Buying a Home : The Pollution Factor

BUYING A HOUSE IN PUNE - Part 18

THE POLLUTION FACTOR

Musings of a Clueless Novice Self-Styled Property Guru Part 18 

Continued from

http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2012/12/buying-house-in-pune.html

POLLUTION AND YOUR HOME

Are You Buying a Polluted House

Home Buying Tips from a Clueless Novice Self-Styled Property Guru Part 18

By

VIKRAM KARVE

Disclaimer: 

I am a simple end-user novice and not an expert in Real Estate and these are my personal views. Please take my views with a pinch of salt and take your own views into consideration and do your own due diligence before you make any property purchase decisions.

There are many factors you consider while buying a house, in particular when selecting the location of your home.

I am sure you take into account various exoteric aspects like:

1. Class and Type of Locality (Status Value, Snob Appeal and Standard of Living Factors)

2. Amenities, Facilities and Social Infrastructure (Quality of Life Factors)

3. Connectivity and Proximity to your Workplace, Children’s Schools, Marketplace, Closeness to Residences of Relatives and Friends, Public Transport and Commuting Time (Convenience Factors)

4. Financial Factors like Price, Affordability and Investment Merit (appreciation and rental value)

5. Reputation of the Builder and Developer and Quality of Construction (Reliability Factors)

6. Architectural and Design Facets (Aesthetic Factors)

In addition to various exoteric factors, you may also consider some esoteric concepts like Vaastu Shastra and Feng Shui.

But tell me, do you think of POLLUTION when you buy a house?

Health is more important than Wealth, and pollution can affect your health. 

You can earn back lost money, but health once lost is lost forever. 

So while financial aspects like property rate and appreciation prospects are important, you must factor in the pollution aspect as well while making property buying decisions, especially if you are an end-user and from the long term perspective.

TYPES OF POLLUTION

There are 9 types of Pollution you must consider while buying a home:

1. AIR POLLUTION

2. WATER POLLUTION

3. SOIL or LAND POLLUTION

4. NOISE POLLUTION

5. ELECTROMAGNETIC POLLUTION or ELECTRO-POLLUTION

6. THERMAL or HEAT POLLUTION

7. LIGHT POLLUTION

8. OLFACTORY POLLUTION

9. VISUAL POLLUTION

In a nutshell, let us see the sources and effects of each of the above types of Pollution relevant to the context of residential property.

1. AIR POLLUTION

Air pollution can be in the form of particulate matter such as dust or in the form ofgases and vapours.

In cities, Vehicle Exhaust is the major cause of air pollution. With ever-increasing traffic, Diesel, Petrol and Gas Fumes are densely prevalent in urban areas.

Dust and Debris from ongoing construction work is a major source of air pollution especially in the newly developing suburbs of a city where extensive new construction, redevelopment or infrastructure building activity is in progress.

Air Pollutant Gases and Vapours may be present near Industrial Areas, Manufacturing Units, Distilleries, Chemical Factories, Steel Plants and Oil Refineries and even near places like crematoriums, brick kilns, Garbage Bins and Rubbish Dumps, Solid Waste Processing Units etc where items are burnt.

Air Pollution can seriously affect health, especially in children, causing and exacerbating various ailments, especially lung diseases and asthma.

2. WATER POLLUTION

Water pollution involves contaminated water, whether from chemical, particulate or bacterial matter that degrades water quality and purity.

When buying a house you must check up the source of water supply.

Is properly treated water from the municipal water treatment plant being supplied to the building or is it being sourced from bore-wells or some other place.

In Pune, there have been cases where possession of houses has been given without (or before) the connection of safe and treated potable water from the municipality.

In cases where the water is sourced from local or underground water bodies, soil pollution, infectious organisms and organic material decay may cause water pollution.

Water Pollution can also be caused by defects in plumbing (where sewage or contaminated water seeps into potable water lines).

The effects of water pollution on your health can be quite severe and cause diseases like jaundice.

