CHENNAI: The Covid-19 pandemic lockdown has left several houses and commercial establishments vacant with To-let boards springing up in many localities. Every street in suburbs has at least one such notice informing about a vacant space available for rent.
Even if those who have left the city with an intention of returning, the lockdown does not appear to be ending putting house owners in a quandary.
With labourers, competetive exam aspirants and families shifting to their natives, houses have gone vacant, say a majority of house owners.
As rents in suburbs are usually less when compared to Corporation limits, the majority of the middle-class families resided in Chrompet, Pallavaram, Tambaram and beyond. However, most of them have now gone to their natives owing to job losses among other reasons.
"I was working in a clothing store of a popular mall. However, they have remained closed for the past four months. With no salary and rents to pay, I moved to my native village in Madurai. I even told my owner that I will shift my belongings once the lockdown is lifted," said M Kathiresan, a resident of Mudichur, on the outskirts of Tambaram. He further added that his family and children are also in the native for the past four months.
Thoraipakkam being the hub for all the IT employees where most of them reside have also witnessed several properties listed for rent on popular websites. "Despite the government imposing an order for
deferring rent by at least three months due to the pandemic lockdown, my house owner was still taking money from us. As all four of us were working from our native districts about which we informed our house owner. We even told him to deduct the amount from the advance and cancel the agreement from April," said D Damodaran, a native of Tiruchy.
As rent was the main source of income for a few house owners, the pandemic lockdown has affected them equally. "The revision of rent as done annually was withheld this time. I even offered a rebate of Rs 200 to one of my tenants," said P Boopathy, who owns a set of five single portion houses in West Mambalam.