The Credit Information Bureau India (Cibil), which collects borrower details from banks, has approached the Indian Banks Association (IBA) with a proposal to develop a repository for mortgages.
Banks have shown interest in creating a mortgage database as instances of borrowers having availed of multiple loans against the same property have surfaced.
Banks will submit details of the mortgaged property to help Cibil create the repository, in addition to sharing the borrower profile. Details such as the location and address of the property will be collected.
Besides a credit report on the borrower, banks will match the property to see whether it has been already mortgaged, said a senior IBA official.
At present, a bank can check the ownership details of a property, but is unable to determine if a loan has already been taken against the property. It is possible to take colour photocopies which are as beautiful as the original.
There are also frauds in the case of under-construction properties, as these are unoccupied when a bank goes for inspection, said the official.
Credit Information Bureau (India) is the only operational credit bureau in the country. It has 143 members, which includes 77 banks. The number of checks done by members have gone up to 90 million per annum from 4 million annually in 2004.
There are registered mortgages and equitable mortgages. This would be a repository for all mortgages. We are talking to banks. It is too early to say what shape or at what time the product would be launched, said Arun Thukral, managing director, Cibil.