There is good news for those in the lower income bracket looking to buy their own house. Tata Capital Housing Finance (TCHFL) has launched a housing loan scheme named ‘Prapti’ for low income group borrowers with interest rates starting from as low as 4 per cent. The scheme is under the Government of India’s ‘Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY)’ and includes the subsidy PMAY offers. The rate of interest is much lower compared to home loan rates offered by banks and housing finance companies which is in the range of 9.4 to 11.5 per cent, depending on the profile of the borrower. The scheme is available for households with a combined income of Rs 6 lakh per annum and according to the PMAY scheme it can be for tenure of 15 years or less. The scheme is targeted at the lower income group in the peripheries of metros, tier I cities as well as tier II and tier III cities as identified by the PMAY initiative and also to the lower income and economically weaker segments, women and ST/SC loan seekers. For a loan of Rs 10 lakh for a period of 15 years, the EMI difference if you consider interest rates of 9.5 per cent and 4.5 per cent comes to about Rs 2,293, which is a substantial amount. Says R. Vaithianathan, managing director, Tata Capital Housing Finance, “The Prapti—Home Loan scheme—with low interest rates and flexible loan repayment options will equip a larger base of the lower income segment to realise their dream of purchasing their own home.” To apply for the loan, customers can SMS PRAPTI to 5616161 or call 1800209 6060.