Page 647 - Personal Finance

Deduction on home loans: How helpful is it?

It has been announced for a year. If you borrow with spouse, this limit doesn't come into picture

Dividend-paying firms offering decent yields will remain attractive

Despite higher tax outgo, dividend still a major factor in buy decisions

Annuity works only for conservative investors

Retirees have better options that offer liquidity, better returns and are more tax-efficient

You may now consider investing in pension schemes, say experts

Govt plans to tax just 60% of the corpus withdrawn from pension funds

Investing in NPS is more attractive now

Rationalisation in taxation on the retirement scheme puts significant money in the hands of investors

Have you been served an I-T notice?

Notice can be served between 6 months and 6 years. For concealment of income, it can be longer

Are some of the new features in your health plan worth paying for?

While the benefits offered by the new-generation products are alluring, choose a plan that offers features you may actually need in the future

EPF and NPS: A checklist

Use a combination of the two options without which sufficient corpus can't be assured

Don't look just at past performance of sector funds

Investors should do shorter-term SIPs, around six months, before deciding to continue

Small savers need to get aggressive

Getting locked into instruments before the new regime kicks in would be a good strategy

Look at valuation of a stock, not price

Buying a stock cheap is not necessarily value investing. Look at a number of other factors as well

Make interest rate calculations transparent

After life, health policies, buy home insurance

With natural and man-made calamities posing a risk to your home, it makes sense to buy home insurance

Have you received your dividend, bonus shares?

Check your demat account and the bank account linked to it regularly, especially after any corporate announcement

Home, car loans to change from April 1

While existing base rates and loans linked to it will continue, new loans will be linked to the MCLR, which is likely to be lower

The dos and don'ts of buying a vacation home

Fuelled by HNIs and NRIs, holiday properties make great leisure destinations and can also offer good returns. Just steer clear of certain investment pitfalls

All you need to know about the Employee Provident Fund

EPF has traditionally been the only tool for Indians, especially the salaried class, to save for their retirement corpus.

When your fund house gets taken over

While it might not make sense to exit the scheme immediately, put fresh investments on hold for six months

Individual e-filing of I-T returns likely from mid-April

Last year, the e-filing commenced on July 1 as there was delay in finalisation of the ITR forms

New motor premia in FY17

Rise in third-party premium and service tax will lead to an increase of 25-40% in total premium