3. SOIL or LAND POLLUTION

Soil Pollution sources include Garbage Dumps, Hazardous Waste, Sewage Spills, Pesticides and Dumping during construction activity.

Soil Pollution degrades hygiene and exacerbates other types of pollution including air, water and olfactory pollution.

4. NOISE POLLUTION

In Urban India, Noise Pollution is one of the most serious forms of pollution which is increasing at an alarming rate.

Sources of Noise Pollution include Road Traffic Noise, Air Traffic, Rail Traffic, Industrial Noise and irritating Noise created due to ongoing Construction Work.

In India, one of the main sources of Noise Pollution is Neighbourhood Noise.

Neighbourhood Noise can be due to proximity of Religious Places which may use loudspeakers for Devotional Music or Call for Prayers or during celebrations and festivities.

Noise Pollution due to Community Noise increases during the festivals, celebrations and marriages due to cracker bursting and loud music.

Marriage Halls, Recreation Grounds, Restaurants, Eateries, Liquor Shops, Bars and Discos, Night Life Entertainment Places, Cinema Halls, Educational Institutions like Schools and Colleges and Commercial Places are sources of Neighbourhood Noise too.

Living in a “Noisy Neighbourhood” can be a continuous irritant and annoyance which can affect your mood and take a toll on your health.

If your house is near a road, airport or railway line, be prepared for perpetual noise from various annoying sounds like honking of horns, flying aircraft, passage of trains and plying of vehicles.

If your house is near or above a parking lot or a busy road intersection, be prepared for unremitting house pollution.

In India, vehicular traffic is a big source of noise pollution.

Are you prepared to live in a noisy neighbourhood?

Or do you desire to live in a calm and quiet place?

You must consider both present and future Noise Pollution while selecting your home.

Today the place may seem quiet, but as the area gets developed the noise level may increase tremendously.

Today’s quiet neighbourhood may turn into a place of chaotic cacophony.

In most cities in India, noise pollution levels in residential areas is way above the safe norm due to poor urban planning and in some areas the noise may reach hazardous levels.

Noise pollution affects both health and behaviour – noise pollution affects you physically and mentally and causes you stress and hypertension.

Noise Pollution can damage psychological health, cause annoyance and aggression, hypertension, high stress levels, tinnitus, hearing loss, sleep disturbances, and other harmful effects. Besides affecting your health and disturbing your peace of mind, Noise Pollution can seriously degrade your lifestyle.

5. ELECTROMAGNETIC POLLUTION or ELECTRO-POLLUTION

Electromagnetic Pollution or Electropollution is a relatively new form of pollution.

Electropollution occurs due to Electromagnetic Radiation (EMR) from various sources like Mobile Cell Phone Towers, Electricity (HT) Power Lines, Radar, Microwave and Various Communication Lines and Transmission Antennas that are proliferating in urban areas which create Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) around your house.

Ongoing studies indicate that Electropollution may be hazardous to health in many ways.

In the past, most transmission antennas were located outside the city limits far away from human habitation, but nowadays with the expansion of cities and due to modern wireless communication needs like mobile phones, internet and wi-fi we live in an increasingly “wired world” and have transmitters all around us.

The least you can do when you buy a house is to look around and see whether there are any Mobile Phone Transmission Towers, Transmitting Antennas or HT Power Pylons and Electricity Transmission Lines nearby.

6. THERMAL or HEAT POLLUTION

Thermal pollution is excess heat that creates undesirable effects over long periods of time. Concrete Jungles due to Urban Sprawl is a major cause of Thermal Pollution in cities. It is also caused by Heat Emitting Devices like Airconditioners, Gensets, Electrical and Electronic Devices, Power and Refrigeration Plants and Air Pollution Particulates that trap heat and Deforestation.

7. LIGHT POLLUTION

Light pollution is garish over-illumination of an area that is considered obtrusive.

Sources of Light Pollution include illuminated signs and advertisement hoardings, Malls, Mulitplexes and Night Life Entertainment Places.

At night, stand in a place and look up at the sky. If you cannot see the stars in the sky clearly, it is indicative of light pollution.

