Get extra tax exemption on your first home loan

The Finance Bill 2016, which is expected to be approved by Parliament during the ongoing second half of the Budget session, provides for up to Rs 50,000 tax benefit on housing loans up to Rs 35 lakh taken for first residential property. The proposal aims to promote the government’s ‘housing for all’ scheme and strengthen the real estate sector which is facing a massive slowdown for last three-four years.

The Bill, which was presented by the FM Arun Jaitley read, “In furtherance of the goal of the Government of providing ‘housing for all’, it is proposed to incentivise first-home buyers availing home loans, by providing additional deduction in respect of interest on loan taken for residential house property from any financial institution up to Rs 50,000.”

After the Finance Bill is passed by Parliament, the amendments in this regard in the Income Tax Act will take effect from April 1, 2017. This incentive is proposed to be extended to a house property of a value less than Rs 50 lakh and a loan not exceeding Rs 35 lakh has been sanctioned during the period from April 1, 2016 to March 31, 2017.

, “the tax incentive will encourage first-time home buyers and increase the demand for housing significantly,” Realtors’ apex body CREDAI Getamber Anand said

The proposed deduction is over and above the limit of Rs 2 lakh provided for a self-occupied property under section 24 of the I-T Act.

Loan Against Property

Purchasing a house is an indicator of our financial stability. Experts believe that the pursuit of buying a house ends up restricting the buyer’s financial ability. However, very few experts tell that the house can be utilized in a wise manner. This blog posts try to shed light on how you can use your house to achieve your desired financial goals.

Loan against Property

Loan against Property (LAP) can be defined as a form of secured loan received from a bank or a financial institution by mortgaging one’s existing property. LAP can be used for meeting requirements for such as launching a new business venture, its expansion, pursuing higher education, medical expenses, working capital requirements etc.

LAP, which can be applied individually or jointly with other persons or legal entity, can be taken as term loan with fixed EMI or as an overdraft facility. As an OD, LAP gives the much needed flexibility by helping meet the fluctuating requirements of capital in a business. While LAP has no upper cap on the amount of loan to be applied, the amount is ascertained by the banks as per the market value of property and repayment capacity of the applicant. The loan to value ratio normally tends to vary from 45-90% of the property’s market value and can be availed against residential, industrial and commercial property including a warehouse or a land parcel.

We will show how one can avail a LAP

Eligibility  :   Eligibility for the loan is decided on criteria such as age, income etc. The eligibility can be ascertained by checking the same or by visiting the bank’s website.

Choose the right lender    : One can choose one’s lender by comparing fundamental parameters like interest rates, application fees, processing fees and legal charges of different banks.

Application : On selecting the lender, the applicant has to fill the application form providing information about financial assets and liabilities; property details and other personal and professional details.

Documentation : LAP applicants are mainly for the self-employed segment and necessary documents are needed for income assessment.

Checking CIBIL score : The credit history of the applicant is checked through CIBIL score. The CIBIL score goes a long way in whether the customer receives the loan or not.

Technical and Legal clearance : Before approving the loan, the property documents are legally authenticated as the same acts as the security against the loan. Second is the valuation of the property determining the loan amount to be given as collateral.

Issue of Sanction letter : After the credit appraisal, the sanction letter is issued to borrower giving details like loan tenure, repayment options and rate of interest which has to be duly accepted and sent back to the lender.

Disbursal : At the end of all the above procedures, the loan amount is disbursed with the assurance that the same will be repaid within a stipulated timeframe. Businesses can use this loan instrument to make the most of their respective business ventures.

Suntek Realty

Mumbai-based premium real estate developer has announced the signing of a definitive agreement with leading global investment firm KKR for the construction of its flagship projects in the city. Under the said agreement, KKR’s investment vehicles, will provide funding up to Rs150 crore (US$22.4 million) towards the construction of Sunteck’s flagship luxury residential developments viz. Signia Isles and Signia Pearl to be located in Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai.

Talking about the partnership, Kamal Khetan, Chairman & Managing Director, Sunteck Realty Ltd., said, “We are excited to enter into a relationship with such a major and experienced global investor like KKR and attract this strategic investment. In the past, Sunteck has grown with a good mix of debt and equity with few and exclusive partners and going forward, looks at this transaction with KKR as the initiation of a long-term strategic partnership.   We see appealing acquisition and growth opportunities in today’s market and believe Sunteck can leverage its brand and execution strength – and that of its partners – to explore large acquisition opportunities in the near future.”

