Category Archives: Home loan

Tax benefits on home loan 

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Few years back, people with moderate income, either inherited a home which was built by their predecessors or if they planned to build a house it was only when they got their annuity amount or got substantial money as an inheritance. The tax incidence on construction of a house was too high and there were not enough tax benefits attached to the same. Middle class people only day-dreamt about owning a proper house, it was the prerogative of rich or well off people to get a house constructed for themselves and their family.

The scenario changed with the liberalisation of Indian economy and housing was shortlisted as one of the thrust sector for revival of economy and accordingly required measures were taken to push up the things for housing sector. Apart from easing of home-loan process and interest rates, one of the push-ups to the housing sector given by Government was benefits in regard to Income-Tax. Here we shall give a short synopsis of few deductions to be claimed in regard to home loan:

Paid Interest will be treated as loss: The interest component of the EMI’s paid for the home loan will be treated as loss to the assessed and accordingly will be deducted from his income. This deduction will be effected from the year in which the construction of the home is complete. A maximum deduction of Rs. 2 Lakh can be claimed in regard  to home loan for the home used as own residence and if the property is rented then entire interest amount for the year shall be deducted.

Tax Benefit

Is deduction available on principal repayment? : The repayment of principal amount of home loan also falls under the purview of deduction factor. The part of EMI which is repaid as Principal amount is eligible for deduction u/s. 80C of Income tax. However, a maximum amount of Rs.  1.5 Lakh will be eligible for deduction.

Even Stamp duty paid and registration charges will be eligible for deduction: Section 80C also allows the amount paid towards Stamp duty and registration charges as deduction for the year the payments were made.

Pre-construction interest is also eligible for deduction: Along with, the deduction of Interest paid with EMI’s starts with the financial year the construction is over, the deduction for pre-construction interest can be claimed from the same year. However, it shall not be more than Rs. 2 lakhs for the house used as residence, divided in five equal instalments.

Why switch Home loans with another lender?

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‘Home Sweet Home’ is what every one wishes to own one during life span. Owning a house can be a tedious and a life time achievement for some but it may be a regular buy for others.

Presently, it has become easier for aspirants to own a house, thanks to easy loan facility availability and easy repayment options coupled with rock-bottom interest rates. Interest rate has become the bone of contention amongst housing loan companies and banks. With stiff competitions in the offing, the beneficiary is the loan seeker who is being wooed by financial institutions with cropped interest rates, zero or very nominal processing fees or longer tenure for repayment with attractive EMIs. To expand their customer base, these institutions have resorted to customer snatching practices with offering lower interest rates and a plethora of other services. There can be many pros and cons of switching Home loans with another lender; here we shall give a level platform for both aspects:

Does loyalty pay:

Yes, it pays because the shifting client saves time and money on credit checks, authentications, revaluations, paper work and lot of other formalities besides initiating everything afresh. No, because one might miss a very attractive offer which is in the offing. It will be better to first have a tough negotiation with existing loan-giver before shifting to another one if the deal happens to be that attractive.

Time factor:

Tenure of loan is an important factor while deciding loan shift. If the existing loan is to expire in a short period, then it will not be feasible to shift as like interest time also plays an important role in cost effectiveness. Yes, it will be favourable for an aspirant who has recently started paying EMIs as switching loans to a better package will be very cost effective.

Switching costs:

Home loans when switched might become costly in comparison to the present depending on offered package. The factors of Stamp duty, processing fees, legal costs and expenses of fresh documentations should be in for consideration. Another factor up for consideration is pre-payment penalty charged by present lender. If these factors are favourable then it will be a wise decision to shift loans to another lender subject to other conditions being favourable too.

Keep an eye on CIBIL ratings:

A person who has presently taken a loan from some banking or financial institution should always keep a sharp eye on his CIBIL ratings. Generally, the worth for CIBIL ratings gains importance only when a fresh loan or loan switch is contemplated. Don’t be under an impression that CIBIL ratings will not alter once approval to loan is given and further when payment is smooth. There may be many other factors which might alter ratings. The potential lender will certainly consider CIBIL ratings while considering a switch over borrower.

Decision is yours:

A borrower of home loans is a wise person in his own esteem. He knows the benefits and inadequacies of whether to continue with present loan or switch loan to a new lender. Continuing with present lender has the benefit of acquaintance which might be of help even if there is a negative twist to CIBIL scores because, here, personal touch gets a priority over data facts. On the other hand one may rue over loss of a jackpot opportunity if the shift of loan is not affected.

