Low-ticket home loans have decreased by half to 22 per cent of all loans during the last five years because of steep increase in property prices.

Mr Arun Thukral, Managing Director, Credit Information Bureau (India) Ltd, said that in the metros the loan ticket-size of less than Rs 10 lakh was 22 per cent of total home loans sanctioned in 2011.

About 75 per cent of new accounts opened in 2011 had sanctioned amounts between Rs 5 lakh and Rs 50 lakh, said Mr Thukral.

According to him, the shift is clearly towards higher value loans, indicating property price rise and higher borrower affordability. For instance, more than Rs 20 lakh ticket-size loans were 47.9 per cent of total home loans sanctioned in metro cities during 2011.

“Home loan enquiries have more than doubled from Q1 of 2007 to Q3 of 2011. The first three quarters of 2011 also show an increase in home loan enquiries by 21 per cent over the same period last year,” said Mr Thukral.

Banks' home loan customer acquisition quality has also increased, with 62.3 per cent of the enquiries being least risky with credit score of over 800. CIBIL data also show that over 88 per cent of new home loan borrowers acquired in 2011 had a score of 750 and above.

CIBIL TransUnion Score is a three-digit number that predicts if a borrower will become delinquent in the next 12 months. The score is between 300 and 900, with 900 being the least risky.

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