Sharing his thoughts on the partnership, Sanjay Nayar, CEO of KKR India was quoted saying, “We are delighted to have partnered with Sunteck. KKR’s investment in Signia Isles and Signia Pearl is the beginning of our relationship with the group. Sunteck has a strong reputation and execution track record in Mumbai, where we see compelling residential and commercial real estate investment opportunities. We look forward to deepening our relationship with the group to explore more of these opportunities in the future.”

Signia Isles and Signia Pearl, expecting openings in 2016,  has brought in lot of interest from high-profile tenants such as industrialists, senior executives of leading financial services firms and corporations, and Bollywood personalities.

Commercial Property

According to real estate experts, it’s good times to make an investment in the commercial property as companies are expanding their business with an aim to improve their business sentiment. If you are looking for regular cash flow with higher return and rental, so investment in commercial property is better than residential property.

As per experts, now commercial real estate space is witnessing a revival with little high demand at the time when real estate developers are not building commercial space from last four to five years due to global financial crisis and now its expected that soon existing stock will get consumed. And in simple words we can say that it’s the main reason why real estate developers and commercial property owners are receiving higher rental yields and now people are looking it as good investment option. Indian economy is growing with growth rate of 7.3 percent, apart from that inflation has been reined in with the gradual growth in manufacturing sector. However; with all these kinds of growth commercial office spaces are also gaining momentum because companies are looking for expansion due to improved business sentiments. These days big e-commerce such as; Snapdeal, Amazon and Flipkart are looking for commercial spaces to set up their warehouses, followed by IT-enabled services and the information technology sector as well as financial services and insurance (BFSI) segments and banking sector and they all are resulting in high absorption levels in commercial properties and quality office spaces.

It is expected that in near future the industries such as; engineering, pharmaceuticals and manufacturing will provide further impetus to the real estate market. According to Amit Bhatia of Assets and Business Banking in Deutsche Bank India, “Its best time in India to invest in the commercial properties as it is giving low capital values with high rental yields. However; there are many micro markets where price of commercial properties are still low than the residential property and commercial properties are offering double the rental yields”. The more he added that Grade-A properties including offices, retails or other spaces at high street are also are bound to deliver capital appreciation and higher rentals. However; for commercial properties the capital appreciation is low due to many speculative buying in residential property. On the other hand office spaces are more driven by end users whereas; commercial space might not be as easy to sell as residential spaces are and its also easy to find tenants for offices spaces in comparison of residential.

Why it’s best time to invest in commercial property:

From investment point of view the difference between commercial and residential property is that in commercial real estate you will get more rental in comparison of residential property, but when it comes to sale property, so its pretty easy to sale residential property, but its tuff to sale commercial property, as per the statement of Viral Desai, National Director at Knight Frank India. The more he added that in past few years, residential real estate market has seen more appreciation, but now its on peak and about to get over. However; it is expected that in near future office spaces are continues to give better rental yields. In residential property the annual rental yields are about 2 percent, but when it comes to office space annual rental yields are about 8 to 11 percent. Offices spaces are offering good opportunity for investors as tenants are looking for good quality lock-in of leases spaces.

Income from commercial property:

It is suggested to invest in the property which is on the lease already because it will provide you regular cash flow, as per the statement of Desai. In normal cases, people prefer to go for the rental agreements of two to five years, if the space is for office and during that duration the tenants are locked in for that period. So if you are about to invest Rs 5 to 6 crore in an office space, so you can expect to get Rs 50 to 60 lakh as annual rental income. Apart from that you should also check that which kind of company has leased out the property and for what kind of business, for example if banks or some other brands has leased out that property, so you can expect that they will continue for next 15 to 20 years at least because they will avoid to change their address. If you are planning to buy property no multiple owners and large part of property is with real estate developers, so property maintenance will not be big challenge. As per the statement of Sanjay Dutt, Managing Director of Cushman & Wakefield, “The top three cities which have saw good supply and demand in the period of January to September 2015 were Pune, Delhi-NCR and Bengaluru. However; till now they have collectively contributed 77 percent to incremental supply and 65 percent to commercial absorption and on the same time you can expect annual rental yields of 11 to 12 percent for Bengaluru, whereas; in Delhi and Pune you can expect annual rental yields of 7 to 9 percent.

