New house for sale at aluva

Homestays in Kochi are here to stay

A homestay is new development in Kochi, an intercity living in Kerala, in which a person visiting or temporarily staying in Kochi, lives with a family in the Town or nearby area. Homestays involve relationships between people and it should not be linked with a boarding-house or hotel experience, in which they only rent rooms. While students pay their own expenses for room and stay, the purpose of an intercity homestay is not just to provide a place to stay but to create an enriching learning experience for both the student and the host family. The homestays in Kochi sometimes comes in the place of Hostal or Hotel accommodation for the employed people as well as for those making a short visit to the town. While choosing a homestay and while giving a home stay, particularly the host should be very careful.

Let us assess the situation:

The host should always be careful and vigilant. Modern day boys are very forward and they sometimes do not give much importance to cultural values. They should not be allowed to take advantage of the situation.  These students should not be allowed to stay alone in the house, bring their friends – both male and female friends to the home, ie., there should be someone in the house always to take control of the situation if something fishy happens.

Homestays are good and useful for students, but they are not ideal for every student and every situation. Homestays are probably most helpful for students coming to the Kochi for the first time and interested in having a safe, family environment in which, getting used to life in a different city and different family; learn about their family life and values; interact with people of different ages; and share their own culture and interests. Homestay students must be willing to make an effort to communicate and cooperate with others and accept the rules and preferences of the families with whom they live. For example, most homestay families do not allow smoking in their homes. Because of the additional responsibility involved, students seeking a homestay should be mature, stable individuals who are good natured and flexible. Such students usually have a positive and memorable homestay experience.

There are many different kinds of families involved: retired couples, single-parent families, single individuals, widows, as well as traditional families. But whether they are young or old, with or without children, they all share a strong interest in good-natured, well mannered people. Many of them have traveled or lived abroad, so they can identify with you. They are excited to welcome you into their homes and assist you in your adjustment to life there.

Like families all over Kerala, most families are interdependent, which means that individuals often must give up some of their own independence in order to help family relationships run smoothly. Living with a family requires a kind of cooperation that sometimes involves some personal sacrifices. A student becomes like a member of the family, not a guest. As a result, families may have certain expectations of students such as participation in family activities, cleaning their rooms, keeping reasonable hours, communicating clearly with the family about their schedules, and occasionally helping with cooking or other household duties.

There are many benefits of a homestay. First of all, a homestay allows students to communicate effectively and interact with strangers and be one of them. Second, living with a family provides a quiet atmosphere for study and a greater sense of security for some students. Third, a homestay exposes students to a rich variety of cultural learning opportunities, such as family activities, holiday celebrations, religious practices, sporting events, etc. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, a homestay often results in students developing deep, lasting friendships with their families. Such a personal connection gives many students a real sense of stability in their lives, and what they get in their own homes.

www.kochiplaza.com is always there in Kochi to help those in need of homestays or good trustworthy hosts. For more information visit our real estate website www.kochiplaza.com

River Frontage Property at Aluva, Kerala

The river frontage properties at Aluva are attracting investors from across the country to Kerala, but the beauty of these projects is that they are not spoiling the beauty of the rivers.  Aluva Municipality is also taking measures to see that the river banks are not chosen for construction, ie., the builders who chose to build flats or villas with river view should leave the required land from the river to the site of construction.  This leaves the properties to have adequate space on the riverside and construction is not allowed on the river side, yet allowing the builders to have the full review since nothing is constructed there to hinder the river view.  The people are also benefited this way.

Kerala shopping fest to target city's MNCs

GURGAON: Recognizing the fact that the city's MNCs are among the most promising sponsors and consumers for its products, the government of Kerala announced the Great Kerala Shopping Festival (GKSF), to be held in December, at the Hotel Leela Kempinski on Friday.
The fifth GKSF will witness around 85 lakh visitors from India, and 6 lakh visitors from abroad, of which almost 10-20 lakh visitors will come from the NCR itself. "Gurgaon has the headquarters of some of the best textile, FMCG, sportswear, and home appliance companies. We are, therefore, inviting the Gurgaon corporates to participate in our shopping festival," said Ratan Kelkar, director, GKSF.
The festival is expected to get a total investment of Rs 50 crore from the Kerala government, and almost 7,000 retail outlets are expected to participate in the event. According to Sanjeev Gupta, owner of a travel agency in Super Mart, DLF Phase IV, "South india is a popular destination for winter holidays, and we expect at least 1,500 to 2,000 air ticket bookings and around 3,000 railway bookings to Kerala this year."

