Apartments Analysed

Introduction

The recent trend among IT sheeple is to go to onsite within 4 years of joining a job. Save some money by living on bread and jam. Return here and buy an apartment by paying 20% as down payment. Marry a  girl and demand dowry to close the loan faster or force her to work so that she can help in repaying EMI. Is a block of space in a concrete structure worth your entire life's hard work? Let me share what I have learnt from what I have seen/heard. I am not against living in a rented/leased apartment or buying an apartment for the sole purpose of renting. But this is for those "clever" people out there who think that buying an apartment for living is a good idea.

Cost and Returns:

Most apartments are built and sold by so called "builders". Those who buy apartments don't own the land. In some cases, the land is given in to collective ownership or in some cases, the builder owns the land while buyers own the house under some agreement. Water connection, electricity connection etc too remain with builder's ownership in some cases. These houses cost a hefty sum of money, that even onsite returns feel way too much. Mostly people buy these houses with loan unless their parents spend their pension benefits or father-in-law wants to ensure a happy life for his daughter ;-) But what happens to the money. These apartments have no resale value compared to land. For example, land prices quadrupled in 6 years at a sub-urban area, but my friend who bought apartment can't sell that for the cost he spent on it 5 years ago. So, technically, apartments lose money at worst or gain meager or no money at best. So, what happens to those who took loan and bought the apartments? They will be paying twice or thrice the amount as interest and get no returns on the property. Sad! Isn't it? On the other hand, imagine if you had bought a land for same amount, it would have at least tripled in value when you finish your loan and hence you lose nothing! Even wiser decision is to buy land for the money you have on hand instead of taking loan. This is the most beneficial investment. But some people have too much money, so they buy apartments and rent it. It may be good. It is better if it is a house built on own land and best if they can buy the entire apartments with land. But for others apartments are poor choice for investments.

I hear some of you saying that instead of paying rent, you are paying EMI. It is better to do the math. How much you will be paying in rent for the same house you own through EMI? Calculate the difference and multiply with number of EMIs. There you go! You can buy another apartment! The best bet is to take a house for lease, even with loan. Pay just the interest for the loan and at the end of the lease terms, repay the loan. Cheapest of available options.

Freedom to Live?

The most important aspect of owning your house is your freedom. You don't need to wait for your turn to get the metro water. You don't need to wait till the fixed time to switch on the motor. You can lock/unlock any door any time. You can use the front space, roof or backyard without seeking permission from anyone and the list goes on. Let me give you few incidents that I have seen in real life!

1. One of my friend is good in rangoli. She moved to an apartment after marriage (bought with some down payment by her father, onsite return husband and a promise from her to help him pay the EMI by working! WOW!!). I told her that apartments sucks as they lack space in front. She said "We have car parking space." I asked, "So, you're gonna draw your rangolis there?"

2. One of my friend was so upset and told me this. Ground water went down in his apartments. He is at 2nd floor. Two of the apartments are not in use (as they went to onsite :D). Ground floor is rented to a family who is not so "rich" compared to these "owners". Now the 3 out 5 apartments need to share the cost of lorry water. But the problem blew up when the ground floor family refused sharing the lorry water. They said, we will fetch water from public water pump. As 2 people can't afford lorry water every other day, they tried their best to convince the tenant. Due to this, the tenant called his owner (in some other city on deputation) and told him that, "If I am to share the cost of water, I will deduct it from rent!". Hearing this the owner took leave on loss of pay and rushed to solve the issue. Then they went to the apartments' secretary for solution. He told that the maintenance fund can't be spent for lorry water. When my friend finished the story, I was late for lunch!!!

3. One of my friend was so interested in vaastu. His vaastu consultant told him that the color of house should be ink blue and he should shift the toilet to some other place. Else he need to do some rituals for Rs. 80,000. He could neither paint the house with choice of his colors nor move the toilet! At last, he rented the house for Rs. 8,000 and saving the money to conduct the ritual. (Extra info: He is paying Rs. 26,000 as EMI every month!) In no way I am telling you should believe in vaastu. But you don't even have freedom to choose the color of your house.

