Personal finance
Home loan EMI checklist: five figures to compare before you apply
A five-part worksheet for a written home-loan offer, with a Rs. 30 lakh example and a rate-rise budget check.
Updated September 23, 2026 · 3 min read
1. Loan principal: the amount actually borrowed
Copy the principal from the written offer, not the property price. In this hypothetical example the property costs Rs. 40 lakh and the buyer contributes Rs. 10 lakh, leaving a Rs. 30 lakh loan. Registration, moving costs, repairs and any cash-paid charges still need a separate budget.
Check whether a fee or insurance premium is being added to the loan. If it is financed, it increases principal and can itself attract interest. Do not add the same charge again as a cash-paid fee in the comparison calculator.
2. Contract interest rate: 8.5% is an assumption, not an offer
For the worked example, use a reducing-balance annual interest rate of 8.5%, divided by 12 for monthly calculations. Write down whether your actual rate is fixed or floating. If floating, record its benchmark, spread and reset interval from the lender's documents.
Keep the contract interest rate and APR in separate columns. APR includes certain borrowing charges; inserting it in an EMI formula while also adding those fees can distort a like-for-like comparison. Ask the lender to explain any difference.
3. Number of payments: 240 monthly instalments
A 20-year term means 240 monthly payments in this model. Rs. 30 lakh at a constant 8.5% gives an EMI of approximately Rs. 26,034.70. Over 240 payments, the unrounded calculation gives total repayments of about Rs. 62,48,327, including Rs. 32,48,327 interest.
This assumes the full loan is disbursed at the start, each payment is due at month-end and the rate never changes. Construction-stage disbursements, pre-EMI interest or irregular first periods need the lender's own schedule.
4. All-in cost: add the charges missing from the EMI
Collect the processing charge, applicable tax on charges, legal and valuation costs, insurance if applicable, and any other required payment. Separate cash-paid costs from financed costs. Ask for a written explanation of charges that are conditional or refundable.
As a simple illustration, Rs. 20,000 of cash-paid fees takes the modelled repayment-plus-fees total from Rs. 62,48,327 to Rs. 62,68,327. This is not an APR calculation and does not represent the total cost of owning the property.
5. Monthly headroom: test the payment against your own budget
Use take-home income minus essential spending, other debt payments and planned savings to see what remains. There is no affordability verdict in this tool: two households with the same salary can have very different commitments.
The table recalculates a new Rs. 30 lakh, 20-year loan at three constant rates. It is a stress illustration, not a prediction. A reset on an existing loan must instead use its outstanding balance and remaining term.
| Annual rate | Monthly EMI | Increase vs 8.5% |
|---|---|---|
| 8.5% | Rs. 26,034.70 | Rs. 0 |
| 9.5% | Rs. 27,963.94 | Rs. 1,929.24 |
| 10.5% | Rs. 29,951.40 | Rs. 3,916.70 |
Before signing: reconcile the worksheet with the offer
Keep the lender's Key Facts Statement, repayment schedule and fee breakdown together. Check the first payment date, rate-reset process, prepayment conditions and all amounts payable before disbursement. An unexplained difference is a reason to ask for clarification, not to force the calculator to match.
The figures above are fictional planning scenarios calculated for this guide. They do not represent an approved loan, a recommended lender or personalised financial advice.
Official rate references
Check the lender's current rate before calculating
These links point to official lender pages. Enter the current rate from the lender or your written offer; do not rely on a copied number for a borrowing decision.
Links checked 26 October 2026
| Lender | What to check | Official page |
|---|---|---|
| State Bank of India | Official home-loan page. Check the current rate, effective date, eligibility, and product terms before entering a scenario. | Official source |
| Axis Bank | Official rates-and-charges page. Rates vary by borrower and product, so use the written offer or the current lender table. | Official source |
A lender's rate can depend on credit score, income, employment type, loan amount, loan-to-value ratio, product, and other risk checks. A public rate is not an approval offer or lender ranking.
This is a reference list, not a live rate feed or a complete market comparison. Open the linked lender page to check the latest figure and confirm the rate applicable to your own application.
The site intentionally links to primary lender pages instead of copying numeric rate tables that can become stale.
Put this guide into practice
Use the related calculators
Put the steps in this guide into practice with a focused calculator, then return here to check an assumption or compare another scenario.
Sources and further reading
Reserve Bank of India: Key Facts Statement circular (15 April 2024)
Primary background on the KFS, APR and repayment-schedule disclosures. Check current lender documents for your offer.
Reserve Bank of India: Floating-rate EMI reset FAQs
Explains rate-reset communications and the repayment options addressed by this circular.