In residential areas, light pollution can degrade your quality of life and affect your sleep.

8. OLFACTORY POLLUTION

Olfactory Pollution (Foul Smell, Unpleasant Odour, Disgusting Stench and Horrible Stink) can seriously affect your quality of life.

Smell the air in your house.

Go to your balcony and breathe in the air.

Does it smell pristine and pure?

There are many sources of odious and unpleasant smells like Disgusting Stench from Sewage Lines and Sewage Treatment Plants (STP), Nauseous Smell from Vapours due to Diesel and Gas Fumes from Petrol Pumps, Vehicles and Gensets, Toxic Smelling Industrial Odours, Perpetual Stench from Garbage Bins, Waste Processing Units and Rubbish Dumps, Repulsive Stink from Gutters and Drains, Putrid Vapours from Crematoriums and Burning Debris, Foul Odours from nearby vegetable, meat and fish markets etc

Here too you must consider the futuristic situation too and see what is coming up around the property in the future as the area develops.

9. VISUAL POLLUTION

Visual Pollution includes various “eyesores” and undesirable, unattractive views which spoil the landscape.

Visual Pollution affects the aesthetic value of a place and degrades the quality of life in certain areas.

In the premium high-end segment where home buyers pay for aesthetics, visual pollution can impact property values.  

Sources of visual pollution include anything obstructing or spoiling the view from your house like neighbouring constructions and buildings, debris, neglected and incomplete structures and abandoned buildings, advertisement hoardings, power lines and mobile towers, filthy environs and repelling surrounding areas and any such other “eyesores”.

While visual pollution may not have immediate health or environmental effects, it can affect your mood due the constant eyesores around you. After all, everyone wants a “room with a view”.

BUY RATHER THAN BOOK - The Pollution Point of View Home Buying Mantra

From the pollution point of view it is always better to buy a ready-to-move-in house in a fully completed project in a built-up locality where all buildings and infrastructure are completed and ready.

Let me exemplify the above point and also tell you a bit about the various types of pollution with the help of a apocryphal hypothetical illustrative example.

“A” booked a house in a pre-launch scheme, even before construction had started.

He did this because he thought was getting the property at a lower rate.

Of course, he suffered time and cost overruns due to execution delays.

That is why they say that if you are an end-user who intends living in the house it is always better to “buy” rather than “book”.

(Booking a house in pre-launch or under-construction stage may be a good idea if you are an investor looking only for appreciation. You are never going to live in the house and you may even sell it off before it is completed if you get the profit you desire. So you won’t be bothered with factors like Pollution unless this affects the property price or rental value)

When “A” booked the house the site was pristine tranquil quiet unpolluted place with pure air and a beautiful view and verdant cultivated fields all around. It was a perfect retirement paradise not far away and quite well connected to the city.

The project was delayed due to execution delays.

Since his retirement date was fast approaching, “A” was desperate to move into his house so he took possession and moved into his new home the moment his flat was ready (luckily his flat was in the first building of the project).

He moved into his flat while construction work continued full swing in the neighbouring buildings of the project due to which he suffered air pollution due the dust and debris and noise pollution due the noisy construction machinery. 

(“A” suffered asthmatic attacks and was driven crazy by the constant irritating noise which caused him mood swings).

The municipal water line had not yet been connected (since the project was not fully complete) so water was temporarily sourced from a borewell due to which “A” was subjected to water pollution and soil pollution. 

(“A” got a bout of jaundice due to this and his health was affected quite badly for a few months)

A Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) was soon commissioned under his flat and poor “A” was engulfed in the foul smelling stink 24/7 (Olfactory Pollution) 

(“A” felt claustrophobic as he had to keep his windows closed because of this terrible stink – despite this the foul odour from the STP was all pervading)

In due course, a mobile antenna tower cropped up in the adjacent plot opposite his balcony. “A” was thus subjected to Electropollution and also to Visual Pollution since the tower was an eyesore which spoilt the beautiful view.

Later, the place would turn into a dense concrete jungle (thermal pollution).

