National 10 (Spotlight Weekly)

New Apartments On The Block

Ace Finance Company enters the burgeoning housing business, offering excellent apartments to upper middle class clientele

By A CORRESPONDENT

In spite of economic blues, investment in the housing business has taken off. From the Sunrise Homes by Oriental builders to the Ansal-Chaudhary developers, a number of businessmen are investing in this sector.

And the latest to enter this sector is the Ace Finance Company, a leading financial institution. The company is promoting the Grace housing - a residential apartment complex.

The company is going to build the five-storey Grace complex at a prime location in Narayan Chaur - a stone's throw away from the police headquarters in Naxal. The company plans to build a modern luxurious building fitted with state-of-the-art facilities and latest amenities.

"Unlike others, we hope to cater to the upper and upper middle class people. So, the price range of our apartments is a bit higher," said Prithivi Bahadur Pande, chief of the company.

The starting price of the apartment is Rs. 3.8 million. Depending on the facilities available and designs, the apartments would cost anything between Rs. 3.8 million and Rs. 4.5 million. In total, there would be 56 families owning apartments at Grace. The company has given ample consideration to the modern amenities and facilities given the class of clients it expects to cater.

At a time when the land is getting increasingly scarce in the city and as people have limited scope for developing private properties in prime locations, housing and apartments are the only solutions. "Besides, people these days do not have the time or the willingness to build their own homes. They would rather opt for ready-made homes equipped with all amenities," said an entrepreneur.

"We think that buying a quality apartment in a place like Naxal and at a price we are offering is a rare opportunity," said Pande.

With the view to choose the 56 families from a wider pool, Ace Finance has arranged for a financing facility for the purchase of the apartments. For hose who meet the credit requirement of Ace Finance, up to 75 percent of the purchase price of the apartment could be obtained in the form of a loan carrying variable rate interest, with the principal repayable over a 20 year period.

According to the company, the apartments at the Grace complex would be of both two and three bedroom types. Besides, the company has given special attention to the safety needs. Systems like coded lobby entrance, card entrance, 24-hour security, fire detection/fighting, fire exits, private underground parking, lighting in public areas and emergency back-up lighting would be in place.

Likewise, the apartment would have added features like quiet elevators, earthquake resistant design and construction, landscaped gardens, exclusively equipped gymnasium, heated indoor pool and sauna.