Home loans: Take a mix of fixed and floating rates, if your risk appetite is low.
Go for a fixed rate," your banker is likely to insist if you enquire about a home loan. But floating is what makes sense at present
Floating rate home loan borrowers, stuck on higher interest rates, can expect some relief from today (July 1).
HFCs and banks expect a drop in demand for housing loans in the short-term.
Housing finance major HDFC on Thursday lowered its home loan rate to 8.25 per cent for the first year in its new dual rate scheme, commonly known as teaser loans, applicable on fresh loans.
ICICI Bank is planning to increase its home loan rates by 50 basis points "anytime before the end of the current fiscal".
rediffGURU and financial planning expert Colonel Sanjeev Govila (retd) answers your personal finance-related questions.
Urban housing mortgage major HDFC announced that it will cut its lending rates by the end of the week.
Tata Sons Private Limited, the holding company of the Tata group, witnessed a precipitous drop in its net debt to Rs 5,656 crore in the 10 months ended January this year, as its cash reserves burgeoned to Rs 9,516 crore during this period. Eight years ago, in 2015-16, Tata Sons reported a net debt of Rs 5,132 crore; from March 2017 until March 2023, this figure was above the Rs 14,700 mark, peaking at Rs 27,437 crore at the end of March 2019, according to data sourced from Capitaline. The company's gross debt nearly halved to Rs 15,173 crore until January 2024 on a standalone basis, down from a peak of Rs 31,363 crore reported in the financial year ended March 2019.
Here are a few guidelines on how to select a housing finance company.
Happy days are here again for home buyers as the bank freezes the rate for a year.
HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh on Friday exuded confidence that the synergies between HDFC Bank and the group companies will deepen with the bank taking on the mantle of ownership of the group following the reverse merger likely to be effective from Saturday. As chairman of HDFC Ltd, Parekh in the last message to the shareholders said home loans will now be complemented with HDFC Bank's core strengths -- its sales engine, execution capabilities at scale and deep insights on consumer behaviour. The reverse merger of parent HDFC Ltd with HDFC Bank is expected to be effective from July 1.
The bank has targeted to disburse an additional Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion) of home loans by April end with the introduction of the new scheme, a statement said in Mumbai on Thursday. Lending rates for loans between Rs 500,000 and Rs 20 lakhs would now be offered at eight per cent as against 9.25 per cent earlier, the bank said.
Prospective buyers must make a well-considered decision regarding whether this is the right time to buy a house, particularly with home loan rates at near-peak levels, and the risk of job losses looming in many sectors.
HDFC has joined the interest rate war on housing loans by slashing both variable and fixed rates by 0.5 to 0.75 per cent for individual loans with effect from February 5.\n\n
Home buyers should look at smarter options before taking a loan.
Gaurav Mohta, chief marketing officer, Home First Finance Company, answers home loan queries.
rediffGURU Ramalingam Kalirajan answers your personal finance queries.
If you're a beginner eager to embark on wealth-building journey in the real estate sector, Karan Shetty shares this comprehensive guide on how to get started.
You can always prepay the loan and/or switch to another financier
'You cannot have only one product or one market or one customer segment.'
The banking regulator was uncomfortable with the runaway pace at which consumer credit was growing.
'We are working with a few housing finance companies to drive affordable lending because that's where we believe our sweet spot is.'
Avoid discontinuing your SIPs. Persist for at least 7-10 years.
Nominations and addresses are of paramount importance in bank accounts, insurance policies, mutual funds, etc.
Housing sales are likely to be hit, especially in affordable and mid-income categories, following the RBI's decision to hike repo rate, according to real estate developers and consultants. However, the impact of RBI's decision to raise the benchmark lending rate by 50 basis points to 5.40 per cent is expected to be for a short term, they added. This is the third consecutive rate hike after a 40 basis points and 50 basis points increase in May and June, respectively.
Housing sales rose 36 per cent year-on-year to a record 120,280 units across seven major cities during the July-September period on robust demand amid stable mortgage rate, according to Anarock. Housing sales stood at 88,230 units in the year-ago period across the seven major cities. Releasing the data, real estate consultant Anarock said average housing prices across the seven cities grew 11 per cent annually in the July-September period this year.
IDFC First Bank delivered good results in the first quarter of this financial year (Q1FY24), but some analysts are concerned the bank is fully-valued. So, there has been profit-booking after a price rise. Growth went side-by-side with a focus on cutting interest costs and exposure to high non-performing infrastructure loans. The mortgage book is 28 per cent, of which 24 per cent is home loans and loans against property.
Make sure buying a house won't lead to compromises on other crucial financial goals.
Avoid discontinuing your SIPs. Persist for at least 7-10 years.
'Set aside around six months' monthly expenses for emergencies.' 'Keep this money in safe and liquid options, such as liquid funds and fixed deposits.'
The bulk of an investor's portfolio should be in shorter-duration funds of up to one year portfolio duration.
A prudent guideline for self-employed individuals is to target at least 10 to 15 times their actual annual income when determining life insurance coverage.
End users should take the plunge despite higher home loan rates as these tend to be cyclical.
Home loan repayment for an under construction property will get tax benefits only after the buyer takes possession.
'Use this money to build an emergency fund if you do not have one.'
'The rising cost of construction, the cost of doing business, high compliance, and inflation/interest rates going up have already reduced returns to single digits.'
To spur war among lenders to grab existing loans
Banks typically fund about 70 per cent to 80 per cent of the cost of a property
All real estate developers may not be able to avail the benefit of Reserve Bank of India's one-time restructuring scheme as they might not meet the required financial ratios and have the necessary credit rating, HDFC vice chairman and CEO Keki Mistry said. He was speaking at a real estate and infrastructure investor summit organised by Naredco. "Restructuring may not necessarily help every developer because not too many will be able to meet the criteria laid down in terms of meeting the various ratios and getting credit ratings," Mistry said.
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