4. I know a person, who lives in an exclusive (people belonging to a particular community only) apartments. One of the owner sold his property and the new owner rented it to a different community. Believe me, now the case is in court. The new owner is claiming the right to rent it to anyone he wishes, while the others in the apartment are siting a clause in the agreement that no other community people can live in that apartment! Again, in no way I am supporting caste/religion based apartments. But your freedom to rent it to anyone you like is not practical.

I can tell even more incidents, but I think the above incidents are enough to make you understand what I mean when I say you have no freedom.

Lack of Neighborhood

Apartment life is nothing but a prison with luxury. People live without knowing the names of each other. There is no co-operation at all in any aspect. The only time they see each other is when the garbage collector blows the whistle. The children are conditioned to play only inside the gates of apartments as the children outside are poor/dirty/indecent. People won't even ask you what happened when you are screaming for your life. But invitations to birthday parties will be prompt to show their stuff off to others and get the gifts in return. Awesome! Maids are the only channel through which news about one apartment travels to other, of course with some annotations!

Light, Air and Nature

Unless you live above 4th floor, you need electric lighting during days too. If you open the window, you are greeted with the nice view of your neighbor's wall. Sunlight has negative probability to enter in such homes. Nights are no better! You need air-conditioning to survive. But don't worry, everyone in the apartments using double-booster will ensure that you bathe in sweat all night! You can't allocate a space to grow a tree. Already the parking space is filled up, you know?

Swimming Pool, Shopping Mall and Lifts!

Very few apartments maintain these advertised "value adds" in long run. And the apartments that maintain them properly are out of reach for the upper middle class. They are only for CEOs and Delivery Managers. Anyway if you reach that level, you will have no time for shopping or swimming. Good luck with that!!! Some apartments raise the cost of maintenance on their wish. If few people refuse to pay, the services are stopped or the remaining people forced to share the expense. I heard one such cozy apartment dweller speaking like this. "Whenever my wife goes to swimming pool, that guy was watching from his balcony. I asked her not to go. What else can I do?"

Cyclic Reasoning

I asked my childhood friend why he bought apartments. His chain of reasoning is as follows.

1. It is difficult to shift house often. (So, why you are shifting house often?)

2. It is hard to travel to new office (Why you change company often?)

3. For onsite chance/ for higher pay. (Why you need onsite/higher pay?)

4. To repay the loan faster. (Why you took loan?)

5. To buy apartment. (Why you buy apartment?)

6. Go to answer 1

So What Can Be Done?

Try take a house on lease (even with loan) that is the cheapest means to live in a city. Else the next best option is to rent a house. Restrict your expenses imagining that you are paying EMI and save the money and buy a land or built individual house in sub-urban areas or even at your native. That will give you returns lot much compared to apartments. Also you can change the house whenever you want. If it is own house, you can modify it the way you want and you are the one who decides what need to be done in every aspect of the house!

Conclusion

Every time some one tells me that they are buying a new apartment, I pity them for their poor choice. They are going to lose their money, freedom and peace of mind due to the ad hype and peer pressure. "Every one is doing it! So it can't be wrong!" is their mindset. Well, that is the mindset of sheep. It is your money and your wish. But whatever you do, do it calculating all the risks and benefits in the long run. Finally, "Apartment", the name suits. Even though the people live closer, their hearts are apart!

Note: If you are a rabid apartment owner and want to vent your anger by commenting here, for your kind information, this blog is not a collective property as your apartment. I own this blog. So my rules apply here ;-)

Guitar Books for Beginners

In my previous post, I have mentioned that it is important to learn to read and write music notations. Now, I am here with a suggestion of three guitar books/series with notations which are suitable for beginners.

1. Guitar Playing Made Easy for Everyone 1-5 by Joseph M Estella & George Roberts

This series is a collection of very simple and easy to learn songs. Step by step, they introduce you to chords too. Every book contains around 30 pages and each book costs around Rs. 120. So if you want to have some fun by learning old songs with accompaniment this book is best bet! This book won't cover many scales and advanced concepts, but it can give you a good start.

2. Mel Bay - You Can Teach Yourself Guitar

From the house of Mel Bay comes this gem. It is a single book with 110+ pages. It starts from explaining types of guitar, how to buy a guitar, how to hold it etc. So this book is like a music master with you. If you don't even know what is guitar, then you should buy this book. But don't underestimate this book due to the way it begins. This book has a collection of classic songs with chords. It also contains TAB notation. Though I am not  a great fan of TAB notation, some guitarists prefer it. Even the TAB notation used here goes with timing notations, so you won't miss anything. It also teaches advanced concepts like arpeggios (broken chords), bending, hammer, alternate picking etc.

