I have a self-occupied house that was purchased with a home loan. I also have an apartment, which is currently empty for which I took another home loan. How can I claim the tax benefit on home loans?
Sarvesh Kumar, Chennai
Normally, any sum paid towards repayment of principal amount of housing loan is allowed as a deduction under Section 80C while computing taxable income. In similar vein, the repayment of the interest paid on housing loan is also allowed as a deduction, beginning from the year possession is taken, under Section 24(b) up to a maximum of Rs 2 lakh in case of self-occupied property and the actual interest paid without any limit in case of a let out property.
However, Budget 2017, proposed to restrict the loss from house property which can be set off against incomes under other heads to Rs 2 lakh, which is applicable from the current financial year.