Why should you leverage the opportunity?

We all know that unit size of commercial real estate is larger than the residential and due to that investors need to invest much larger amount in commercial property. And apart from that they will get no tax incentive for investing in commercial real estate, as they are used to get for homes. If you are thinking that price of property is too high and you will be not able to manage it, so you can take loan for the property against rental income.

Checklist before buying commercial property:

1. It’s recommended to check the background and experience of real estate developer in commercial property.
2. If there are any existing tenants, so better to consult with them and its suggested to check that what kind of companies have leased out the space and the business the tenants are into

• Check the infrastructure, society, location as well as surrounding area.

1. If you are taking loan or borrowing money, so never keep your property vacant for long periods.
2. If buying resale property, so prefer to buy leased out property.

Mumbai Metro

Phase 1 of the Mumbai Metro which runs from Ghatkopar to Andheri has resulted in a substantial improvement in the realty development along the metro route and areas close to metro stations due to east-west connectivity within the city saving office goers precious time of commuting to-fro work.

As there was no direct link earlier, this metro route has come as a blessing for commuters by taking the load off the existing road and rail infrastructure. This decongestion has attracted buyers who were hitherto hesitant to buy residential or commercial spaces in these areas. Places like Chandivali and Sakinaka in Andheri (east) are easily accessible now. “The demand for both residential & commercial property is heading northward due to the Mumbai Metro,” says Manju Yagnik, vice-chairperson, Nahar Group.

Experts believe that infrastructure development acts as a catalyst that boosts residential and commercial property segments. In this context, the Phase -1 of the Mumbai

Metro has played a crucial role. Considering the pivotal function of rail infrastructure development in the city, Maharashtra chief minister and chairman, MMRDA, Devendra Phadnavis  has sanctioned an outlay of Rs 35,400 crore for the development of 118-kms Metro network in Mumbai alone.

The network includes a 40-kms Dahisar-CharkopBandra-Mankhurd Metro-2 corridor (Rs 12,000 crore), 40-kms Wadala-Ghatkopar-Thane-Kasarvadavali Metro-4 corridor Rs 12,000 crore), 27-kms Dahisar-E-AndheriE-Bandra-E Metro-5 corridor (Rs 8,100 crore) and 11-kms Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road Metro-6 corridor (Rs 3,300 crore).

All these Metro projects will certainly draw property consumers to adjoining areas due to resultant enhanced connectivity. Infrastructural proposals have always contributed to the real estate boom in the city and Nishant Agarwal, managing director, Avighna, believes that the future infrastructure plans like the new metro routes will also continue to fuel growth in the real estate sector.

Property prices in the neighboring areas of the metro rise significantly once the project gets on track. Ramesh Nair, COO business and international director, JLL India, points out that the areas near Ghatkopar-Andheri Metro line have already seen a price rise of nearly 400 percent over the last eight years. A similar trend may continue with the announcement of the new metro corridors in the city.

Priyanka_Chopra

It seems that these days Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra is looking for the plush property in Mumbai from last three years, but now her search is about to end as recently she found her dream home. This actress has apparently purchased a huge luxury bungalow in the area of Versova, which has beach front view and has 15 exotic bedrooms after whopping Rs. 100 crore, as per the report of DNA. Rs. 100 crore is huge amount and has raised the eyebrows of many people in film industry because only fewer people can afford this much huge amount in industry. And on the other side she owns whole floor in Andheri building where cops busted a sex racket at from Charisma Spa and rescued three women on Novemeber 7, 2014, earlier she had leased it out to the Manik Soni, who is spa owner.

Her property was used to run sex racket :

When police raided in spa centre in Versova earlier this month to expose flesh trade racket, so property papers revealed that the premises actually belong from actress Priyanka Chopra and she has given out the property on rent. According to sources, “This property belongs from Priyanka Chopra and clinic of her mother is situated just next to this place, however; the entire floor which is of 3,000 sq ft area, belongs from actress. In the beginning of July 2015, the police had raided the place and they got to know that the place was used for sex trade. Police was arrested the manager Dinesh Chandrakant with three adult females who were rescued, however; Manik Soni is still absconding. On November 7, 2014 Versova police received a tip from one of customer Charisma Spa and Beauty Centre which is located in Vastu Precinct building at Shastri Nagar is involved in the flesh trade and after that on the basis of information police sent a team to verify the information.

