Flat Interest Rate vs. Reducing Interest Rate

 

Flat Interest Rate vs. Reducing Interest Rate

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Flat Interest Rate

Flat interest rate, as the term implies, means an interest rate that is calculated on the full amount of the loan throughout its tenure without considering that monthly EMIs gradually reduce the principal amount. As a result, the Effective Interest Rate is noticeably higher than the nominal Flat Rate quoted in the beginning. The formula of calculating fixed rate of interest is –

Interest Payable per Instalment = (Original Loan Amount * No. of Years * Interest Rate p.a.) / Number of Instalments

For example,

If you take a loan of Rs 1, 00,000 with a flat rate of interest of 10% p.a. for 5 years, then you would pay:

·         Rs 20,000 (principal repayment @ 1, 00,000 / 5) + Rs 10,000 (interest @10% of 1, 00,000) = Rs 30,000 every year or Rs 2,500 per month.

·         Over the entire period, you would actually be paying Rs. 1, 50,000 (2,500 * 12* 5). Therefore, in this example, the monthly EMI of Rs. 2,500 converts to an Effective Interest Rate of 17.27% p.a.

  Reducing / Diminishing Interest Rate

Reducing/ Diminishing balance rate, as the term suggests, means an interest rate that is calculated every month on the outstanding loan amount. In this method, the EMI includes interest payable for the outstanding loan amount for the month in addition to the principal repayment. After every EMI payment, the outstanding loan amount gets reduced. Therefore, the interest for the next month is calculated only on the outstanding loan amount. The formula for calculating reducing balance interest is –

Interest Payable per Installment = Interest Rate per Installment * Remaining Loan Amount

For example,

If you take a loan of Rs 1, 00,000 with a reducing rate of interest of 10% p.a. for 5 years, then your EMI amount would reduce with every repayment. In the first year, you would pay Rs 10, 000 as interest; in the second year you would pay Rs. 8,000 on a reduced principal of Rs. 80,000 and so on, till the last year, you would pay only Rs. 2,000 as interest. Unlike the fixed rate method, you would end up paying Rs. 1.3 lakh instead of Rs. 1.5 lakh.

Difference between Flat Interest Rate and Reducing Balance Rate

§  In flat rate method, the interest rate is calculated on the principal amount of the loan. On the other hand, the interest rate is calculated only on the outstanding loan amount on monthly basis in the reducing balance rate method.

§  Flat interest rates are generally lower than the reducing balance rate.

§  Calculating flat interest rate is easier as compared to reducing balance rate in which the calculations are quite tricky.

§  In practical terms, the reducing rate method is better than the flat rate method.

Comparison between Flat and Reducing Rate of Interest

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