My Own Home takes you inside a reader-owned property to ask how much they paid, why they decided to buy and what they have done with it since moving in
Retired educator Radhika Bhandari and her husband Maninder, who has a background in finance and continues to work as a consultant, are not only proud of their home but also their community.
The couple bought their three-bedroom apartment in Motor City’s Green Community back in 2010 and have since become heavily involved with the local homeowners’ committee.
Radhika – who spends her time working with Indian NGOs online, teaching mahjong at home and looking after her grandchildren – says there is nowhere else like it in Dubai, thanks to the environment, neighbours and the spaciousness afforded by the apartments.
The National takes a tour.
Please tell me about your home.
It is an apartment but it gives us the feeling of living in a villa. It has got a lovely terrace, which is on the ground floor, so we have the pleasure of the view of a lovely lake and lots of greenery.
It has three bedrooms and a huge kitchen, which we have cordoned off and made a little family TV room in there, because that is where we hang out a lot when the grandchildren come.
It has got Dutch bathrooms with all the bedrooms, a powder room, a laundry and storage room inside, as well as another storeroom on the terrace.
There is a very spacious living and dining room. The lovely thing is all the bedrooms and living room look out on to the lake and greenery.
The maid also has her own room and bathroom.
What do you love most about this home?
We love that it is one level. It is just enough space for both of us, as well as when we have visitors, so we do not feel cramped. I think these are some of the most spacious apartments in Dubai – they are well planned, with excellent building materials and lots of storage space. Each apartment comes with two storerooms.
And it is part of a lovely community. There are 160 apartments in the complex, but you never feel as if there are so many people around you.
It is a very different kind of community because, although you are in this huge complex, you are very comfortable, you have your privacy and accessibility, and the people are wonderful here.
I really think it is one of the nicest communities to be living in Dubai. People who have visited all walk in here and say, ‘Wow, this is like an oasis within a desert’, because of the landscaping and the greenery and the water body.
Why did you decide to buy?
We bought the home in 2010 and by then we had been in Dubai for 10 years. We had actually bought another place in Victory Heights, and we were going to move in there but then, due to health reasons, because I wanted a one-level home, we decided to offload that.
We came to visit a friend in Green Community who owned an apartment, and I just fell in love with her place.
At that time, our daughter was taking a gap year between work and doing her master’s degree, so we wanted to be in this end of town because of the accessibility for her, for her friends.
Prices had also come down and we were ready to reinvest in Dubai. We thought since long term we are going to be here, why not? Instead of paying rent every year, we worked out the math.
How much did you buy the house for?
On the market, the house was about Dh2.7 million but because of the downturn, the previous owner had not even moved in or anything and she was in a bit of a stressed situation. So, we got a little cheaper than that, for about Dh2.5 million and we did not take a mortgage.
Today, I would like to think it would be Dh4 million-plus. One would expect that, because the community has really come up well, and we have put some money into the apartment. Plus, we have the prime view on the ground floor with the lake.
I would not expect less than Dh4.2 million to Dh4.3 million. You are not going to get an apartment like this anywhere else.
What renovations have you done?
I have added a lot of storage. The outside terrace area is fully redone, because they give you a shell when you come in. I spent a fair amount on the landscaping and adding features there.
My kitchen also has a new look, thanks to wrapping.
We have not done anything major because the quality of construction is very good. We have not had to replace the floors or anything like that.
Every three to four years, we get it painted. We basically ensure its upkeep and make sure everything is working well.
What amenities do you have access to?
We have two clubhouses between four buildings, which each have a pool, gym and party room.
We have an outside children’s play area and a nice walking area around the community.
How has the neighbourhood changed since you first moved in?
Everything is available here in Motor City. I mean, you have all the top supermarkets, from Spinneys to Carrefour and Waitrose. We have the smaller ones as well, like Viva. We have got Lulu coming in, a Geant is about to open.
You have some medical centres; our GP is down the road. You have ATM machines, very nice children's amenities. There are a variety of eating places.
Accessibility is really easy for us. Within five minutes, you are on Sheikh Zayed Road. You can get on to all the major roads from here very, very easily.
And I live five minutes away from my daughter and my grandchildren, as they are in Victory Heights.
How long do you plan to stay in your home?
I have no desire to upgrade or move while we live in the city. We are going to stay as long as possible.
I do not see us going back home [to India or Singapore] in a rush. We have our daughter and grandchildren here. We have a fabulous group of friends, a very nice social circle. We love the community. Our neighbours are just wonderful. Everyone is on good terms with each other.
The standard of living is so good over here, so unless we really have to for health reasons, I think that would be the only reason we would go back.
