey madbull, congrats on your appartment but looks like you have landed a great deal here. 1400 sq ft for 60 lakhs in velachery to me looks like real great deal since last i heard that prices were sky rocketting at velachery. And when my cousin was looking for an appartment they were quoting anywhere between 50-55lacs for a 1100-1200 sqft apptmnt. Which part of velachery did u get your flat?

Ram:Congrats on your apartment.
Rotorhead:Even I was thinking the same.This is definitely a great deal,more so,when the the complex is a landmark in Velachery.Its bang next to Sutherland and hardly 100 mts from MRTS and also Velachery terminus

[MillionSwords]

Atleast in cities like Mumbai, the brokers/agents are reliable, they are countable for what money you pay as Advance/Deposit, here in chennai the guys make the one month rent and run away. You are left with no choice to listen to what the house owner says !!

The brokers do not sigh anything, they do not register with the registrar, no photos, no documentation at no cost! Hell with this modus operandi - then WHY brokers in the first place at all?

It was okay when the borkers were taking Rs.500 or 600 showing some houses and once deal done they disappear. But a full term rent as brokerage and no responsibility - Guess the freaking government should make some notice and changes!! damn!

Originally Posted by thiyags22

This is the case with all cities now. BROKERS are one of the main reasons for increase in rent or land prices. Till some years back, in chennai the advance never used to be a big issue but now based on the bangalore model chennai owners are also asking for a 10 months advance on top of the exorbitant rents.

Do let me know which area you are looking at for rent, I will find out if there are any houses for rent.

Thiyags

[madbullram]

BBlost: I am also evaluating that option of wooden flooring. But I am getting contrasting reviews from people who have used it. So thats last in my budget. Also, I dont have time to run around for everything though I would love to do it. So I am goign to leave a known person who is tad costlier than regular ones but I was impressed by his works (not pics but saw the houses in which he done the designs). So I am waiting for a quote from him.

Flip: Thanks a lot, I will visit those places so that when my designer gives a quote I can cross verify and also will get ideas

Roto: The location is what got me to this deal, this project is 100 mts from Velachery bustand, has practical things like supermarket, medicine shop, temple, even a florist inside the complex. All shops, restaurants, supermarkets etc are within walkign distance. MRTS is 5 mins walk. Also, since its in main road commuting to OMR or Tambaram is much much easier.

JRaj: Thanks!! It was a ncie deal, I just saw a 3 BHK 1400 sq ft in 5th floor close at 70 lakhs!!!

Million: Brokers are horrors in Chennai, i was determined no brokers and my patience and persevearance paid off. The 5th floor apt with broker was sold for 70 lakhs.

[appuchan]

I lived in Chennai during 1996-2000 and the rentals I paid was about 2k to 3.5k for a 2bhk apt in Kodambakkam (United india colony) and a comparatively high 5k for a 2 bhk in Kilpauk Gardens during 2000. I am sure the rentals there will be in 15+k range now.

Btw, things are looking in the opposite direction in Bangalore now with rentals going down and apartments available cheap. Chennai situation reminds me of the situation here just about 2-3 years back when there was a stampede for renting apartments. Here in my apartment (Sobha developers) semi-furnished 3 bhk apartments are available for rent in the range of 15-18k now which was unthinkable 2 years back. Even th sale prices of such apartments are in the range of 75lacs to 85lacs.