Robor decline might stimulate demand for "First Home" loans in lei
Autor:
Ciprian Valentin Botea
21.04.2011
The decline in interests on lei on the interbank market and the increase in euro loan costs might stimulate clients to apply for state-secured mortgage loans in lei, after almost all the loans sold in the previous stages of the "First Home" scheme were euro denominated.
The three-month Robor (to which the cost of the lei loans is
tied) went down to 5.8% a year, so that applying the maximum
allowed margin of 2.5% the interest stands at 8.3% a year. The cost
is therefore only three percent higher than a euro loan, which
would also entail taking on foreign exchange risk. The Euribor
indicator has already gone up to 1.35% a year, and banks can add up
to four-percent margin, hence a 5.35% interest per annum.
Sales of state-secured mortgage loans have been mostly in foreign currency, with loans in lei amounting to less than 1%. The two largest local banks by assets, BCR and BRD, which have granted almost 900 million euros in "First Home" loans, are not even offering the option of a loan in lei to their clients.