What are the important precautions need to take care after lockdown?

As we make our way into normal life, there are still things we need to be cautious about. We still need to do our best to stay safe and protect ourselves, as well as the people around us.

We can no longer be careless and as things return to normal, they are far from it. But we cannot stop life; we need to bring back our regular routine, but keeping safety and our health in mind. Here are some precautions you need to do now –

1.  Wear a mask when you are out of the house. Even if it is going for a walk inside your construction society, you should wear a mask.

2.  Avoid social gatherings. It is very enticing to catch all the people you missed during the lockdown, but do not meet in groups. Try to catch as much as possible through a phone call or video call.

3.  Build and carry a safety kit. Like a first aid kit, a safety kit should have basics such as:-

• A face cover - This will help prevent you from touching your face when you exit.
•  Hand Sanitizer - This should be handy when you are going out or otherwise.
•  Hand Soap - If you are going out and have a soap bar in place, it is better to use your own soap.
•  Gloves - This is required when you are touching high contact surfaces such as lift buttons, ATMs etc.
•  Toilet seat sanitizer and tissue paper - If you are using the toilet at work or anywhere, you will need to keep both of these items with you.
•  Tissue - If you have a cold or allergic cough / sneeze, be on the safe side and cover your mouth with a tissue every time you cough. You need to throw the tissue in the bin as soon as possible.

4.  Do not take a shared ride in a cab or auto. Sit on the back seat and place your mask exclusively in the cab.

5.  Try and spend less time on the roads, especially if you do not have your own transport. Talk to your company to find out if you can travel during non-peak hours.

6.  If you are using public transport such as rail, metros and buses, use gloves when you are sitting on the railings and transacting money. Use an e-wallet and pass to avoid touching as much money as possible. If you can't avoid it, use the sanitizer as soon as you do.

7.  Avoid crowded lifts, take the stairs or wait for the next lift. If you are using stairs or escalators, do not touch the railing.

8.  At work, make sure you have tissue on your table and a sanitizer. As you work, wipe your desk, mouse, keyboard, and screen with a sanitizer or alcohol rub.

9.  Make sure that there is enough distance between you and your colleague when you are at your work center. There should be a minimum distance of 6 feet between you and the next person.

10.  If you need to have meetings, try calling them, especially if it is for a group of more than 5 people.

11.  Reduce the amount of paper you use, send documents digitally and have an e-signature. This will cut down on the amount of paper you come in contact with.

12.  If you have your meal at the office, make sure to at least carry your cutlery. Avoid using shared cutlery.

13.  When you return house, wash your hands immediately. If possible, take a shower as soon as you get house.

14.  At house, keep your house clean and hygienic regularly.

15.  When possible, get professionals to visit and consecrate your house, apartment building, and workplace. This needs to be done regularly until the number of cases is zero.

STAY HOME, STAY SAFE, STAY ALIVE

How smart house devices can save you money?

A 'smart house' is a discussion that has caught the attention of many house owners. From the popular Amazon Echo or Google's House Pod to essential smart house devices such as television sets, people are eager to see these devices to upgrade their house's look as well as electricity bills. Globally, market penetration of these cool, smart house appliances is projected to touch 38.7% by 2021, a big jump from 2016 when the rate was only 8.2%. Such large-scale development shows the popularity of these smart house appliances and paves the way for greater innovation and advancement in technology.

Most popular smart house appliances include smart refrigerators, smart thermostats, smart air conditioners, and even Wi-Fi routers. These smart house devices can be remotely controlled via the smart phone app by you or anyone at house. Enabling control of these devices from an app ensures that you can turn it on and off at any time and from anywhere. This will definitely reduce power consumption and many users have been stunned after seeing a substantial reduction in their monthly bills. While these devices are expensive, they can save you money in the long run. So, make a smart decision and get the necessary smart house device for your house today.