How to apply for a Home Loan

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Buying a home is one of the biggest decisions you’ll take in your life. It is usually a good idea to take a home loan for a section of the payment. In the beginning, the process may look bothersome, as it involves many criteria and stages, but it is a safe and easy way to own a home.

To begin with, you’ll need to give a formal application for the home loan to your bank. The application form will requires certain basic information about you such as your income, employment, educational details, details about the property, estimated costs and current means of financing the property. Though the requirements may vary slightly from bank to bank, all banks will require supporting documents to validate your information.

Home Loan Application

The following is a list of documents you should keep handy while applying for a loan:

  • Income proof
  • Age proof
  • Identity proof
  • Address proof
  • Employment details
  • Proof of educational qualifications
  • Details about the property if finalised
  • Bank statements

In addition to this, you will need to pay a ‘processing fee’ to the bank for the home loan application. The fee varies from bank to bank and is non-refundable. It is charged as a small percentage of the total loan amount. The fees is used by the bank to start and maintain the home loan process including completing various formalities during the entire period.

Once you have submitted the required documents and paid up the processing fee, the banks will begin evaluating and processing your application for the loan, based on your requirements.

How to apply for home loan?

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Now that you are well aware of the types of loans and EMI options and have decided on the one that’s best suited for you, let us take a look at the procedure to apply for a loan. It is fairly simple and quick:

Step 1: Submission of loan application form with relevant documents.

Step 2: Verification of the respective property and its supporting documents. This step takes 5 to 7 working days.

Step 3: Around the 7th day, the loan is sanctioned, if all criteria are met and documents are in place.

Step 4: Original property documents to be submitted, followed by which the loan agreement is signed.

Step 5: The loan cheque is disbursed in 10 to 15 working days.

The important documents to be submitted for approving the home loan are:

•Identity proof

•Residential proof

•Properly filled loan application form

•Photograph

•Sale agreement

•Last 6 months bank statement

•For business applicants documents describing the type of business, and IT returns.

•For salaried applicants last 3 month’s salary slips and From 16A.

Costs incurred while applying:

For a Home Loan, the basic registration charges, transfer charges and stamp duty costs are added to the cost of the home.

Some other charges include:

•Processing charge or booking fee – paid to the lender when you apply for the loan. It could be fixed or a percentage of the loan amount.

•Pre-payment penalty – if the loan is repaid before the agreed duration, some lenders may charge a penalty, up to 2% of the amount pre-paid.

•Miscellaneous costs – there could be a documentation or legal fee, also known as “application fee”.

What is Pre-EMI interest? What mode should I choose to pay my home loan?

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home-loan_3Pre-EMI is the interest portion on the disbursed loan amount that you pay until the full disbursal is done. i.e., your home loan behaves like an interest-only loan on the disbursed amount until the completion of construction. Your EMI payments start after the pre-EMI phase. Until then, your money does not reduce even a paisa of the outstanding loan amount.

Now you may wonder which is a better course to take while making loan repayments – EMI or Pre-EMIs?

The selection of full EMI repayment mode is deemed as beneficial in the longer run as borrower of the loan starts paying the principal amount from day one itself. So, in this case the total outstanding principal amount by the time the property is taken possession of, is reduced manifolds. However, in case project completion gets delayed, loan borrower may end up paying more than the principal loan amount even before getting possession of the property.

So, in all EMI mode can result in hefty payouts on the part of the borrower as he pays the interest amount during the loan tenure in addition to the term before the final disbursement of the loan. However, Pre-EMI may turn out to be a better loan repayment mode in case the homebuyer wishes to sell the property soon after getting the possession.

Things you should know about Pre-EMI home loan repayment mode:

Though pre-EMIs seem to be less burdensome at first as only the interest component on the loan amount disbursed is required to be paid until the final loan amount disbursement, it results in more number of payouts. In contrast, opting of full EMI mode results in lower tenure with the decrease in principal amount.

Pre-EMI interest amount paid when the property was under-construction does not qualifies for tax deduction with respect to the principal amount repaid. However, loan repayment either in pre-EMI mode or EMI in taxation terms is treated without much difference and in fact tax deductions are only allowed on the interest paid post the completion of the project. The interest amount paid is divided into five equal proportions and allowed for tax deduction once the project is completed.

Thus, before choosing the mode of home loan repayment, you must consider your purpose of buying the property, expected time for project completion and taxation factors.

What are the types of Home Loans available?

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Land Purchase Loans: Land purchase loans are taken to buy a plot of land on which a borrower wishes to construct his house. Most banks offer up to 85 percent of the price of the land. These loans can be availed for residential as well as for investment purposes. Almost all leading banks offer this loan.

