Bankers about "First Home" scheme: sales have slowed down, but the scheme has to go on

The "First Home" scheme remains bankers' hope to sell mortgage loans, but the state has not given any indication yet as to whether it will give guarantees in 2011, as well, or not.

Mortgage sales via the "First Home" scheme, which enables clients to take out a loan with a downpayment of just 5% of the amount, with the state fully guaranteeing to banks the amounts granted - have slowed down in the last few months, but bankers are thinking of ways to improve the scheme for next year rather than of dropping it completely, according to comments given by bankers at ZF's request.
"Over the last few months there has been a decline in the rate of applications, and this is true for the entire banking sector. It most likely has to do with the decline in the incomes of some population categories, as well as with messages conveyed by the media about a prospective trend of price declines in winter," says Adrian Jantea, manager of Promotion and distribution for individuals at BRD-SocGen.
BCR representatives in turn talk about a slowdown in loan sales.
"Over the last three months of this year, the number of loans granted has been steady, but lower than in the similar period of last year," say bank representatives.