Smart Thermostats 

It is possible to control these smart thermostats via any device connected to your Internet, such as a tablet or smart phone. Since they are operated via Wi-Fi, you can control them from any remote location as well. For example, if you have left your house and have forgotten to lower the temperature, you can do it from your office, and do not need to stay indoors for any changes. These smart devices for your house understand your living pattern and change or adjust accordingly. Smart thermostats can ensure that no heat is being wasted and temperature changes can occur if it makes sense that no one is at house.

Smart ceiling fans

These ceiling fans work in the same way as a smart thermostat. Like other smart devices, these fans can be operated through Internet-enabled devices such as smart phones and tablets. They are thus allowing you to start, stop or change the speed of the fan through the application on your mobile device.

Smart light bulb

Clap for these smart bulbs! Smart bulbs are the future of the 21st century smart world. Replace your existing bulbs with these smart bulbs, and you are sure to save some extra money. When watching a movie, if you want to lower your room's light, do it through an app in your smart phone, just no need to get up to turn the light on or off. Is your child scared before entering a room with low light? Install smart bulbs that switch on any movement felt or switch off bedroom lights directly.

Smart outlet

To get a small start towards smart devices, you can start by installing smart plugs. These plugs help you control any device such as your bedside lamp, iron, or any electronic items attached to the socket so that if you leave your house in a hurry, do not remember that you unplugged the curling iron There is no need for it or not worry, just do it from your smart phone.

Conclusion

All these smart devices for your house are meant to add extra convenience to your life and will save you some money in the long run. If you want to make your house smart, you can start with the devices listed above.

How Credit Cards Can Help Tenants During Coronavirus Epidemic

More and more people are adopting digital payments to pay rent to their landlords. And while paying digitally, credit card is the best option as it not only gives reward points but also free credit period.

The nationwide lockdown has required a lot of lifestyle changes for many of us and has shown us our ability to adapt to change. It has initiated some very welcome steps in our day-to-day lives and has changed traditional ways of doing things.

Let us look at the change that has come to the real estate industry in a few days. The changes that industry giants envisioned will only happen in the distant future. For example, we have come a long way from the time when a trip to a physical property was mandatory to finalize an asset. Today there are many customers who have finalized a property for rent through a video walkthrough!

The most sensational aspect of the change is the payment of rent through credit card. But the current situation required customers to move faster in the process. Rent is the biggest monthly expense for most of us these days. And while paying rent through credit cards helps us win a lot of reward points and cannot be stressed enough at this point, Indian consumers have been slow to catch the trend. However, three factors have catalyzed the adoption of this method - a buffer period offering credit card payments, fear or inability to handle cash payments, and, unfortunately, fear of layoffs. 

Many state governments have urged landlords not to take rent from tenants for the months of March-May 2020 as the epidemic has affected the livelihoods of many people. But it cannot be enforced, and it is up to individual landlords to pay a three-month rent or postpone it or take out the middle ground.

There has been a sudden increase in the number of people availing the service of paying rent through credit cards. Credit cards offer a much needed buffer period or flexibility for tenants to make payments. This ensures that rent is paid to the landlords on time and the tenants do not have to face liquidity crisis. They get a free loan period of about 45 days.

Most customers do not want to conduct any cash transactions for fear of infection with notes. Furthermore, the lockdown has ensured that no one can physically move out of their homes. This is why more and more people are adopting digital payments to pay rent to their landlords. And while paying digitally, credit card is the best option as it not only gives reward points but also free credit period.

We are going through difficult times and many companies are unsure whether they will have to let go to keep employees away because the current situation has a huge business impact. Paying rent through credit cards matters a lot in such a scenario, as the current crisis is temporary, and it makes sense to have additional liquidity until more clarity comes. Until things return to normal, and the state of the economy improves, it is prudent to take advantage of liquidity that digitization has opened up.

It is worth seeing the silver layer with the clouds of darkness. The way the infection has occurred may not be the best, the cause of the infection may be the worst ever but it has helped the Indian people take a giant leap. The epidemic has set the pace more disciplined and a more efficient way of closing transactions. Once the situation gets better and we hope that it will be real soon, then we will enter a more efficient, a more digitally equipped era and it will only be for our benefit.

