Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana is government-backed housing finance in India. The affordable housing scheme was launched on 1 June 2015. Initially, the last date for availing of the scheme was 31 March 2022. 
But the date has been extended to 31 December 2024. Dive into this article to gather important details about the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme. 
 

What is Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana?

The PMAY is a CLSS or a Credit Linked Subsidy Scheme. Therefore, any availing of the PMAY scheme will get a housing subsidy. But it is available only when an individual is buying or constructing a new house. 
The Awas Yojana scheme has an interest rate of up to 6.50% per annum. The maximum tenure for the housing scheme is 20 years. 
 

Objective of PM Awas Yojana

The objective of the scheme is to offer affordable housing for all. The scheme is particularly targeted at offering sustainable and affordable housing for the poor and low-income groups. The scheme will also favour minorities, including the transgender community and widows from low-income groups. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana makes it possible with a lower interest rate than other home loans. 

Features of the PMAY Scheme

The different features of PMAY are as follows:

●    A subsidy interest rate of 6.50% per annum is charged on housing loans for 20 years.
●    Eco-friendly and sustainable technologies will be used to construct homes under this scheme. 
●    The PMAY scheme will cover the overall urban areas in the country, including 4041 statutory towns. The scheme will prioritise 500 Class 1 cities for building houses. The construction will be done in three stages. 
●    Senior citizens and differently-abled individuals are given the preference of ground floors.
●    The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme will be implemented in all statutory towns in India from the initial stages. 
 

Type of PMAY Scheme

The PM Awas Yojana is not restricted to the bigger towns and cities in India. Slums, villages, and other rural areas are also included under this scheme. The two types of PMAY schemes are as follows:

1.    Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Gramin

The PMAY-G (Gramin) is for families under the Economically Weaker Sections and Lower Income Groups. It ensures that they can find affordable financing to build their homes. 

2.    Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Urban

The PMAY-U (Urban) scheme includes around 4,300 towns and cities in India. The urban scheme includes various developmental authorities for planning across urban centres. 
 

Income Range for Economic Groups under PMAY Housing Scheme

Before applying for the PM Awas Yojana scheme, applicants should consider whether they are eligible for the subsidy. The entire family's income is calculated to determine the eligibility for subsidy. The different income sources that are considered include jobs, investments, and more. 

The eligible income range for different economic groups under the low-cost housing scheme is as follows:

Families with an annual income above Rs 18 lakh are not eligible for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme. 

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Scheme Details Urban

The details of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana urban scheme are as follows:

Offers and Advantages of PMAY-Gramin

The different advantages of the PMAY rural housing scheme are as follows:

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Eligibility Criteria

The different eligibility criteria under the government housing scheme are as follows:

●    The annual income range of a family should be below Rs 18 lakh to be eligible for the scheme. According to the income range of families, they are divided into EWS, LIG, and MIG categories. 
●    The PMAY scheme is available only for buying or constructing new properties. Moreover, the applicant cannot own any pucca properties while applying for this scheme. 
●    The property papers or the deed should contain a woman's name. In a sole proprietorship, the woman must own the house. If it's joint ownership, one of the owners must be a woman. This rule can be avoided only when there are no female members in the family. 
●    Only those who haven't availed of any benefits from the central government or any other housing finance scheme from the state or the central government will be eligible.
●    The benefits from the scheme are available only once. If you have already availed of the benefits, you cannot apply for it to buy another house. 
●    The house or property purchase must take place in one of the cities, towns, or villages in India, according to the Census.
●    If the reason for applying for a home loan is an extension or renovation of an existing property, the work must be completed within 36 months of getting the first loan instalment. 
 

How to Apply for the PMAY Scheme

The steps to apply for the PMAY scheme are as follows:

●    Step 1: Open the official central government website of the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme.
●    Step 2: Locate the Menu tab and select the Citizen Assessment option.
●    Step 3: Enter your Aadhaar number to continue with the process.
●    Step 4: After successfully entering the Aadhaar number, the application page will open on your screen.
●    Step 5: You will have to enter all the necessary details on this page, including your income details, bank account details, personal details, and more.
●    Step 6: Before submitting the application, check all the details that you have entered carefully.
●    Step 7: A unique application number will be generated for you after hitting the Save option.
●    Step 8: Next, download the filled-up application form for future reference.
●    Step 9: You can deposit the form at your nearest CSC office or any financial institution offering PMAY. You will also have to submit all the required documents with the application form.

If you are not comfortable applying for the PMAY scheme online, you can easily apply through an offline procedure. For that, you will have to visit an authorised financial institution that offers the PMAY scheme.  
 

Documents Required for Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana

The different documents required for the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana will differ for salaried and self-employed applicants. 

The documents required for salaried applicants are as follows:

●   Application form

●    Identity proof: PAN card is mandatory. Apart from that, applicants should provide other identity proof like a Voter ID card, Aadhaar card, driving licence, and passport.
●    Address proof: Voter ID card, Aadhaar card, valid passport, utility bills, bank account statements, or property tax receipts. 
●    Income proof: ITR or Form 16, last 2 months' salary slip, and 6 months' bank statement
●    Property documents: Agreement to sell, a chain of required property documents, buyer agreement or allotment letter, and receipts related to payments made to the developer.
The documents required for self-employed applicants are as follows:
●    Address proof of business: It can include a PAN card, VAT registration certificate, shops and establishment certificate, SEBI registration certification, etc.
●    Income proof: It can include the ITR for the last two years, the balance sheet, or the profit and loss statement.

Applicants also need to submit the last six months' bank account statements of their business and personal accounts.  
Apart from that, self-employed applicants will have to submit all the documents the same as salaried applicants. 
 

Tax Benefits under PMAY

The different tax benefits available under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme are as follows:
●    Under section 80C, applicants enjoy a deduction of up to Rs 1.5 lakh annually on the principal repayment amount.
●    Section 24(b) enables applicants to enjoy deductions of up to Rs 2 lakhs on the interest payment.
●    Section 80EE enables first-time homebuyers to enjoy an annual tax exemption of up to Rs 50,000.
●    According to Section 80EEA, applicants can enjoy deductions of up to Rs 1.5 lakh on interest payments.