Now, get paid for leading an extravagant life

MUMBAI: Imagine living in thesprawling apartment of a posh building with a panoramic view of the city, andnot having to pay a paisa towards its upkeep. Or, even better, actually gettingpaid to live there.From Cuffe Parade to Juhu, a handful of cash-richhousing societies have become islands of prosperity in a sea of penurious oneswhich scrimp, save and beg their members to contribute towards the renovation oftheir decrepit buildings.Real estate sources peg the exclusive JollyMaker Apartments 1 at Cuffe Parade, comprising two 25-storey residential towerswith about 180 flats and ten bungalows, as the richest housing society in India.It has a reserve fund and a sinking fund estimated at Rs 25-30crore.Just a stone’s throw away, the A and B wings of MakerTowers sit on society funds of more than Rs 10 crore, while the upscale AnandKamal housing society and the 24-storeyed Usha Kiran at Carmichael Road alsomake the big league.Residents of Jolly Maker 1, who include severalhead honchos of private and public sector institutions, occupy flats rangingfrom 1,285 to 2,590 sq ft and enjoy a slew of benefits. None of themhave to pay the monthly outgoings, which include a range of municipal taxes,because the society clears all the bills. Each member is charged a token onepaise per sq ft per month — while the residents of other buildings inCuffe Parade cough up Rs 3 to 4 per sq ft.‘‘In fact,this cash-rich society pays every flat-owner a yearly dividend of Rs 100 forevery sq ft he or she occupies,’’ said a Jolly Maker resident. So,for someone occupying a 2,500 sq ft flat, the dividend is a cool Rs 2.5 lakhs ayear.Incidentally, the 10,000 sq mtr property includes a healthclub, a swimming pool and a restaurant, now shut down due to lack of patronage.The complex also has a Sahakari Bhandar store, exclusively for the use ofresidents, who can buy their groceries at cheaper rates.And what isthe secret of this prosperity? The society owns six floors in the Nariman Bhavanbuilding at Nariman Point which have been leased out to various companies. Thesefetch about Rs 48 lakhs a month.The builder had offered thisproperty as a package to buyers if they agreed to pay about 40 per cent more fortheir flats. ‘‘At that time, we paid Rs 100 a sq ft for our flatsinstead of the prevailing rate of about Rs 60,’’ said a residentabout that decision, taken about three decades ago.The A and B wingsof Maker Towers may not be in the same league as Jolly Maker 1 — but thesociety recently spent Rs 1 crore on upgrading its lifts without asking membersto contribute a paisa. It will also spend Rs 75 lakhs on painting the buildingsafter the monsoon.In another area of south Mumbai, in the upmarketenclave of Carmichael Road, the Anand Kamal cooperative housing society owns oneof the most exclusive residential properties in the city. The seven-storeyedKamal Mahal and the adjacent Anand building are both situated on a two-acre plotwith a landscaped garden.The society has fixed deposits of about Rs4 crore and pays the outgoings and maintenance charges of about Rs 27 lakhsinstead of the flat-owners doing so. These riches are thanks to thefact that about ten years ago, the building got permission to construct anadditional floor atop Kamal Mahal and to sell three flats.