The interest subsidy of up to Rs 2.60 lakh on home loans under the Centre’s affordable housing scheme will now be available to middle income group (MIG) beneficiaries for 15 more months till March 2019, a top official said here. Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra said the decision will provide more time for MIG beneficiaries to avail interest subsidy under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban), an official release said.

Mishra was addressing the ‘Real Estate and Infrastructure Investors Summit’ organized by National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO), the apex industry body of real estate sector, today.

On December 31 last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that the credit linked subsidy scheme (CLSS) under PMAY (Urban) will be applicable to MIG till the end of December this year. Now, the subsidy scheme will be available for 15 more months till March 2019.

Under CLSS, MIG beneficiaries with annual income of above Rs 6 lakh and up to Rs 12 lakh would get an interest subsidy of four per cent on a 20-year loan component of Rs 9 lakh.

Those with annual income exceeding Rs 12 lakh and up to Rs 18 lakh would get interest subsidy of three per cent.

Reiterating the government’s commitment to meet the ‘Housing for All’ target in urban areas by 2022, Mishra urged the private sector to invest in affordable housing as it is being promoted by the government in a “big way” with several incentives and concessions, the release said.

Mishra later had an hour long discussions with a 30- member delegation of NAREDCO and assured them that the government would look into various issues raised by them in all sincerity and possible interventions would be considered, it added.

The delegation referred to what they called anomalies in GST rates for completed and under construction housing projects, stamp duties being higher and kept outside the purview of GST, scarcity of land, delays in granting construction permits among other issues, the release said.

The delegation expressed concern over the GST and other taxes accounting for over one third of the cost of residential properties, it added.

(Source – businesstoday)