Soon, the place would be surrounded by commercial places, entertainment joints, hotels, lounge bars, restaurants and busy roads choked with traffic (further Noise Pollution, Air Pollution, Olfactory Pollution, Visual Pollution and Light Pollution)

“A” never imagined that his “dream house” which he had contemplated as a tranquil pristine “retirement paradise” home would turn out to be such a polluted house. He had never imagined that the all-pervading pollution would affect his health and lifestyle.

So, Dear Reader, if you are an end-user who intends to live in the house you want to buy, do consider the Pollution Factor along with all the other aspects. 

Do take a futuristic view of pollution, and remember, at least from the pollution point of view, it is better to buy a fully completed house in a well developed locality rather than book at the pre-launch or under-construction stage.

HAPPY HOUSE HUNTING

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 
1. If you share this post, please give due credit to the author Vikram Karve
2. Please DO NOT PLAGIARIZE. Please DO NOT Cut/Copy/Paste this post
© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

Repost of my article in Home Buying Series written in the year 2011 and posted online a number of times including at url: http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2013/01/buying-home-pollution-factor.html  and  http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2012/12/buying-house-in-pune.html 

DO YOU WANT A HOUSE IN DECCAN GYMKHANA ?

I am writing an article on the topic “STATUS GAMES” – which I will post in my blog later today.

While writing this article – I suddenly remembered a story I had written 2 years ago titled “A HOUSE IN DECCAN GYMKHANA”.

The story is about a status-conscious wife who wants to live in a high-brow posh locality in Pune called Deccan Gymkhana.

So – let me delve into my Creative Writing Archives and pull out this story for you to read, once more. 

Do tell me if you like the story...

A HOUSE IN DECCAN GYMKHANA

Fiction Short Story

By

VIKRAM KARVE

A HOUSE IN DECCAN GYMKHANA – a story by Vikram Karve

“My wife wants a house in Deccan Gymkhana,” Shekhar said.

“Are you crazy?” I said.

“Why?”

“No one sells a house in Deccan Gymkhana. There are no houses for sale in Deccan Gymkhana.”

“There is one.”

“How do you know?”

“My wife found out.”

“And what is the cost?”

He told me the exorbitant price of the house in Deccan Gymkhana. 

The sky-high price of the house was much more than what I had expected.

“Tell me Shekhar – from where are you going to get the money to pay for this house in Deccan Gymkhana?” I asked Shekhar.

“I will take a loan,” he said.

“A loan? Who is going to give you such a big loan? And even if they do give you a loan – can you afford it? The bloody EMI will be more than the salary we earn here.”

“I know all that. That’s why I am quitting this job.”

“Are you mad to quit such a good government job? Where will you get such a safe, secure, stress-free, comfortable job with so many perks and benefits?”

“But I won’t be able to buy the house in Deccan Gymkhana.”

“Why are you so obsessed about buying a house in Deccan Gymkhana? What’s wrong with this place?”

“My wife says that this place is too ‘middle-class’ – she wants to live in a posh locality.”

“But your wife has lived her full childhood over here – in fact, she has lived her entire life right here in the heart of this very peth.”

“Yes. That’s why she is fed up of this place – and she does not want to spend the rest of her life living a lowbrow existence over here. She wants a high-class standard of living.”

“Oh – your wife suddenly thinks this place is ‘lowbrow’...? I did not know that your wife has become so snobbish and snooty,” I said.

“Please don’t make sarcastic comments,” Shekhar said, “if you can’t help me – I will manage on my own.”

“Oh – so you think you can buy a house in Deccan Gymkhana on your own? And how do you intend to do that?”

Shekhar showed me the job offer letter.

“Are you crazy? This is a war ravaged country,” I said.

“That’s why they are paying so much. Look at the figure,” Shekhar said.

Yes – the salary was indeed substantial – very substantial – and with this kind of money – Shekhar could easily afford the EMI for the house in Deccan Gymkhana.

“Hey, all this is fine – but you are newly married. This is a 3 year contract. And you won’t be able to take your wife over there to that war-torn country. I hope your wife is ready to stay all alone. Is she ready for a long distance marriage so early in your married life?”