Home Purchase Loans: The home purchase loans are the most popular and the most commonly available home loan variants. These loans can be used to finance the purchase of a new residential property or an old house from its previous owners. In this type of loan also, lenders usually finance up to 85 percent of the market value of the house. These loans are provided either on fixed interest rates or floating interest rates or as hybrid loans. All banking institutions and housing finance companies provide this type of loan.

Home Construction Loans: These loans can be availed by those individuals who want to construct a house according to their wishes rather than purchasing an already constructed one. The loan application and approval process for home construction loans are somewhat different from those of the commonly available housing loans. The plot of land on which the borrower wishes to construct the house should have been bought within a year for the cost of the land to be included as a component for calculating the total price of the house. If the plot has been purchased more than a year ago, then the above clause is not applicable. The borrower has to make a rough estimate of the cost that will be incurred for the construction of the house and then apply for the loan with the same amount. The lender then takes over from there and analyses the application to decide whether or not to sanction the loan. The approval or disapproval of the same is intimated by the lender to the applicant. The loan amount may be disbursed at one go or in several installments according to the progress in the construction of the house.

Home Expansion/Extension Loans: Home expansion or extension loans are useful in situations when people want to expand their existing house. Expansion includes alteration in the current structure of the residence to add extra space such as constructing a new room, a floor, a bigger bathroom or enclosing a balcony. Though many banks provide loans for these purposes as part of home expansion loans, some banks lend for the same purposes as part of their home improvement loans. It depends on how a bank has categorizes its loans.

Home Improvement loans: Home improvement loans are availed by individuals who already own a house but lack the funds to renovate it. All kinds of renovations and repair works can be financed using this variant of home loans such as internal and external painting, external repair works, electrical work, waterproofing and construction of underground or overhead water tank etc.

Home Conversion Loans: Those borrowers who have already purchased a house by taking a home loan but now want to buy and move to another house opt for the home conversion loans. Through these loans, they can fund the purchase of the new house by transferring the current loan to the new house. There is no need to repay the loan on the previous home. Though useful, this segment of home loans is accused of being quite expensive.

NRI Home Loans: NRI home loans is a specialized home loan variant which has been developed to assist non-residents in acquiring housing finance to buy residential property in India. These loans are meant exclusively for the non-resident Indians. The formalities of availing this segment of home loans is similar to the regular home loans, which are offered to residents, only the paperwork is a bit elaborate. Almost all public and private sector banks provide NRI home loans.

Balance Transfer Loans: Balance transfer option can be availed when an individual wants to transfer his home loan from one bank to another bank. This is usually done to repay the remaining amount of loan at lower interest rates or when a customer is unhappy with the services provided by his existing lender and wants to switch to another lender.

Stamp Duty Loans: Stamp duty loans are provided to pay off the stamp duty charges on the purchase of a property. The amount from this loan can be used solely for this purpose. This segment of home loans has yet not gained much popularity.

Bridged Loans: Bridge loans are short-term loans, which are meant for people who already own a residential property but are planning to buy a new house. It helps borrowers to fund the purchase of the new house until a buyer is identified for the old house. It is extended for a period of less than two years and requires the mortgage of the new house with the lender.

What is a Home Loan? Can I apply for it?

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homeloanHome Loan is a secured loan taken by a borrower from the bank issued against the property/security intended to be bought on the part by the borrower giving the banker a conditional ownership over the property i.e. if the borrower fails to pay back the loan, the banker can retrieve the lent money by selling the property.

If you are planning to buy your own house, it may be a good idea to apply for a home loan, rather than trying to arrange the entire purchase amount at once. It is also a good way of tax planning. And if you’re wondering whether or not you’re eligible for a home loan, please go through the following guides. Please note that the guide is only for assistance and may not be absolutely exhaustive, as criteria may differ slightly from one financial organisation to another.

Any adult individual with a source of income can apply for a Home Loan, if he/she meets the criteria of the Banking Financial Corporation / Non Banking Financial Corporation norms and eligibility criteria of the same.

You may NOT meet the criteria for getting a Home Loan if any of the following is true:

  • Suite filed or written off cases reported in the Credit Information Report [CIR]. This is indicated in the ‘Account Status’ section of your CIR.
  • Payment history trend – if there has been any default or amount overdue. This is indicated in the ‘Days Past Due’ [DPD] field of your CIR.
  • Company profile where you work – the banks generally have an approved list to whom they extend loan / credit card.
  • EMI to Income ratio: if your current total EMI exceeds your monthly salary by more than 50% then chances of getting a loan are reduced.