3. A Modern Method for Guitar 1,2 & 3 by William Leavitt

This is a hybrid book. It starts very simple and builds complexity with every lesson. When you enter the third volume, you will be a well known guitarist in your friends circle. More than 400 pages of lessons will squeeze every drop of music within you out! This book is full of advanced concepts, music theory and various scales. So this book will make you an expert. This is a must have if you are really serious about guitar playing

Conclusion:

These books are in no way a replacement to a music master. You still need to join a good class if you want to learn everything correctly. These books can serve as extra learning for you during leisure. Also don't waste your time on these books if your music class is following a different syllabus. Just practice what is taught by your music school first and as an "extra-curricular" activity, use these books. If your class follows any of these books as syllabus, don't try to look in to lessons ahead of time. That will do more damage than good. So wait till your master giving you a green signal for next lesson. Try to manually copy the lessons in to a staff paper. That will improve your music writing ability and register the notes to your mind too. Happy learning!

First Step to Music

Introduction:

I have seen sudden spikes in number of people calling me to help them out in buying a new musical instrument, especially guitars. Mostly, these sudden spikes occur shortly after a movie's release in which the protagonist is a guitarist or musician. Fine, but as far as I know, only 2 of the people (out of 10+) who bought guitar with my help, learned to play guitar to some level! So let me tell you how to choose a music class and when to buy your first instrument in my own opinion. You are free to do whatever you want, and you may think who is this guy to tell me what to do. I am just suggesting. To take it or not, is always up to you!!!

Literate vs Illiterate Musicians

Learn to read and write music!

Musician is a person who can play any musical instrument. That includes people playing flute in railway stations to those violinists who play in concerts. But they can be divided in to two groups. Those who are able to read and write music notations and those who can't. It is much like being able to speak a language fluently won't make you an literate person. Likewise, just playing an instrument won't make you a literate musician. So to become well versed in theory and in practice, one MUST learn to read and write music notations. Else your capacity will be limited to playing some cinema songs and showing off to your friends.

Choosing a Music Class

Don't think learning music is easy and fun. It is boring and hard to learn it and nothing like watching someone playing guitar on TV. If you find your class very interesting and easy, probability is high that you are in a wrong class. You should choose a music class that teaches music with notation. It should follow a set of standard syllabus for all students. There are some classes where the masters just teach students to play some random chords or movie songs. They are not good in the long run. They will cripple your learning and also teach some wrong practices like positions and fingerings which will be hard to rewire to correct positions and fingering. So, you look for the following while choosing the music class/school.

Better if they provide the instruments!

1. They should teach to read and write musical notation

2. They should follow a syllabus based course (uniform to all) and should not deviate out of the syllabus like teaching movie songs etc

3. They should provide music instruments during class. (You may like to show-off by carrying your guitar back and forth to the class, but your guitar will suffer the most!)

4. It is better to have 2 or more classes per week.

Buying Your First Instrument

Don't buy your first instrument before 3 months. Give it a thought only if you are able to continue your class and find yourself confident and comfortable with what you are learning. Also don't buy a very costly instrument immediately unless you are the 1% ;-) Buy a budget guitar. Givson standard model guitars can do a decent job for beginners. They are cheap and locally made. Anyway if you are going to be a good guitarist then you will be buying a good quality imported guitar after 2 or 3 years when you start mastering the instrument. To buy a costly instrument as your first instrument is like buying a Bullet 500 CC for a preschooler. So choose and spend wisely.

A good second guitar can do!

Continuing The Learning

You should continue the classes and practices at home without fail. A break longer than 10 days usually can reverse your skills. So don't take long breaks often. That will exponentially slow your learning. It is advisable that you finish the entire syllabus followed by your music school. Don't stop after few grades/levels. Buy a metronome and write your lessons on paper. That will improve your skills a lot compared to a costly imported instrument!

A metronome can teach you a lot!