All the three women have been sent to a rehabilitation centre while confirming the report that actress owns the property of spa centre. Case investigating officer stated that “currently we are searching for Manik Soni who is still abscond, once we will arrest him we will get the details about the agreement between him and the actress”. According to cops her mother Madhu had visited the premises with her son Siddharth to attend the launch ceremony of spa centre, but according to other sources Priyanka has many other commitments at hand and due to that she had rented this property which becomes another big trouble for her. Spa owner Manik Soni is on the run, and he was regular at many Bollywood parties as well as he know many television and film personalities, as per police. Investigation is in the process and once the accused is arrested police will verify the agreement and then according to that police will take the action. However; Priyanka Chopra was unavailable for any comment.

She buys luxury bungalow in Rs. 100 Crore :

This luxurious bungalow known as Dariya Mahal and it is among the seven most lavish properties located at the peaceful street in Versova. However; all the properties on the street are representing the vintage architecture. According to reports, in 1930, British architect, Claude Batley was built the bungalow for wealthy textile merchant who was famous with the name Maneklala Chunilal Chinai, but after his death the bungalow was transferred his grandson Harish Chinai and currently he is the owner of property.

Till now Bollywood producers where using the Dariya Mahal for shooting purposes, but recently Priyanka Chopra finalized the deal with Harish Chinai, current owner of bungalow. According to reports, Priyanka Chopra fallen in love with the vintage architecture and antiquity of bungalow and it was in her wishlist. But owners want to retain that retain the property and due to that actress have to negotiate well.  According to reports, Priyanka has eye on one more bungalow and ie. Mayur Mahal in Juhu. For Mayur Mahal, Saif Ali Khan and Akshay Kumar have also expressed their interest in deal, but deal is still in process. However; currently Priyanka is living with her mother in a posh flat of Lokhandwala, ever since her father passed away and now they are planning to move in to her new Rs. 100 crore bungalow.

Priyanka’s Dariya Mahal :

Dariya Mahal_front view

Priyanks’s Dariya-Mahal

Actor Shahid Kapoor

If sources are to be believed then Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor has recently bought a plush, elegant apartment at ground floor in Juhu, Mumbai. This new house of Shahid is alongside the Juhu beach and is in the same building where Vidya Balan also lives. His new spacious home is at the prime location on the beach side in Juhu.

Shahid has added advantage of approximately 2000 sq.cm of a private beach area which the actor enjoys and busy turning that area into a private garden. Though he is still residing in his apartment in Versova as the neighbour of his ex-girlfriend Priyanka Chopra, he is paying attention to every minute details personally.

Sources say that Sasha is keenly reading books and consulting experts for making his own privatised garden. He is reluctant to hire any professional for this job, he is unwilling to compromise in any way by following any shortcuts methods.

With a view to develop an alternative to Bandra Kurla complex in the eastern part of Mumbai Metropolitan region, the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) had planned another ‘Bandra-Kurla Complex-like Business Growth Centre (BGC)’ for Dombivli.

The proposal is lying with the state government. Once the proposal is accepted, the project will take off. The idea is to bring a ‘Business Growth Centre’ as named by MMRDA to Dombivli to invite industries here and provide opportunities to professionals so they don’t have to travel to Mumbai for work.

Rapid industrial growth in Thane district has necessitated such a move from the MMRDA. “The proposed business growth centre will bring industry to Dombivli. “Ultimately, the aim is to reduce travelling time of the working professionals within the Mumbai metropolitan region and help individuals to increase their productivity. Long ago, the MMRDA had identified a patch of land measuring 4.24 lakh sq mts for development of the business centre. The agency has sent its proposal for approval to the state government,” said an MMRDA official.

