At a time when the government is cracking down on black money and illegal transactions, Tata Housing is coming out with the option of paying for a house using credit or debit cards.
With the move, the realty major is tapping into the 'convenience factor' among a user base that increasingly prefers online transactions through plastic money.
"With time being a major concern among consumers today, we were looking at options where the entire transaction could be implemented online. Consumers will only need to visit us for the paper work regarding property registration," Brotin Banerjee, managing director and CEO, Tata Housing Development Company Limited, told HT.
As is the case with credit card payments, customers will not have to fret over lack of sufficient money in their accounts when the bill is due. Banerjee highlighted how this would help avoid penalty on late payments.
A credit card also comes in handy to grab good offers. Devesh Chandra, 30, an engineer, said, "If I had a credit card, I would surely have bought my flat when the builder was giving great offers."
Till now, online and card transactions were not permitted in the industry. It was the customers who asked for the online-payment option, said Banerjee. It would help them avoid the hassle of couriering cheques, he felt.
{{/usCountry}}Till now, online and card transactions were not permitted in the industry. It was the customers who asked for the online-payment option, said Banerjee. It would help them avoid the hassle of couriering cheques, he felt.
{{/usCountry}}Bikram Singh, business development head, IndiaIdeas.com, which operates BillDesk, was positive about consumer response. "People have become comfortable with making large credit card transactions online these days," he said. "In fact high-value international flight ticket bookings via credit cards have become something of a norm than an exception." BillDesk is the payment gateway for Tata Housing's online payment initiative.