Affordable housing loans show good growth; NPAs rise too, says RBI

Non-performing assets (NPAs) in affordable housing loans increased during 2016-17, as loans below Rs 200,000 witnessed a significant growth in disbursements and a “moderate” increase in NPA levels, a report by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said.

Housing finance companies (HFCs) and public sector banks (PSBs) experienced a slowdown in housing loan disbursements during 2016-17, while the overall NPA levels for the loan segment increased year-on-year.

The report — Affordable Housing in India, in the RBI’s January 2018 Bulletin — said low-income groups and economically weaker sections accounted for 96 per cent of the housing shortage.

Traditionally, property developers, especially in the