New Delhi, Oct. 7 -- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has raised the repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.50%, marking the first increase since February 2023. For home-loan borrowers, the rate hike could translate into a higher EMI or a longer repayment tenure, depending on the lender and the loan's reset mechanism.

The impact will be quicker for borrowers with floating-rate home loans linked to external benchmarks such as the repo rate. Existing borrowers should check their loan's benchmark and reset frequency to understand when the rate hike could affect their repayments, said Santosh Agarwal, CEO, Paisabazaar.

The impact of the 25-basis-point hike will depend on the outstanding loan amount, remaining tenure and the interest rate applicab...