Financing is usually the part of buying a home that people put off thinking about until the last minute — and then scramble through under time pressure. It doesn't need to be that way.
**Start with eligibility, not EMI.** Banks typically look at your net monthly income, existing liabilities, age, and credit score to decide loan eligibility. A CIBIL score above 750 generally gets you the best interest rates; anything below 650 will make lenders cautious or push your rate up meaningfully. If your score needs work, it's worth spending three to six months fixing it before you start house-hunting seriously.
**Loan-to-value (LTV) ratios matter more than people realise.** For properties under ₹30 lakh, banks can finance up to 90%. Between ₹30-75 lakh, that drops to 80%. Above ₹75 lakh, it's typically 75%. This means your down payment requirement scales up with property value — plan your savings accordingly, well before you're at the negotiating table.
**Fixed vs floating rates — the short version.** Floating rates (linked to repo rate) are more common and usually cheaper over the loan's life, but your EMI can rise if rates go up. Fixed rates offer certainty but usually start higher. Unless you have strong reasons to want payment predictability, floating is the more commonly recommended choice for a long-tenure home loan.
**Documents to keep ready.** Income proof (salary slips or ITRs for the self-employed), bank statements for 6 months, PAN and Aadhaar, property documents from the seller/developer, and the sale agreement. Having all of this organised before you apply can cut approval time from weeks to days.
**A tip most people miss:** get your loan pre-approved before you finalise a property, not after. Pre-approval tells you your real budget ceiling and gives you real negotiating leverage with sellers who know you can close quickly.
**On tenure:** a longer tenure lowers your EMI but increases total interest paid significantly. If you can comfortably manage a slightly higher EMI, a shorter tenure will usually save you a substantial amount over the life of the loan.
At Lanivas Properties, we work with buyers through the entire financing conversation — not just the property search — because getting the loan structure right often matters as much as getting the property right.