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Bindu Gopal Rao
Real estate is actually one of the most popular tax-efficient investment options facilitated by the government, particularly if you are buying your first home on a home loan.
The first-time edge
Purchasing your first house is a great tax-saving investment as it saves you rent every month and also the EMI on your first house is tax deductible from your income. “The interest component of your EMI is allowed to be set off against salary or business income (up to Rs 2,00,000 a year); while the principal component is allowed as a deduction under Section 80C (up to Rs 1,50,000 a year). Additional deduction under Section 80EE up to Rs 50,000 a year is allowed on the purchase of the first house,” says Vijay Kuppa, Co- Founder, Orowealth. C.S. Sudheer, CEO and Founder, IndianMoney.com adds, “you can avail a joint home loan with your spouse and both can separately claim tax deductions under Section 80C. You must be an owner and applicant (as per loan documents) to claim the tax benefit.”
A second house is also eligible for the similar deduction under Section 80C, but deduction under Section 80EE is not allowed. Rohit Gera, Managing Director of Gera Developments Pvt. Ltd. explains, “for example, I buy a home worth Rs 60 lakh for which a loan amount of Rs 48 lakh is approved. My monthly EMI is Rs 42,571 on 20-year tenure at a rate of interest of 8.8% per annum. With a net outflow of Rs 5.11 lakh in the first year of which the interest is Rs 4.18 lakh and Principal Rs 0.92 lakh, I can avail a tax deduction of Rs 2.92 lakh (Rs 2 lakh towards interest u/s 24 and Rs 0.92 lakh on principal paid u/s 80C.)”
Policy push
“The latest change in GST rate which is 1 per cent on affordable units (60 sq mt for metro and 90 sq. mt for non-metro cities as carpet area) and 5 per cent on rest of the category and notional rent on second property has been abolished that was taxable earlier also helps,” says Dinesh Jain, MD- Exotica Housing.
PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojna) offers interest subsidy under CLSS (Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme) and on a unit of Rs 35 lakh, a home buyer can save Rs 2.76 lakh maximum in the form of subsidy via direct bank transfer. “Currently, a buyer pays anywhere between 5-7 per cent of the property cost as stamp duty and registration taxes depending on the respective state. “For instance, suppose 'x' bought a house in the year 2018 for Rs 50 lakh and paid Rs 5 lakh as stamp duty and registration charges. He will be entitled for tax benefits computed during the fiscal year 2019-2020, only if all the expenses have been paid during 2018-19,” says Anuj Puri, Chairman, ANAROCK Property Consultants.
Tax rationale
There are no tax benefits if the home loan payments are made during the pre-construction phase Section 24 allows a tax deduction of any interest portion payable in home loans. “Unlike the deduction under 80C, Section 24 runs on an accrual basis. If interest on home loan accrued in a year which has not been paid in that year, the interest can still be claimed for that financial year,” says Abhinav Angirish, Founder, Investonline.in
CA Maneet Pal Singh, Managing Partner, I.P. Pasricha & Co says, “The Finance Act, 2019 has extended the exemption for investment made, by way of purchase or construction, in two residential houses provided the amount of capital gains does not exceed Rs 2 crore and the assesse can exercise this option only once in a lifetime. “The rationalisation of property-related taxes is the most significant benefit that was offered in the 2019 Interim Budget. “Changes have been made to the long-term capital gains tax structure for people selling a house to buy another house. The advantage of rollover of capital gains under Section 54 of the Income Tax Act will be increased from investment in one residential house to two houses for tax payers having capital gains of up to Rs 2 crore,” adds Rakesh Reddy, Director, Aparna Constructions & Estates Pvt. Ltd.
So are you ready for a home that helps you save tax too?
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