Actor Salman Khan is in news again, this time not about his movies but his holiday home. Khan, an active real estate investor has begun construction of a sprawling holiday home on a 100-acre land parcel at Gorai Beach, near Mumbai.
Holiday homes have been quite a popular trend going as far back to the British Raj when the wealthy and elite used to own tony cottages in the hills and spend their vacations there. The British left in 1947 but the trend continued, albeit on a very small scale. In recent years, it has further picked up, as cities become more congested, lifestyles more hectic and the need for escapism has increased.
The government of India is one of the biggest investors in holiday homes, with various departments owning vacation homes for its employees. As Indians move towards more spending on vacations and on lifestyle upgrades, it is no surprise that many Indians are buying holiday or vacation homes.
Preeti Hari, a Mumbai based designer, says “One reason why we purchased a home in Goa was because my husband loves the place. We go there once a year, so a couple of years, we decided to purchase a home there.” Goa is just one of the favorite places for buyers. Other places include hill stations like Ooty, Nainital, Ranikhet, Shimla etc.
“Buyers are also getting attracted to rental opportunities for their holiday homes as demand is high and online processes have bookings easy.”
But regular visits are not the only thing that is attracting buyers to a holiday home. Attractive rental opportunities are beckoning end users to turn investors. Renting a property is not that difficult with internet simplifying things to a great extent. Demand during the peak season can be quite high with groups and families preferring to rent a home than blocking rooms in a hotel. This gives them more comfort and exclusiveness.
