opinion

Tracking the cloud: Rain gods still taking their time

Maharashtra is doing good after two consecutive years of drought. But North East has not been as lucky, with a deficiency of 35 percent so far. It is worse still in Gujarat, which is counting a deficiency of 83 percent at this point

Brexit fallout: Threat for equities is more from currency swings

Back home, a section of market players are counting on a dovish RBI Governor to replace Raghuram Rajan in a couple of months now. If both situations play out as expected, it means liquidity will be the least of worries for bulls in the Indian stock market.

VIEW: Much awaited correction finally here,don't wait for bottom

What‘s making investors edgy is that unlike financial crises, political crises cannot be quickly fixed with monetary tools like rate cuts and liquidity infusion. But that won‘t stop central banks from trying.

Credit card against fixed deposit offers a slew of advantages

One should know how a credit card against a fixed deposit works and use it judiciously.

Factors driving the growth of smart homes in India

Smart homes are a reality now and many developers are investing in smart homes. Consumers too are savvy when it comes to choosing the right homes.

Variable SIP: Interesting way of investing systematically in MF

It helps you but more when the markets are falling.

Positioning & potential of villas in Indian real estate

Top management officials of the major office occupiers in each of the respective cities along with NRIs and HNIs are the typical target audience in the villa segment. Typical second home buyers looking at villas as holiday homes are also a potential target for this segment.

How India can bridge affordable housing gap

The Indian governments also needs to step in to cut down the financing costs for developers of affordable housing by reducing the risks associated with housing projects and making them more affordable - for example, by guaranteeing tenants or buyers of completed units.

Find out: Best commercial localities in Mumbai

Despite the increasing prices commercial properties in Mumbai continue to remain in the upswing mode. It is believed by the real estate companies and developers that over a period of time one can get returns as high as 15 to 20%, if invested in the commercial property in Mumbai.

Shortage in affordable housing: How to tackle it?

According to the 12th 5-year plan (2012 – 2017), the housing shortage in India has reduced to 18.78 million. However, the data collection is questionable and government departments continue to argue on the exact figure.

Quality construction: What does it really mean?

Home buyers often select properties on the basis of location advantages such as availability of public transport, shopping and hospitals. In larger cities like Mumbai and Delhi NCR, plots in such locations are quickly snapped up by developers because they know that the location itself will sell their projects.

Should you buy a home in Pune this festive season?

Pune is one city where the residential property market has maintained its momentum even in these challenging times. In fact, Pune has been one of the best-performing residential real estate markets in the recent past.

Truth behind property boom during Indian festive seasons

The Indian festive season stands for prosperity, but if there are no signals of prosperity from the country's economy, nothing can induce aspiring home buyers to take the plunge.

Important facts about home loans

While RBI stipulates a ceiling of 75%, some banks are willing to include stamp duty and registration charges within the purview of the loan, which technically makes the loaned amount 80% of the agreement value.

It's a slow festive season for Indian real estate

While demand exists, it is still held in abeyance by various economic factors, including the natural lag between the announcement and implementation of government policy catalysts.

Fixed home loan rate: Is it in vogue again?

Fixed rate of interest loans for time being are to be avoided. These loans though claim to be offering fixed rate throughout the loan tenure, there is a reset clause at the end of three years or five years, which in a way enables bank to reprice the loan or put simply - change the interest rate on the home loan.

Home loan guide: Mistakes to be avoided

Before you start the process of home loan application, ensure that you are well aware about the details such as personalized credit score or CIBIL (India‘s leading credit rating agency) score. It is more advisable to pull out the personalized score on a regular basis to be clear if it is free from identity thefts.

Refinancing your home loan: What, why & when?

There are several ways that a new refinanced loan can help your family manage their monthly budget as well as long term financial goals. Below are the two primary reasons that you may want to consider refinancing your home loan.

Five reasons to invest in property this festive season

We tell why now is the perfect time to consider investing in the newly revived property market in India

How much of your home do you own?

Be an impressive borrower and understand your amortization schedule. Understanding the amortization schedule from a home loan adviser or expert may be good idea.

How long should you take a home loan for?

How long should you take a home loan for?

Things to know before buying new property

There is a bit of work that a buyer would need to take when they buy a house property and this relates to the process of paying taxes.

Taxation of house property decoded!

The income tax laws provides for taxation of your income under various heads. Income from house property is one of them.

GST deadlock persists as state FMs stick to their demands

States also want the threshold limit for GST levy to be kept at Rs 10 lakh while the limit for dual control of GST is being recommended at Rs 1.5 crore, along with legislative powers for states.