Understanding Reverse Mortgages

Once a person has crossed his (her) earning years, but has not planned for the retirement years, or financial planning has gone awry due to heavy unforeseen expenses/losses, or inflation has taken away the purchasing power of savings etc., what does he (she) do to live the remaining years on this planet without seeking handouts… Continue Reading

Apartment Vs. Independent House – Make the Right Choice

Our cities have started to grow vertically on account of residential apartment complexes, shopping malls and multi-storeyed office space, technology parks etc., being built at a frenetic pace. A City like Mumbai, of course, was forced to grow vertically due to several factors, much before other metros in India had embraced this model of growth.… Continue Reading

Budget 2014 and Impact on Real Estate Market

This time around the budget has many proposals which directly and indirectly impact the real estate market positively. If we take the direct tax proposals, it has many goodies for the middle class and the salaried. Even though premium housing has emerged as a niche segment, the bulk of the housing demand continues to come… Continue Reading

Expectations from the Union Budget 2014-15

The first budget of the Narendra Modi Government is to be unveiled on the 10th of July. There are high expectations from various sectors of the economy that are looking forward to delivery of a promise by Mr. Modi on “Aaache Din”. The economy is passing through high inflation coupled with forecasts of a poor… Continue Reading

Factors to consider in buying vs. renting a home

There is an adage which goes something like this: “Foolish people build homes for wise men to live in”. In other words, it is wiser to rent a home rather than invest large sums of money in owning a home. It is true that after you invest, say around ₹40 to 50 lakhs all inclusive… Continue Reading

Banks must link disbursal of housing loans to construction stages: RBI

Taking serious note of borrower un-friendly home loan schemes introduced by banks in association with developers/builders, RBI has advised banks to refrain from making upfront disbursal of home loans to the builders without linking the disbursal to various construction stages of housing project. These subvention schemes, popularly known as 80:20 or 75:25 schemes, had gathered… Continue Reading