Join The Community

Join fellow musicians by enrolling in to bands in schools/colleges/offices. Also join in Church choir or any other religious/cultural activity that involves music. By this you can get exposure to various styles and approaches. This will encourage you to practice and perfect your skills.

Conclusion:

So, learning music is much like education. (yes, music is an education not just an activity). So you have to put hard work, you should have patience, you should practice without long breaks and finally you should have commitment. You didn't become a graduate in a year. So is the music. You can't become a maestro in few months. Don't get carried away by cinema stars and buy a costly instrument so that it can sleep at a corner. Again, it is your wish, your money. Don't curse me for telling the truth.

May 1st

Everybody know that today is world labor day. And if you want to know the history and geography about this day, you can head to the Wikipedia article on the same by clicking here. But I am here with a different message. Especially to the younger generation of so called "professionals" working for corporates.

Who is a worker? Anyone who is not the owner of a business is a worker. Even owners of smaller business like salon shops, iron (laundry) shops etc are workers in proper sense. In that aspect, we are all workers. We are all labors. Don't let your 5 digit salary make you feel that you are different from those who collect garbage or lay down the roads in scorching sun. You are still a labor.

Most of the IT professionals, while interacting with a plumber or carpenter, don't think they are one of their own kind. They isolate themselves thinking they are uneducated, low class while themselves educated, high/upper-middle class. This is a very dangerous mindset. Your salaries won't define who you are. Your nature of work defines who you are.

Let us take a typical day...

You wake up from your bed made by carpenters.

Your bedsheets by textile mill workers.

You go to bathroom constructed by construction workers and plumbers.

You eat food produced by farmers.

You wear shoes made by cobblers.

You lock your door with locks made by blacksmiths.

You drive a car or take a bus manufactured by mechanics.

You travel on the road laid by labors.

Your office is maintained by housekeeping people.

Your office is guarded by security people.

Your network cables are laid by labors.

Electricity and air-condition maintained by electricians.

Your PC manufactured by technicians.

Your .NET code can't build this water tank!

Without all these, you can't work. You can't even live! And remember, you are not the owner of any of the above mentioned services. You are just getting benefited by the services.

You too are one of the labors making the world better.

You are the one who make people's life easy with ATMs.

Your applications make it easy for people to apply for exams.

Your work makes exam/election results readily available.

You create options to book tickets and pay bills from home.

You save nature by reducing paper works to mouse clicks.

You make it possible for people to connect with each other.

You work to trace cyber-criminals.

And the list goes on.

So be proud that you are also part of the work force like everyone around you. But you also need to learn from valuable lessons from the same people whom you despise.

1. Unity

You should stay united. When salaries are not paid properly for some new joinees, don't take it easy as market trend. Remember, the mill workers fighting for the benefits of temporary workers. When someone is fired for no good reason, don't console yourself saying "Thank God! It is not me!" Instead, stand united for his cause. Who knows, when your turn of getting fired will come? Learn these lessons from the workers around you. Nobody can mess with them and walk safely. Their fellow workers will gather like swarms of bees to make them repent and apologize. The same spirit should come to us. That will make us stronger. Corporate CEOs and HRs should know that we are not second to anybody when it comes to our rights.

2. Modesty

Don't allow your high salaries decide how you live. You should be the one who decide how your money is spent. Don't become dependent on too many luxuries of life. Imagine, if we all use public transport and stop using ACs and invertors, how much fuel and electricity can be saved! Invertors consume more power. While the rich are watching IPL with invertor, poor children are struggling with candles to study. Your cozy apartments, luxury cars, LCD TV etc won't bring you happiness. You are just a recession away from those people living modest life. For them it is the normal life. But when you fall, you can't tolerate the ground reality. So it is better to stay at ground than to fly like a plastic bag carried by wind.

3. Humility

Treat people not according to their economic status or educational qualification. Treat them according to what their character is. Treating a human with dignity and respect, we need to learn from them. For example, a construction worker respects teacher of his son more than us. A taxi-driver respects a doctor more than us. You may be an onsite return. You may have more degrees. You earn more money. But your behavior is not like that. Don't put yourself above everyone in everything.

So, this May 1st stuff is not for "them". It is for "us". We as workers, are the force that builds and sustains this world. So let us leave behind corporate fed "elite" mindset and embrace our fellow workers, united in thoughts and deeds.