The interest charged by banks as a «fee» for providing a loan when buying a home has grown to the maximum in 40 months.
Although government economic management measures and the policy of low interest rates have significantly affected the rates on commercial loans, individual housing loans have not been affected. So the percentage here reached 21.56% (according to the data for the first days of November 2022). The last time a level close to this was recorded in July 2019.
At the same time, just two and a half months earlier, on August 19 of this year, the Central Bank's rate was at the level of 18.41% per annum.
Sources in the banking sector note that the long-term structure of housing loans has turned into a type of loan, the indicators of which have to be constantly adjusted.
The repayment period of a mortgage loan in Turkey can now reach 20 years. If you choose a 10-year period, an interest rate of 1.2% per month is available, but with a 20-year period it is already 3.33%. In public and private banks, the rates differ, but only slightly.
According to Emlakkulisi, housing loans in the banking sector this year amounted to 355 billion 422 million Turkish liras – 68.7 billion (or 24%) more compared to the same period in 2021.
Buying a home has become more difficult in other ways. So, civil servants, retiring, used to be able to afford to buy an apartment with several bedrooms, but now they have to settle for a room. Many categories of citizens have a calculation only for participation in preferential state programs. However, it is now available to middle-income families.