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
It took about a year for Rimpy Gupta to settle into life in the Meadows, but once she did, she never looked back. The Indian content creator lives with her entrepreneur husband, Manish, and two children, Manvik, 17, and Mansvi, 11. They moved into the house nine years ago after renting apartments in Bur Dubai for the previous decade.
They had not been looking for somewhere to buy, but when this Dh5 million, four-bedroom property in the Meadows came on the market, and Ms Gupta saw the garden, she fell in love. They started payments three days later and had moved within less than three weeks.
Now, she says she cannot imagine living anywhere else.
The National takes a look around.
Please tell me about your home.
It’s a beautiful house. It has four bedrooms and three bathrooms upstairs. We have a study which my husband uses as his office space. There’s a big kitchen and hall-cum-dining space. We also have a very beautiful, big garden. The only thing that’s lacking is we don’t have a bedroom downstairs.
Why did you decide to buy a property?
We were in a two-bedroom apartment in Bur Dubai and we had two kids. By then, we were really thinking of moving to a bigger place. At that time, my father-in-law was also there, so he used to come home and we found the two-bedroom apartment really small.
Then, Manish’s brother, who lives here too, told us there was a house for sale in the Meadows. We were not planning to invest or buy, we were happy in Bur Dubai and the kids had friends there. But we just came to see the house. I sat in the garden and I said, “Manish, let's buy, it's a beautiful house.”
We moved in 20 days. It was that quick for us.
How much is the property worth now?
We bought it for Dh5 million. Now, it’s Dh10 million-plus. Somebody even quoted me Dh13 million – I don’t know if that’s just a fluke, but it’s definitely worth more than Dh10 million. But we’re not trying to sell the house as of now. We love it.
What renovations have you done?
We got a sauna installed. We don’t use it much, to be honest, but we had it installed about nine years ago. We also got an extra room built in the backyard, which is basically a workshop.
We changed all the flooring so it’s wooden and we put a nice roof in the outdoor area so there’s a shaded sitting area. We also added a powder room upstairs as there was an empty space, so now my dressing table is there.
How was it moving from Bur Dubai?
The first year was a little difficult. At that time, my daughter was two, and in Bur Dubai, she had very good company. There were always children playing, but here we really felt alone. We felt a little disconnected from the Indian community.
But then, slowly, she started nursery that same year. I began driving more, made friends and got to know more of the Indian society in the Meadows – there are a lot of Indians here.
Now we're very happy. We can't even imagine moving away.
Why do you love this neighbourhood?
It’s really lush and green, with lakes around the area. When you walk by the lake, you feel like you're still in India. There are also play areas – my daughter goes out to play around 5pm and comes back by 7pm. I don't need to go and check on her, because I know it's a safe community. She'll not go anywhere. It's a gated community. That gives you peace of mind.
Like I said, there are lots of Indians here, so we don't feel disconnected. When you go out, you meet someone, stop for a chat, and have a conversation.
Another thing I like is there are no parking issues. We also have a big garden, we can host parties at home, entertain properly and feel a sense of belonging. Dubai is really home now.
What facilities do you have?
We have a swimming pool. We have a tennis court. There’s a barbecue area if we want to meet friends and do a barbecue. There's also a basketball court.
How would you describe your interior design?
It's very laid-back. It's more of a home. It’s not overly formal and things don’t have to be in specific places. It’s a space where the kids can move around freely, and we have plenty of open space.
I'm a very religious person, so I do lots of puja at home and when we do puja, we need a big space for people to sit down. So all my furniture is very light, very movable, easy to handle, it's not very bulky and not very stylish.
How long will you be in this house?
I'm getting offered very good amounts for the house, but I'm very happy here. My son is planning to go to the US for university, but Manish’s business is here. Everything is here. So as long as everything is good, we'll be here.
