Higher education has become pretty expensive these days. More
and more people are finding it difficult to fund the cost and hence are
resorting to education loans. If you have got admission in your dream college
and are looking for education loan, it is important that you properly assess
the various options available and take into account such factors as interest
rates, eligible loan amount, repayment options and prepayment options
available.
But what should be the ideal loan tenure? Should you choose a
longer tenure as you are not sure what kind of job you will land into or what
will be your paycheck? Or is opting for a shorter tenure more beneficial?
Ideally, the shorter the tenure of loan better it is. Let us
see why.
Total
interest outgo will be higher
Any loan is a liability so it’s better to get rid of it as
soon as possible. Longer the duration, higher will be the total interest
amount. Some people are not sure of paying high EMI in the early years of their
career so to be on the safer side they opt for a long duration loan but this
will have an adverse effect on your pocket. Let’s calculate to give you a
better idea.
So, a loan of Rs 15 lakh at 13% for 10 years will have an EMI
of Rs 22,397 but the same loan for tenure of 15 years will bring down your EMI
to Rs 17,574. However, your total interest outgo will shoot up. For the 10-year
loan, you will pay a total interest amount of Rs 11.88 lakh whereas in the
other case, the total interest outgo will be Rs 19.16 lakh.
Notice the
difference, it is huge!
However, it’s a tough call to make, as you may opt for a
shorter duration loan but there is a possibility that you might not be able to
pay your loan EMI if you don’t get a high paying job in the initial years. So,
even if you opt for higher tenure loan, try to prepay the loan with any surplus
money you have.
Say bye to
tax benefits
You can avail a deduction on the entire amount of interest
paid on education loan
under Section 80E of the Income Tax Act. However, there are two conditions to
it:
1. Loan should be taken from any of the scheduled banks in
India or any Gazetted financial institutions.
2. Deduction can be availed only for the initial assessment
years plus the next seven assessment years or until the interest is paid in
full, whichever is earlier. Basically, you can avail the deduction for a
maximum of eight years only.
So, if you increase the tenure of the loan to reduce the EMI
burden, you will have to forgo the tax benefit.
Investment
planning will lose focus
A loan of longer duration will adversely affect your ability
to save and invest as you will continue to be under the EMI burden. After you
get a job, you will not only need to pay toward your EMI but will also have to
invest for future goals. As a result, your investment planning will take a hit
as finances will be stretched thin.
In essence, get rid of your education loan as soon as
possible so that you can invest more in your present and future.
(Source :http://www.financialexpress.com/article/blogs/planning-to-take-an-education-loan-here-are-a-few-tips/134872/)
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