Tafadzwa Zimoyo
Form is temporary, class is permanent . . . This adage seems to refer to the countless numbers who strike gold in life and splash on huge mansions fit to house the super rich.
These fabulous houses with countless rooms and all sorts of fancy extras like full size theatres and own gyms have become the dream of many Zimbabweans. The Nollywood movies with their portrayal of palatial dwellings and sojourns into other lands seem to have inspired Zimbabweans to give all they can in building or buying humongous residences.
After all, who does not want to live like the Hollywood A list stars and other rich and famous people who are the modern equivalents of the princes and princesses of old?
But a lot of people are finding out the hard way that building a massive home is not the end of establishing an upper class life, but just the beginning. They are discovering that owning a property is one involved and expensive business of maintenance, renovation, improvements and updates.
Which is all okay, if you have very deep pockets and can afford to fork out thousands and thousands of dollars each year to stop your exquisite home from deteriorating into a believable haunted mansion lookalike. Costs will include bills for air conditioning, light, water, and mortgage when the house has been used to get a loan.
The so called noble families of England found that their stately homes were too expensive to run without the benefit of a few thousand serfs to exploit so most decided to turn them over to trusts and only use designated wings for residential purposes.
The trend has caught up in Zimbabwe where many houses with owners in residence are now being used as business premises.
This situation has seen some owners of these houses coming up with enterprising ideas that help them raise money that goes into keeping these posh mansions appealing. It is also as a way of earning an extra buck to bring up the other parts of their lives to the same standards as their accommodation.
The owner can occupy a few rooms while the rest can be used as a guest lodge, auditorium, hotel, crèche or salon, among other money-spinning ventures. Greenhouses and market gardens in the backyard are also popular for those with steady water supplies.
So popular has this concept become that many are adopting it and are reporting to be earning a huge turnover from it. Jeniffer Chirume (not her real name) who converted her house into a guest lodge said she decided to try this out after she saw the idea on a television programme.
“I turned part of this house into a lodge and the rooms are always booked out. I don’t intervene with my clients’ privacy and after booking them in, they know my family confines itself to the other part of the house which the clients don’t have access to. This is strictly business although I have built a kind of relationship with some of my clients.
“The only challenge that I have is how to acquire a licence. But all the same, I am content with what I am earning,” she said.
Phillip Chiyangwa’s “White House” has been turned into a mini-mall with one daughter running a lingerie shop and another doing brisk business in top end hair extensions. There is work in progress which will reportedly see one son selling suits and the mother going into décor accessories.
A minister who has been building a major dwelling with three floors complete with an elevator over the past decade is rumoured to be now saying that he intends to turn the development into a boutique hotel, rather than occupying the whole complex for private purposes.
Genius Kadungure, who is better known for his extravagant spending, recently posted pictures on Facebook of a construction that looks fit for a prince. He commented that the huge building will contain both his home and his office.
Some homeowners have taken to making their houses into function venues for everything from birthday bashes, church gatherings, weddings to funeral receptions.
“I started hiring a part of my house for all these functions after some people remarked that I was keeping it well. I tried it out and since then, I have never looked back,” explained Menard Mpofu of Marlborough.
While this trend earns money for its owners, it however has its side effects. “Sometimes, people turn rowdy and start fighting, destroying property and windows, and this means that I have to have tight security handy. The police and the city fathers are also after us because these are residential stands where such activities are not allowed because it disturbs the peace of others,” Mpofu said.
Most of these houses have been converted into creches with billboards announcing their activities tacked at the gates, while the security walls are decorated with drawings and paintings of characters from cartoon clips.
The money might be rolling but most owners have since been relegated to the backyard, so to speak while the business takes over the prime part of the home.
However, Theresa Mazoyo who owns a 35-roomed house, said it is not just expense but convenience that drives one to use the space under their residential roof instead of setting up a separate office elsewhere.
One gets rid of the headaches of commuting and high overheads in rented offices.
Mazoyo said she is using one suite with the rest of the space given over to business.
“I decided to open a lodge in Glen Lorne targeting business personalities because have seen the need of the quiet and conducive environment. I have eight suites including executive deluxe. Initially after building this house in 2000 I wanted to accommodate pastors and Christians who will be having their church activities but later decided to diverge. Now the house hosts weddings, parties and corporate functions,” she said.
She said some of her clients come from Cape Town, Namibia and the UK.
“Business is quiet for now but I can boast I have overseas clients who usually come and book their rooms, do their business here. I don’t mix my house with business. Our wing is separate from the lodge and I have four children,” she said.
The AFM member said she turned the other wing of her house into a lodge in late 2000 and admitted that the money from clients has helped her to renovate and maintain the house.