Affording a house is a huge accomplishment in a world where ever piling up bills are a norm. And owning a beautiful and spacious house becomes even tougher if you live in an urban area. However, this dream of people can come true if they learn to take the best advantage of the schemes launched by the central and state governments from time to time. In this case, if you are an urban dweller having difficulty procuring a decent house in 2021, you need to know about Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).
The PMAY scheme was launched on June 1, 2015, by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). It aims to provide affordable home solutions to the urban poor by providing housing loans. This scheme aspires to fulfil the urban housing shortage amongst EWS/LIG and MIG categories, with a special focus on slum dwellers. Let’s look at more features of the PMAY scheme.
Key Features of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana
- The subsidy interest rate is 6.50% p.a for all the beneficiaries.
- All urban areas are covered and priority has been given to 500 Class I cities.
- All-weather housing units have water, kitchen, electricity and toilet.
- Better quality of life for the urban poor through the use of eco-friendly and sustainable technologies in construction.
- Security of tenor for the time period of 20 years.
- Women empowerment, disability assistance, and support to senior citizens.
- The beneficiaries of PMAY include Low Income Groups (LIGs), Middle Income Groups (MIGs) and Economically Weaker Section (EWS).
Interest subsidy
Before applying for the PMAY scheme, you need to ensure which category you fall in so that you know the exact interest subsidy to avail of on your loan. You can check it out here.
| Category | Interest Subsidy | Loan Limit |
| EWS | 6.50% p.a. | Rs.6 Lakh |
| LIG | 6.50% p.a. | Rs.6 Lakh |
| MIG-1 | 4.00% p.a. | Rs.9 Lakh |
| MIG-2 | 3.00% p.a. | Rs.12 Lakh |
You should also check the EMIs you’ll be paying every month. The PMAY scheme provides loans at a reasonable rate of interest and thus. your EMIs will be much less as compared to the commercial loan EMIs.
To calculate your monthly EMIs, go to the official PMAY website. Please ensure that you have the following entries with you.
- Total loan amount
- Rate of Interest
- Loan period or tenor
Fill these entries in the respective columns and after that click the “calculate” button on the screen. Your EMIs would be available on the next screen.
Eligibility for PMAY
The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has set eligibility criteria to avail of the benefits of the PMAY scheme. Following conditions will ensure your PMAY eligibility:
- As an applicant, you or your family must not own a house anywhere in India.
- If you’re a married couple, you will receive only one subsidy either in a single or in joint ownership.
- You or your family should not have availed of any housing-related schemes of GOI.
Further, please look at the categories you fall under. As we mentioned above, that different categories can avail of a pre-set interest rate on their housing loans. The applicants are categorised into six different groups with regards to their annual family incomes and some other conditions. These groups are as follows:
Economically Weaker Section (EWS)– It includes those whose annual family incomes from all sources is less than Rs.3 Lakh. There is an EWS certificate that needs to be produced to avail of benefits under this category.
Light Income Group (LIG)– Households whose annual income falls between Rs.3 Lakh and Rs.6 Lakh fall under LIGs. Just like the EWS group, a certificate should be produced to claim the benefits.
Medium Income Group (MIG1)– If you’re under this category, your annual family income should be below Rs.12 Lakh. And the housing loan limit you can avail of is up to Rs.9 Lakh.
Medium Income Group (MIG2)– People under this category have their annual family incomes between Rs.12 Lakh to Rs.18 Lakh. The loan limit for this category is Rs.12 Lakh.
Minorities– Minority groups can also avail themselves of the benefits of this scheme by providing relevant income and caste certificates.
Women– Women are specially enabled to take housing loans under the PMAY scheme. They can be from EWS/LIG categories.
Process of Availing of PMAY Benefits
The process of applying for a PMAY interest subsidy is easy. Follow the simple steps below for the same.
- Apply through an approved lending institution.
- After review, your application will be sent to the Central Nodal Agency.
- If your application is error-free, the Central Nodal Agency will send the subsidy amount to the lending institution.
- This amount will reflect in your lowered loan amount.
- You can start paying the EMIs every month for your loan amount.
Check PMAY status
After applying you can check the status of your application by logging on to the official website of PMAY.
So, this is how you can build your dream house with the help of housing loan under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. Just keep your documents ready and follow the simple process elaborated above and you will have your name in the PMAY list.