Mr Srinivas Acharya, Managing Director, Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance, has appealed for an increase in tax deductability of the interest paid on home loans from the current Rs 1.5 lakh per annum to Rs 3 lakh per annum.
He urged the Government to consider increasing the limit for financing small homes to Rs 25 lakh and the cost of house to Rs 30 lakh (currently at Rs 15 lakh/Rs 25 lakh) for being eligible for 1 per cent interest-subsidy.
Mr Acharya also asked the Government to allow financial institutions to raise funds through tax-free bonds for exclusively refinancing home loans at a low rate of interest.
He also pleaded for allowing external commercial borrowings (ECBs) for housing finance companies without prior approval of the RBI, to aid faster growth of the housing finance sector.