Khusnullin: preferential mortgage “on the secondary” will require a large amount of money

The introduction of incentives for the purchase of housing in the secondary market will require a large amount of funds from the state, Deputy Prime Minister Marat Khusnullin told reporters.

“Of course, lowering mortgage rates on second homes would be a big plus, but it requires a lot of money. We have about 70% of housing sold on the secondary market, 30% – on the primary. We support the primary market with the help of the state,” leads his words to RIA Novosti.

According to the Deputy Prime Minister, the key role in this matter could be played by a reduction in the key rate following the slowdown in inflation.

“If the key rate is lower, then subsidies will not be required,” he added.

Previously, the topic of benefits for the purchase of housing in the secondary market affected Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with DOM.RF Vitaly Mutko.

“If you still create some conditions for preferential purchase from the secondary market, what is in demand, would people want it? Still, this is also indirect, but it will also have a positive impact on the industry,” he said at the time.

Formerly analysts VTB reported on an increase in the average mortgage rate in Russia by 1.65 percentage points to 8.3%. According to the bank’s analysts, the rate in the primary market is significantly lower due to state subsidies and the implementation of developers’ programs, in March it amounted to 5.5-5.7%. In the secondary market, the figure reached 10.3% in March. IN VTB they attribute such dynamics to the completion of “near-zero” programs, as well as to changes in the conditions for a number of state-supported programs. At the same time, in March, the average check for transactions in the primary market decreased by 6.7%, and in the secondary market it increased by 1.5%, they noted.

How wrote Vedomosti, the Central Bank previously associated the decline in housing affordability with preferential mortgages for new buildings. According to the director of the department of banking regulation and analytics of the regulator Alexander Danilov, preferential mortgages only accelerated housing prices, but did not make it more affordable for citizens – their incomes are growing much more slowly.

The preferential mortgage program for new buildings was supposed to end in 2022, but on December 29, the authorities extended it until July 1, 2024, raising the rate from 7 to 8%. There are several more targeted state mortgage programs in Russia: family (6% per annum), for IT specialists (5%), rural (3%) and Far Eastern (2%).