Despite the government extending tax added benefits for the inexpensive housing segment in the Budget 2021, more than 46% of the current homebuyers in this category have been identified ignorant of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) scheme.
These are the findings of Standard Home Loan’s initially-ever survey to gauge the homebuyers’ understanding of PMAY, a system launched by the government to provide ‘Housing for All by 2022’ in India. The awareness survey integrated more than 1,000 inexpensive housing loan clients who availed finance in the final nine months.
The survey benefits of Standard Home Loan, a fintech startup for automated household loans for middle and low-revenue households in India, reflect the wide chasm among reality and the common understanding of this scheme, aiming to provide a dignified household for all.
Under 17% of respondents have been identified to be conscious of Rs 2.67 lakh being the maximum subsidy quantity obtainable beneath PMAY. Even the concern of mandatory women’s ownership to avail of PMAY added benefits lacked clarity. Only 48% of the respondents knew that EWS and LIG household purchasers are priority buyers covered beneath this.
The maximum loan tenure of 20 years beneath PMAY was misunderstood to stand at 30 years by just about half the respondents of the survey. Only 37% of the participants answered this query accurately.
Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) in 2015 was repackaged as Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY). The renewed scheme has extended inexpensive housing loans to involve initially-time property owners in urban India from rural property owners.
Atul Monga, CEO of Standard Home Loan, believes that the eligible beneficiaries for PMAY should really get the added benefits by default, rather of going by means of the approach of filling one more application with the lender. “It has been six years since the scheme has been announced. Since then there has been inclusion of two additional categories, yet the eligible population still lacks basic clarity around this scheme. The lenders, government and the ensuing ecosystem need to take up more responsibility to build awareness and purposeful education around it,” he stated.
On why this awareness gap about the inexpensive loans scheme is crucial to address, Monga additional stated that an precise understanding of the scheme can ease the housing woes for millions of urban and rural initially-time residence owners. “The issue of awareness is pressing especially in the urban areas given the impending deadline for the MIG I and II categories (found mostly in the urban areas). This limited-time offer combined with the paucity of urban-housing, gauged at 3.41 crore by 2022, makes awareness about PMAY a very pressing issue.”
First-time female homeowners’ eligibility to avail the added benefits of PMAY is place to doubt in the light of their changed civil status. Do PMAY added benefits for female applicants get invalidated post marriage, as household revenue adjustments? These grey zones challenge the popular person’s perception of the scheme.
The new 2021 version of the PMAY scheme with new characteristics and two further categories, namely MIG I and MIG II (mid-revenue group I &II), have been granted a deadline extension for up to 31st March 2021. For the current LIG and EWS categories, the deadline extends to 31st March 2022.