Home Loan insight – Interview with Bank of Baroda

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In line with our central theme of homemaking we are presenting excerpts from our interview with Bank of Baroda’s retail loan factory Manager – Mr. Mukund Hari Jachak.

 
Aavaas: Sir, please tell us more about “Retail loan factory” concept.
Mr. Jachak: One and half years back in March ‘06, Bank of Baroda launched project Parivartan to cater to different customers and their needs. The most prominent of these were Retail segment, corporate segment and Agriculture segment.
 
Under the Retail category we cover car loans, home loans, mortgage based loans. The concept of the retail loan factory is analogous to an assembly line where there is an input and a quick and efficient output.
 
Aavaas: How many such RLF units are there across the country?
Mr. Jachak: There are more than 13 retail loan factories across the country. Mumbai was the first to be launched and it was followed by Chennai, New Delhi , Bangalore etc. We have also launched RLF in some non-metro cities.
 
Aavaas: How do you choose the staff for RLF?
Mr. Jachak: We train our own bank employees specially for the retail loan factory operations. The two main units of RLF are the sales/marketing side and the back-end/processing side.
 
Aavaas: What are the trends in the market for home loans and home improvement loans?
Mr. Jachak: We started our operations in Chennai from May 2006. Our offerings from the day of inception include home loans and home improvement loans. The latter caters primarily to purchase of consumer electronic goods, furniture etc. We also cater to the needs of those who are willing to procure a second home in addition to one they already have.

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Renovation – Is it time?

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Williams first spoke about Renovation on 23rd August.  Some may think that renovation is relevant only for older houses while others believe that constant change in home interiors is a matter of routine. The question is, “Is it the time for you to renovate your home” ?

A typical home (and its components) have a five to seven year life span after which they don’t look so good anymore. Some components can fail even before this, especially the electronic items. We would say that if you are exchanging your old TV for a new slim version, it can be classified as renovation. After all, you would want to perhaps even relook at the TV placement in the room when you do this. The complete focal point of your living room could change as a result!

The more common form of renovation one sees is applying distemper or paint on the walls. Some people also polish their floors and paint the door and window panes. More complex forms of renovation involve changes to bathroom accessories, electrical fittings & wiring, wardrobe & kitchen racks, more rooms, more floors etc.

Typically, renovation is done for the following purposes:

1. To mend the various issues that persist at one’s home
2. To give the home a face lift so that it feels fresh
3. To increase the value of the home prior to a sale or rental
4. To keep up with the modern trends and technology

We recommend that you get the following done when you go in for renovation of your home:

1. A clear list of changes you want made and the reason for the renovation
2. Budget a maximum amount for renovation. This is to ensure that you don’t end up spending more than what you can probably afford.
3. Expert manpower to execute the renovation, in case it is a labour intensive renovation. Good quality contractors must be identified either through friends or through industry circles. We recommend that you go by word of mouth referrals than anything else.
4. If it’s a purchase or an exchange offering, make sure that you have done your research well on the options that are available in the market.

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Renovation anyone?

Lately, lots of swanky new apartments have been coming up with the modern look & feel. Many of the older constructions (even the professionally built ones) are beginning to seem a bit tacky; even though they were probably top of line at the time of their construction.

And when it comes to the houses that were built 10 years back (like the one in which most of us grew up), there seems to be a lot of scope for improving their ambience. From the flooring to the painting, from the electrical switches that was used to the lighting, perhaps in some cases a few additional amenities in the bathroom or some new fancy woodwork to get that nice finish you were wanting all along; the options that people can go in for are manifold.

It would be nice to hear from people out there about their experiences in renovating their houses. Increasingly, lots of people are going to do this.

It is not just the older homes that need remodeling; even the houses that are only a couple of years old are refurbished. It depends on the home owner and their take on things. Some people renovate just for the change it gives to their homes. Some of the recent paint ads going on in the TV are based on this theme only.

Unfortunately in India, we still have the habit of expecting contractors to do this job for us. A far cry from the Western countries where this activity is mostly done by the home owners. Perhaps, this is also the reason why many of our homes don’t come up to our expectations. Guess the adage of ‘If you want to do it right, do it yourself’, applies here.