The business growth centre will be modelled on the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) which was developed by the MMRDA on a 180 hectare plot. BKC houses the Bharat Diamond Bourse, financial institutions like Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services (IL&FS), Mumbai Cricket Association headquarters, banks and other commercial offices of leading corporate houses. “BKC has all the amenities for business development. It was essentially developed to ease the pressure off south Mumbai and shift businesses close to places like Mahim and Andheri’s MIDC industrial complex. Employers benefited because productivity improved,” said another senior MMRDA official.

The BGC will aid and support the industries at Thane-Belapur belt, Information Technology (IT) parks near Navi Mumbai, special economic zone near Navi Mumbai and industrial complexes set up by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) in the district. “During times of recession the region will benefit from the proposed business centre. MIDC has its industrial complex near Kalyan. It remains to be seen as to what facilities are offered at these centres. It will definitely reduce the travelling time for the employees, also save time and costs in transportation. It will provide stimulus to industrialisation in the region. As for housing requirements for the working professionals, Dombivli has numerous ready-to-move-in and under-construction units, in the budget range of Rs 1-1.5 crore. Most of the township projects are in the initial launch phase and offer 2 and 3BHK flats in a price range of Rs 45-80 lakh. Several small scale projects will be offering possession later this year, hence, impacting the total supply available in the area and giving investment options to investors.

Mumbai remains the top favourite of property buyers, reveals a recent survey. The survey, conducted by a private portal included a 2,583 strong sample of 40 percent respondents in the 25-35 age group and the rest above the age of 46 year.
One-third of the respondents felt that the time is right to make a property investment decision, while 49 percent plan to wait and watch for some time, with the remaining 16 percent saying the time is not right yet. Interestingly, two-thirds – 62 percent – of all respondents expect property prices to soar in the near future while the rest feel that there will be an escalation in the next one-two years, but a total of 79 percent prefer to go for long-term investments in property.
As far the preferred mode of investment goes, flats or apartments top the list with 40 percent of the respondents, followed by individual bungalows with 24 percent and residential plots favoured by 23 percent of the people. Commercial properties found favour with just seven percent and country houses and row-houses were chosen by three percent each.
After Mumbai come Bangalore and Chennai which are hot favourite for all property investments even now. The other cities next on the rankings include Pune, Kolkatta, Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad.
More than half – 55 percent – of the respondents expect the Modi government to reduce home loan rates and the rest demand better infrastructure and setting up of a real estate regulator.

Real estate trades are no doubt a huge task, but sometimes it becomes more disturbing due to our own lack of planning. While planning to sell your property even if for the first time, you may want to stay one step ahead. It is better to have a checklist beforehand to avoid any mistakes. Following tips can be of great help while selling a property:

• Make sure that you possess all the relevant documents like, Tax paid receipts, letter of allotment, society documents, a registered sale deed from the past owner, , power of Attorneys, encumbrance certificate, sanctioned plan, Approved Sanction Plan, a clear title etc.

• List all the positive points of your property to attract the buyers. At shopsandhomes.com try to create a unique selling proposal, such as any special facility that is rarely offered by any sellers in your locality.

• In case you are not a pro in real estate industry, hire an agent to understand the market. A real estate agent can help you in promoting your property and also help you throughout the process till the end. shopsandhomes.com is the best place to come for finding the right agent.

• Find out the correct market value of your asset. Your pricing should be realistic because if your price right, buyers will get attracted to your property. At shopsandhomes.com can assist you in understanding the market.

• After deciding the value, you need to find a potential buyer. But before that you must consider certain things. Except with the permission of express RBI, citizens of certain countries are forbidden from purchasing a property in India. An NRI can sell property only to an Indian resident.

• Market your property. Take support from your relatives, friends and colleagues for advertising your property. Put your property details with pictures and videos on online portals like shopsandhomes.

• Maintain it to the best possible extent, make it completely presentable. A buyer does not want to see a property with any pending repair work.

• Be honest and open while dealings with the buyers. Don’t hide anything from them; never forget that attitude matters a lot.

• Don’t refrain from negotiation; if you are getting a genuine buyer and if the deal is acceptable to you then there is nothing wrong in that. Don’t be too hard on yourself, or you may end up losing a potential buyer.

• Now, the last stage, the legal matters – you have to communicate with your governing body regarding the deal. If your property is a part of any housing community, then you require a No Objection Certificate from the society. Then later, at the sub registrar’s office it will get transferred under the name of buyer.