The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : It’s more the merrier for those running PGs

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 15, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

It’s more the merrier for those running PGs

Sahana Charan

Paying guest accommodation can cost anything from Rs. 1,500 a month to Rs. 300 a day

— Photo: K. Gopinathan

Mushroomed: Posters about paying guest accommodation have sprung up all over Bangalore.

Bangalore: A palatial bungalow or a modest home — as long as you have a couple of rooms to spare — is enough to start a paying guest (PG) accommodation business if you are so inclined.

With the influx of IT professionals, business process outsourcing (BPO) and call centre employees into the city, who with their newfound prosperity do not think twice about tossing a few thousands on their accommodation, giving out your apartment/house for paying guests is big business.

Posh charges

In posh areas such as Airport Road, Indiranagar and some parts of Frazer Town, some landlords charge as much as Rs. 300 a day for single accommodation. In BTM Layout, the rate is Rs. 2,900 to Rs. 3,400 a month depending on the number of persons sharing the room.

In Malleswaram, Rajarajeshwarinagar and Viveknagar, the charges may vary from Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 3,500, with few thousands more being charged for food.

In areas such as Cooke Town and Cox Town, the charges may vary between Rs. 5,000 and Rs.6,000 a month and it may be little less for students who have the option of dormitory style accommodation.

On Bannerghatta Road, students can stay in dorms for Rs. 1,500 a month.

It is a case of the more the merrier for some house owners who have space to spare or own two or more houses as they give it out to scores of youngsters.

Such is the case with a landlord in Jayanagar 4th Block, who owns two ancestral houses, apart from the one he is living in.

“I took voluntary retirement and thought that the two houses which were unoccupied could be used for earning some extra money. As I did not want to depend on my children for my living, I thought it best to start a PG accommodation,” the landlord, a senior citizen who did not want to be named, said. He has close to 150 paying guests (all women) staying in his two houses and they are charged between Rs. 2,900 to Rs. 5,000 a month, depending on whether they are students or working women and the kind of accommodation.

A boon

PG accommodation is a boon to those who find themselves stranded when life takes an unexpected turn. As Ms. Cariappa of Cox Town put it: “I lost my husband a few years ago and had no means to support myself and my two daughters. As we had our own two-storeyed house, I decided to give it out to girls as PG accommodation.”

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