Tax Benefit Calculator

- Select your category (male/female/senior citizen)
- Enter your total income for the year
- Enter the interest amount paid & then the principal amount paid
- Click on calculate
- You will be given the amount you can save on tax, based on which category you fall under.
Let’s also look at the kind of benefits that the Government offers to those who take home loans. These are available under various sections of the Income Tax Act.

Under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act, you are eligible for a deduction in taxable income of up to Rs. 1.5 lakh on the principal paid on a housing loan. This could lead to a substantial savings in tax. For example, if your annual income is Rs. 10 lakh, you could end up paying income tax on only Rs 8.5 lakh.
However, this is on the condition that the house is not sold before five years of purchase. If it is sold before that period, any deductions claimed in previous years will be disallowed.
You should also remember that you can claim a maximum of Rs 1.5 lakh a year as tax benefit under Section 80C, and this includes investments in instruments like PPF, ELSS mutual funds, National Savings Certificates and so on.

Under Section 24 of the Income Tax Act, interest paid on home loans can be deducted from taxable income up to a maximum of Rs 2 lakh on self-occupied property. There is no limit on a home that you may have given on rent. However, you can claim this deduction only from the year in which construction was complete.

You can also claim tax benefit on stamp duty and registration charges of up to Rs 1.5 lakh under Section 80C. But remember that the total benefit under this section is only Rs 1.5 lakh, including principal paid and any other tax saving instruments like PPF, ELSS or NSC.

If you are a joint owner with your spouse, each of you will get the benefit mentioned above. So there could be some tax benefit in taking a joint home loan.