Source:  http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-18/gurgaon/30171800_1_lakh-visitors-kerala-government-gurgaon-corporates

Metro gets 33 acres at Kakkanad

KOCHI: The state government has agreed to provide thirty three acres of land at Kakkanad for Kochi Metro Rail Limited (KMRL) to raise funds for the project. It has been decided to hand over the land, owned by Public Works Department, where NGO quarters is located. The decision was taken at a meeting of board of directors of KMRL held at Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
Talking to ToI on the new development, managing director, KRML, Tom Jose said that the dilapidated NGO quarters would be pulled down to construct new buildings to provide accommodation for government officials. "Part of the property will be used to raise fund for the metro project. We will conduct a study to find out how we can maximize profit utilizing the land," he said.
The authorities are also contemplating formation of a consortium of banks to raise funds for Kochi metro project. "We are considering two other options also. They include issuing of company bonds and relaxation of building rules to raise money," said Kochi mayor Tony Chammany. He also said that Tom Jose had been entrusted with the task of coming up with suitable suggestions.

Source: http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-09-02/kochi/30105462_1_metro-project-acres-land

Sahara Grace launches Phase II

KOCHI: Sahara Prime City Ltd (SPCL), the real estate arm of Sahara India Pariwar, has launched Phase II of its Sahara Grace brand of residential complex in Kochi. This is the third one under the brand of premium luxury housing. Spread over 14.72 acres of prime location on seaport- airport road in Kakkanad, Sahara Grace offers a mix of apartments and penthouses along with value-added facilities.

The project has residential and commercial facilities designed for the high income group customers. With a total built-up area of approximately 19.72 lakh sq ft of residential area, the project has two to four bedroom apartments, three and four bedroom duplex apartments and penthouses.

Amitesh Ahuja, head, south zone, SPCL said, “Sahara Grace will be adorned with a shopping mall.”

A helipad, central water body with artificial lake, gazebo and jogging track, multi-storeyed car parking, multi-level security system, piped cooking gas facility, in-house fire control system, rain water harvesting system� for all its residents.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/sahara-grace-launches-phase-ii/184657-60-122.html

Kerala dreams big on housing sector

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: With the Kerala State Housing Board yet to come out of the deep financial crisis, the State Government has mooted the creation of Kerala State Housing Development Finance Corporation� with the objective of mobilising funds for the housing sector in the state.�� Sources told Express that notice inviting the expression of interest for the preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR) has been called for and once the report is ready, the same will be presented before the State Cabinet for the final approval.� KSHB’s outstanding liabilities with Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited alone is a whopping Rs 750 crore. The State Government is committed to clearing at least one-third of this liability immediately, lest it be denied any more loans for the housing sector from the Centre.

However, even this will not provide any succour since the total financial liability stands at Rs 10,197 crore for the financial year 2011-12. “With the KSHB in deep financial crisis, the project envisages to pool out investments from domestic and international sources, particularly from the Gulf region for the development of the housing sector in the state.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/kerala-dreams-big-on-housing-sector/178536-60-116.html

‘’There are also many NRIs who may chip in,” said a top official of the Housing Department. The DPR to be prepared by consultants will� cover resource mobilisation, equity participation and legal issues. The Reserve Bank of India clearances for resources, constitution of the corporation and its functions are the other areas that the DPR will address.

The risks associated with raising NRI funds and external finance are other areas that have to be included in the DPR. The last date for the submission of the DPR has been fixed for September 3. Apart from financing housing schemes like that of HUDCO, the new financial platform will also augment the basic community and infrastructure services through its core strengths.

“The prime objective is providing financial assistance at affordable rates to all sections of the people and various builder agencies.� A feasibility study will be carried out to understand the existing housing finance scenario in the state, based on the financial requirement of individuals belonging to various economic categories and that of real estate developers.

‘’The study will also cover the existing lending pattern and the steps to be taken for the successful running of the proposed corporation,” the official said.