“Of course my wife is ready to make sacrifices. She is the one who found out about this job. In fact she told me that I should even work overtime and encash the one month’s leave and LTA which I am entitled every year and that I should come back straight after 3 years. Then we will have so much money that we will able to live comfortably for the rest of our lives. Here – just look at the pay, the incentives, the allowances, the bonus, the perks…” he said, pointing to the job offer letter.

Shekhar was right. 

The pay packet was indeed very generous – in fact, I had not seen such an attractive compensation package before. 

With this kind of money – Shekhar could easily afford the house in Deccan Gymkhana.

And after just 3 years Shekhar would be able to pay off his loan – and he would still have so much money to spare – that he could just live off the interest. 

But then – money earns more money – and I was sure that with so much money – and with an astute wife egging him on – he would go places and become a very rich and prosperous man. 

Maybe Shekhar would start a business – maybe …

But one thing was sure – this job was going to change his life – not only would he have a house in Deccan Gymkhana – but Shekhar would certainly become a wealthy man.

“Hey, what are you thinking…?” Shekhar said, interrupting my train of thoughts.

“Nothing,” I said.

“So?”

“Your wife is right. You must take this job.”

“And buy the house in Deccan Gymkhana.”

“Of course – that goes without saying,” I said.

And so – my friend Shekhar took up the lucrative foreign assignment and went abroad to the war ravaged country.

But before he left – Shekhar shifted his wife into their plush newly-purchased house in the posh locality of Deccan Gymkhana.   

Shekhar’s wife was overjoyed. 

She personally got the interiors done to her liking in a very classy manner. 

Every time I met her – she seemed happier and happier. 

She truly flourished. 

She had realized her dreams of living in a house in Deccan Gymkhana – and the glow of joy showed on her.

Shekhar would ring up me up from abroad, once in a while.

He was happy – because his wife was happy.

I knew that Shekhar was living a tough and dangerous life. 

From time to time – I saw news reports on TV about incidents of violence in the desolate strife-torn land where Shekhar was working.

I was worried about his safety. 

But whenever we spoke on phone – Shekhar always seemed to be full of cheer.

Maybe – the very thought that he had made his wife so happy – made Shekhar happy too.

One day – my worst fears came true.

Shekhar was killed in crossfire during a skirmish – when rebels attacked the project where he was working.

I thought his wife would be devastated. 

But – surprisingly – she coped with this enormous tragedy with remarkable courage and composure.

At least – financially – she was not that badly off. 

Shekhar’s company had insured their employees heavily.

So Shekhar’s wife received a huge amount of insurance money.

With this money – Shekhar’s wife could pay off the remaining home loan.

Even after paying off the home loan – a very substantial amount of money was still left with her.

Shekhar’s wife invested this huge amount of money in a monthly income scheme which would ensure her a decent income for her entire life.

A few months later – I married Shekhar’s widow – and I moved in with her – yes – I relocated myself into her posh house in Deccan Gymkhana.

I now live in a beautiful house in the high-class locality of Deccan Gymkhana.

Do you want a house in Deccan Gymkhana?

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 
1. If you share this post, please give due credit to the author Vikram Karve
2. Please DO NOT PLAGIARIZE. Please DO NOT Cut/Copy/Paste this post
© vikram karve., all rights reserved.

Disclaimer:

This Story is a work of fiction. Events, Places, Settings and Incidents narrated in the story are a figment of my imagination. The characters do not exist and are purely imaginary. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

Copyright Notice:

No part of this Blog may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Blog Author Vikram Karve who holds the copyright.

Copyright © Vikram Karve (all rights reserved)

This story written be me Vikram Karve in Jan 2013 and first Posted by me Vikram Karve on February 28, 2013, at 2/28/2013 02:10:00 PM in my creative writing blog Academic and Creative Writing Journal Vikram Karve at url: http://karvediat.blogspot.in/2013/02/a-house-in-deccan-gymkhana-blog-fiction.html