Buying a home is a crucial decision that affects you financially, albeit not the only one. There are various other instances when an individual requires financial help and that is when banks provide you with various options like personal loan, car loan, gold loan among many others.

What if we tell you that there is a cheaper and faster alternate?

Majority of the Indian population opts for a home loan while buying a house. If you have a home loan, you are eligible to get a top-up on the same. Top-up loan involves the bank topping up or adding to your existing loan on fulfillment of certain criteria. This top-up can be used for any purpose and need not be home improvement related. You can treat it as a personal loan or pay for the education expenses of your children, buy a vehicle or invest it in the stock market; the choice is yours.

Top-up loans are available for a longer period than other options or until the balance tenure of your original home loan, depending on the bank's discretion.

The maximum amount you can acquire as top-up home loans differs from bank to bank. However, the total of the balance home loan amount and the new top-up loan amount should not exceed 70-80% (differs from bank to bank) of the value of the property.

Top-up loans are usually available at a few basis points higher than the original home loan rate.

Eligibility

• Have a home loan with the bank.
• Be a regular and satisfactory repayment record for at least one year.
• Make a valid mortgage in the name of the bank.

Benefits

• Although top-up loans are usually available at a few basis points higher than the original home loan rate they are quite lower than personal loans, credit cards or car loans.
• Top-up loans are also available for longer tenure than a personal loan, car loan or gold loan.
• Top-up loans are easily approved and disbursed, since you are already a home loan customer of the bank and have been paying your EMIs regularly over the last one or more years.