Aadhar Housing Finance forays in Gujarat

Aadhar Housing Finance Limited (Aadhar), a segment focused housing finance company, has launched its operations in Gujarat to provide housing finance to the lower income segments (whose monthly income is between Rs. 5000 to Rs. 25000). The Company currently operates across 7 States namely Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal.

Aadhar begins operations in the state of Gujarat with 9 branches at Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot, Surat, Himmatnagar, Surendranagar, Nadiad, Vapi & Bhavnagar. The Company, further reaches and services 40 locations located in the tier 2 & 3 cities through a hub-n-spoke model.

Mr. Kapil Wadhawan, Chairman, Aadhar Housing Finance, said, "We established Aadhar along with International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank Group company in 2011 with the objective of enabling financial access to people who are eligible but have no access to formal sources of funding, especially in the low income segment. Our foray into Gujarat is an important milestone for Aadhar considering the huge enterprising population of the State. High aspiration of people, combining forces with our focus on ensuring financial access is a sure measure towards increased economic developemnt in the State. We are committed to this vision."

Mr Harshil Mehta, MD & CEO, Aadhar, said, "Gujarat is a high-potential State for low-cost housing, with the State government recently introducing the affordable housing policy by which 22 lakh new houses are proposed to be built in the next four years. Additionally, Gujarat has witnessed growth in the per capita income and people aspiring for a better life. Aadhar will provide customers easy access to home finance solutions to help them achieve their dream of a home, with a pan-Gujarat presence."

For several years, a large portion of India could only dream of being home owners. For many households in the lower income segment, it has been impossible to get a housing loan on fair terms. Although demand for housing finance remains high from many such households, the financing options available for such families are limited. The Government estimates a shortage of more than 18 million homes (in urban India), of which 95% are in the Economically Weaker Sections and Low Income Group segment.

Aadhar offers an array of home loan products including home loans, home improvement loans, home extension loans, plot loans, self construction loans, loans against property and balance transfer and top ups and will gradually extend products as non-residential property loan/s. Aadhar provides loans upto Rs.12 lakh. Aadhar also provides project loans essentially for development of low cost housing projects.

The Company also offers legal and technical guidance, counseling on budgeting and construction completely free of cost. Often one of the major challenges faced is lack of awareness on the documentation required for housing finance. For the salaried segment, absence of salary slip or issuance of salary in cash makes the risk evaluation process difficult. A majority of self-employed people lack awareness on the basic financial hygiene of filing income tax returns and thus make themselves vulnerable to loan rejection.

Aadhar has taken the path of mass drives to spread awareness amongst this target segment about financial, legal and technical issues, property related issues, documentation etc. Aadhar conducts high contact, high involvement activities which fosters personal interaction and problem solving. Some of the events like 'Aadhar Awaas Mela', 'Aadhar Paramarsh Shivir', 'Aadhar Sanyog', 'Aadhar Mangal Muhurt Spot Sanctions' and 'Aadhar Parichay" help borrowers understand nitigrities of the home loan. Understanding that the legal and technical aspects of land ownership varies not only state wise but also location wise, Aadhar has highly localized legal and technical policies which cater to the specific needs of the locality.

To create awareness on the supply side and to encourage builders/developers to come up with suitable projects for EWS and LMI segment, Aadhar organises Developer-Customers interactive sessions where builders are made known the facts on demand and profitability of affordable housing projects. Aadhar also invests in suitable affordable housing projects.

Aadhar believes strongly in financial inclusion and has designed many tailor-made products to serve the needs of the segment it serves. These products include Aadhar Stambh (fixed interest home loan), Aadhar Virasat (home loan for construction on ancestral land where legal titles are not transferred), Home Loans for people who earn salary in cash, Home loan for people from informal sectors among others.

Through all these efforts, Aadhar has made a difference in the lives of around 8000 families belonging to the lower income segment of India.

Source : Equity Bulls

Keywords