Maharashtra Housing Department advises landlords to postpone rent collection for 3 months

In a month of April 2020 the Housing Department of Maharashtra issued a circular asking landlords and house owners to postpone the collection of rent in view of the lockdown situation for tenants for at least three months. It has also been said that landlords should not evict tenants for not paying rent during this period.

The circular signed by Housing Secretary Sanjay Kumar went viral on social media. Many zamindars are within a fixed range whether the government had the legal power to enforce it.

The lockdown has an adverse effect on people's income and employment. “Many people face difficult financial situations. A large number of people are not able to pay their regular rent. Therefore, recovery of rent should be postponed for at least three months and no tenant should be excluded for non-payment of rent, said in the circular.

The proposal is to be implemented with immediate effect. Issuers have gone well with landlords whose only source of income is rent. However, in the words of Housing Minister Jitendra Awadh, “Many people are experiencing economic difficulties as a result of the epidemic. The government has taken this step keeping in mind that it will be difficult for tenants to pay the rent in future.

Rents in Mumbai are skyrocketing and the move is a sigh of relief for the majority of tenants. Rajesh Prajapati, a member of the managing committee of the Housing Chamber of the Government of Maharashtra, said, "At the moment, the government feels that landlords are in a better position for economic devastation based on rental income." 

Best Core Schedule for Lockdown

Lockdown has changed the way we live to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Our life has turned about 180-degrees and is no longer the same as it was a few months ago. Staying at home is a blessing and a task for both of them.

We can no longer depend on maids, cooks and other household help to take care of the house; we now need to manage our regular jobs as well as cooking, cleaning, gardening and other household chores. This may seem like too much work at first, but with the right core schedule, you will find life a lot easier.

Divide

The best thing about the lockdown is that everyone is home together. Therefore, you do not have to worry about doing all the chores in your home, you can get everyone in the family to try and help it. You can divide chores based on their age and the amount of time they have left.

Plan right time

It is important to plan your day. If you are working from 9 am to 5 pm, then you need to plan your work before and after it. If your spouse ends at 11 am and works from 8 pm, their working hours will vary, the same goes for children.

Not all cleaning has to be done every day

 

You can skip some days and do them on alternate days so that you do not have a long list every day. You can do laundry and mopping on alternate days, dusting and sweeping needs to be done daily, watering the plants daily or every other day.

 

Some work requires group effort 

 

Tasks such as cooking and washing clothes are great for the whole family to do together. While cooking, one bites, one cleans, some prepares, one can set utensils, etc. When it comes to washing clothes, someone can put clothes to wash, someone can dry them, someone can bring them in, and someone can do ironing or folding, and so on.

Create a rotational core calendar

 

To avoid boredom, it is a good idea to switch things up and give people a chance to do various tasks. In this way, a person is not always stuck with folding cloth or with water plants; they perform different tasks on a daily or weekly basis. It also brings in fairness as no person gets stuck in all the easy or difficult tasks.

 

Try to reduce the work that needs to be done

If there are not many people around to help, then look for ways to reduce the number of things you have to do. You can plan your meals in advance that way you cook more than before, store it in the fridge and you do not know how to cook for the week. You will have very few dishes for daily washing. You can also pay attention to ways to avoid using unnecessary plates, spoons or other utensils, which way you wash fewer dishes.

Get things done as soon as possible

Schedule tasks so that nothing is pending for a long time. When it comes to dishes, try to wash them as soon as possible, do not let them pile up in the sink. When you are using household items, make sure to place it in the right place as soon as possible. This way your house will look more organized and you will have less work to do at the end of the week.

With all these information, you will be able to create the best core schedule for yourself and your family. You can add and subtract work based on the number of family members, the size of your home and the number of things that need to be done. Remember, be safe and stay at home.