Profession

Home loan lenders in India: banks, HFCs and the RBI

Who may lend for a home in India, how to check that a bank or housing finance company is regulated by the RBI, and why no register exists for loan agents.

Checked on against the sources at the bottom of the page.

In short

In India, a home loan comes from a bank or from a housing finance company (HFC), and both are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), a central regulator, so the check is the same in every State. The RBI publishes a list of scheduled commercial banks and a list of NBFCs registered with it (HFCs are a type of NBFC). The RBI says that a person who finds an entity doing lending business that “does not figure in the list of authorized NBFCs” should inform the nearest RBI Regional Office. We found no official register of loan agents or “DSAs” in the sources we read on 14 October 2026.

What the lender does

The lender sanctions and pays out the loan, takes a charge on the property, sets the interest rate and fees under the loan agreement, and collects the instalments. For the working of the loan itself, see home loan eligibility and EMI, down payment and LTV and RBI repo rate and home loan rates. To estimate an instalment, use the home loan calculator.

Who may lend, and what regulates them

  • Banks. The RBI’s page “List of Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs)” groups banks under six headings: SBI and nationalised banks, domestic private sector banks, small finance banks, payments banks, regional rural banks and foreign banks in India. The page carries no date for the list itself (the site shows “Website last updated date: Oct 14, 2026”). A lender that is not under these headings is not covered by that page; ask the RBI about it.
  • Housing finance companies. The RBI’s NBFC FAQ, updated on 15 September 2026, defines an HFC as an NBFC “whose financial assets, in the business of providing finance for housing, constitute at least 60% of its total assets (netted off by intangible assets)”, with “not less than 50%” of the total assets in housing finance for individuals. The FAQ gives a minimum net owned fund of “₹20 crore” for an HFC. HFCs are regulated under the RBI’s Housing Finance Company directions: the Master Direction page we read is titled “Master Direction – Non-Banking Financial Company – Housing Finance Company (Reserve Bank) Directions, 2021”, dated 17 February 2021 and updated up to 17 July 2025, and the FAQ refers to the “Reserve Bank of India (Housing Finance Companies) Directions, 2025”. We did not read the text of either.
  • Registration. Under section 45-IA of the RBI Act, 1934, “no company can commence or carry on business of a non-banking financial institution without obtaining a certificate of registration from the Reserve Bank”. Doing so without it “would invite penal action viz., penalty or fine or even prosecution in a Court of Law”.

How to check a lender

  1. Bank. Look for the bank’s name in the RBI’s list of scheduled commercial banks, rbi.org.in/scripts/bs_viewcontent.aspx?Id=3657.
  2. NBFC or HFC. The RBI’s page rbi.org.in/Scripts/BS_NBFCList.aspx offers, as spreadsheet and PDF, “List of NBFCs and ARCs registered with the RBI” and “List of NBFCs and ARCs whose CoR has been cancelled by the RBI” (page dated 30 June 2026). The FAQ also says the list of registered NBFCs is on the RBI website under “Regulation → Non-Banking”. The page does not mention housing finance companies by name, so we cannot tell you from the page whether an HFC appears in that list or in a separate one; if you do not find a housing finance company, ask the RBI.
  3. Also look in the cancelled list. A company can once have held a certificate of registration and lost it.
  4. Read the certificate of registration. The FAQ says NBFCs “have to prominently display the Certificate of Registration (CoR) issued by the Reserve Bank at place of business”.
  5. Compare the legal name on the sanction letter and the loan agreement with the name on the list. Brand names differ from legal names.

Loan agents and DSAs

A loan agent, sometimes called a direct selling agent (DSA), brings applicants to a lender. In the sources we read, we found no register, licence or public list of such agents, and we do not give you a place to search for one. What we can say from the RBI’s FAQ is limited to deposits: where agents collect deposits for an NBFC, “the depositors should satisfy themselves that the brokers/agents are duly authorized by the NBFC”. For a loan, deal in the name of the lender: pay fees by cheque or transfer to the lender, never to an individual, and ask for the lender’s receipt. Ask the agent for the name of the lender in writing before you hand over documents.

What the registers say about use

We read the RBI pages but not any terms of use for these lists. The pages do not carry a terms notice that we saw, so we state no rule about reuse. Payotte copies none of these lists and names no lender.

What it costs

Interest and fees are set by the lender. The RBI’s FAQ says the interest rate “is governed by the terms and conditions of the loan agreement” and that lenders “have to be transparent”: the rate and the manner of arriving at it should be “disclosed to the borrower or customer in the application form and communicated explicitly in the sanction letter and on their websites, Key Facts Statement, etc.” Ask for the Key Facts Statement and the sanction letter before you pay a processing fee. For prepayment, see home loan prepayment charges.

Which professional to consult

A property lawyer (advocate) can read the loan agreement and the mortgage documents (see property lawyers). If you are a non-resident Indian, see NRI home loan. The lender will often ask for a valuation: see registered valuers.

Questions to ask

  • What is the exact legal name of the lender, and is it a bank or an HFC?
  • Is the lender on the RBI list, and where do I find the certificate of registration?
  • Is the rate linked to an external benchmark, and when does it reset?
  • What are the processing fee and other charges, and who receives them?
  • Can I have the Key Facts Statement and the sanction letter before paying anything?

Frequently asked questions

Is a housing finance company regulated like a bank?

It is regulated by the RBI as a type of NBFC under its own directions. It is not a bank. The FAQ notes, for example, that NBFCs “cannot accept demand deposits”.

Where do I report a lender that is not on the RBI list?

The RBI FAQ says to inform the nearest Regional Office of the Reserve Bank. It also names the RBI’s Sachet portal, at sachet.rbi.org.in, for information on unauthorised deposit-taking.

Is there an ombudsman for complaints?

The FAQ says NBFCs “(excluding Housing Finance Companies)” that accept deposits, or have customer interface and an asset size of ₹100 crore or more, are covered by the Reserve Bank - Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021. Read the FAQ for your case, and ask the lender first.

Can I check a loan agent anywhere?

We found no public register of loan agents. Check the lender instead.

Can Payotte recommend a lender?

No. Payotte explains how to check a lender and recommends none.

Sources