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Saurabh Bhatia, a corporate financial adviser, and his wife Manit, who works in credit management, have called Dubai home for 19 years. Nine years ago, they added their name to the property ladder, following a happy accident involving a birthday party, bouncy castles and two young daughters who weren't even invited.
They bought their three-bedroom apartment in Masakin Al Furjan, a Nakheel community, for Dh1.64 million in 2017. It is now worth about Dh1 million more.
The National takes a look around.
Tell us about your home
Manit: It is a three-bedroom apartment. The sizes are very spacious – the living room is huge. There are two types of apartments here, one with an open kitchen and one with a closed kitchen. Ours is closed, and we also have a maid's room and a separate laundry area. The total area is around 1,950 square feet.
When did you buy it?
Saurabh: We bought it nine years ago, in 2017.
Why did you decide to buy?
Saurabh: I am a finance person, so I calculated the numbers. If I paid the EMIs [equated monthly instalments] and the service charges, it worked out better than paying rent to somebody else – plus the capital appreciation. So, it was more of a financial decision.
Manit: We wanted a space that we could say was our own, and that we could do the way we want to.
How did you end up in this community?
Manit: This community was never, ever in our consideration. We did not even know it existed. We were looking at a few properties – we went to Reem, and then we had lined up some Azizi properties in Al Furjan. A colleague of mine – at the time I was with ADCB – told me I could park the car in his community and then walk over to see the Azizi development. It was beautiful weather, so we thought, why not?
The moment we entered the community, Saurabh and I were both in awe. There were trees everywhere. We parked the car and walked through the garden to his place, and in the middle of it all we saw a birthday party going on with bouncy castles. Our kids were small at the time and they went to attend that birthday party – uninvited. Saurabh and I looked at each other and it was like: why not this place?
Saurabh: I think the look meant more like: this is it. We don't know if anything is available, but we want to be here.
Manit: And then we looked at the options, found a good one, and that was that. It is a beautiful community – good people, helpful people. It is a very closely knit community.
How much did you pay for it?
Saurabh: It was Dh1.64 million to be exact.
Manit: Now, it should be around Dh2.7 million. It has seen its ups and downs – Covid and everything else – but it has sustained through all of that.
What do you like about the neighbourhood?
Saurabh: It is a beautiful community and the garden is massive. We cannot help feeling grateful every day when we are in it – especially in this kind of weather, it is a blessing. We decided this morning, because of the weather, we couldn't go to the office, so Manit and I walked through the garden, holding our coffee mugs. For whatever 30 minutes we were there, we were just thanking the Almighty for giving us this place.
Manit: I think we should also mention the safety. It is a closed garden, a gated community. Even if our kids are playing late at night, we are not bothered at all.
What facilities do you have?
Manit: We had a gym and a pool. It was a clubhouse within the community but under different management. Due to some legal issues it got closed – I think it was when Nakheel was acquired by Dubai Holdings. It has been closed about three years now, but we are expecting it to open this year.
Have you done any renovations?
Manit: No, not yet. Since we moved in, we have not done much – just a coat of paint and some furniture changes here and there.
Saurabh: But we have already finalised who is going to do it and it should start anytime soon. This time we want to redo the entire home – different flooring, different bathroom fittings, panels on the wall, new cabinetry, the ceiling. Like a completely renovated new apartment.
How would you describe your interior design style?
Manit: Contemporary. We like subtle colours – more white and beige. We will pretty much stick to that colour palette going forward with the renovation as well.
Why renovate if you are thinking of moving?
Saurabh: We just want to do it for ourselves. If we sell, we will get a better price because it is renovated. But the renovation we want to do for us. Even if we are here six months or a year after, it does not matter.
How long do you plan to stay?
Manit: The idea is to move to a bigger place. We have spent almost nine years here and we will be looking for a larger space – probably a villa community.
Saurabh: Some communities I personally like are the Green Community in DIP. But if we have to stay in an apartment, I don't think there is any other place in all of Dubai that is as good as this.
