More and more Flemish people with a modest income are turning to the Flemish Home Loan. Last year, the Flemish Housing Fund took out a record number of 6,469 loans for the purchase or renovation of a private home, according to figures from Flemish Minister of Housing Matthias Diependaele (N-VA).
The number of Flemish housing loans taken out increased by 42 percent compared to the previous year. The minister links the increase mainly to the increase in mortgage interest rates on the regular market. “At the end of December, the average market interest rate was 3.25 percent for a fixed 25-year loan, while the average interest rate for the Flemish Home Loan in December was 2.44 percent,” says Diependaele. “In addition, people can borrow the full amount, including registration fees and notary costs. That makes it interesting for young buyers.”
The Flemish home loan is an affordable home loan for those who have a modest income and still want to buy their own home in Flanders. Last year, the Flemish housing fund took out a total of 1.438 billion euros in social loans. The agency received 7,554 loan applications.
Increasing demand
The calculation of the interest rate for the Flemish Home Loan is based on various factors such as income, family status, term and location of the property. On average, 222,281 euros were borrowed at the end of last year, with a term of 25 years. The average processing time for a file was reduced to 49 days in December. According to Minister Diependaele, this is the result of extensive digitalisation, optimization of file handling and an increase in staff capacity.
To meet the rising demand, the Flemish government increased the planned budget for the Flemish Housing Loan for 2024 by 250 million euros to 1.5 billion euros. “Ownership is the most important cornerstone of our Flemish housing market and by extension our Flemish society,” says Diependaele.
Free unlimited access to Showbytes? Which can!
Log in or create an account and never miss anything from the stars.