The Accounts Chamber does not support the extension of the preferential mortgage program at 7%

It is not worth extending the preferential mortgage program for new buildings at 7% after 2022, Natalya Trunova, auditor of the Accounts Chamber, said in an interview with Vedomosti. This tool, according to her, forms distortions in the market. In particular, preferential mortgages contributed to the emergence of a large gap in prices for new buildings and secondary housing, Trunova explained.

“Some citizens can no longer afford to buy new housing by selling the old one. It used to be like this: people sold an apartment in the old fund, took a new one, paid the difference with a mortgage. [Сейчас] the price gap is such that it really becomes impossible for certain groups of the population,” Trunova said.

According to Rosstat, for 2021 the cost of 1 sq. m in the primary market increased by 29.5%, while in the secondary market the growth rate of prices was much lower – 18.7%.

It is necessary to help citizens improve their living conditions, the auditor believes, but this can be done at the expense of other state programs. “Perhaps they should be reviewed, to expand the circle of citizens who can participate in them,” she said.

The optimal mortgage rate in general is 7-8%, “all estimates agree on this,” Trunova continued. “It’s such a raise. Anything higher takes more away from the economy than it gives. That is, the greater the mortgage payments, the lower the costs in other areas – for durable goods, cafes, theaters, etc., ”the auditor explained.