The National Bank advises to make changes to the eHouse programme
18 September 2024 09:13The National Bank considers it necessary to make changes to the state mortgage lending programme eOselya. First Deputy Governor of the NBU Kateryna Rozhkova said this in an interview with Forbes.ua, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports
According to her, eOselya makes it possible to buy a home on credit at too low a rate. Global experience shows that mortgages will not work if interest rates exceed 15%.
“For example, in Poland, the average mortgage rate is 4.75%, and in Germany it is 3.5%. In Ukraine, it will definitely not go down to 3% in the coming years. At least because of the inflation rate: The NBU has a medium-term inflation target of 5%. Under such conditions, a mortgage should cost 10-11%,” Rozhkova explained.
“If eOselya continues to lend at 3%, the market will not emerge. This is a big risk for the programme in the medium term, the first deputy head of the NBU stressed.
Ukrfinzhytlo, the company implementing the project, has UAH 50 billion of capital in the form of government bonds. The company borrows money from banks against government bonds. Currently, Ukrfinzhytlo has issued loans worth UAH 20 billion, meaning that the rest of the capital simply generates interest income for the company.
“But if Ukrfinzhytlo spends the entire UAH 50 billion, it will lead to unprofitable operations. So now, while the demand for mortgages remains depressed, we should think about how to change the programme to make it complementary to market lending,” Rozhkova said.
