Uzbekistanis have become more active in taking out mortgages. The volume of loans grew by almost 5 trillion soums

Uzbekistanis have begun to take out mortgages more frequently. The volume of loans increased by almost 5 trillion soums

During January–August, banks in Uzbekistan issued mortgage loans worth 18.3 trillion soums. This is 4.9 trillion more than in the same period last year. Almost 60 thousand people received mortgages.

According to the Central Bank, the average amount per borrower was about 309 million soums.

Interest rates depended on the source of funding. Mortgages funded by the state budget were issued at an average rate of 16.9%. For financing through the Mortgage Refinancing Company, the rate was 21.6%, and for loans funded by the banks' own resources, it was 20.7%.

The largest volume of mortgage loans was issued in Tashkent – 5.59 trillion soums, or almost a third of the total volume. This is followed by Andijan region with 1.6 trillion soums, Kashkadarya region with 1.3 trillion, and Fergana region with 1.26 trillion. The lowest volume of mortgages was recorded in Syrdarya region – 497 billion soums.

The majority of the loans – 74% – were used to purchase housing on the primary market. The secondary market accounted for 26%.

The main share of borrowers consisted of citizens aged 31 to 50 – 64%. Another 26% of mortgage recipients were aged between 18 and 30.

In Uzbekistan, it has been proposed to allow citizens to use their pension savings before retirement. There are plans to allow these funds to be used, among other things, for a mortgage down payment. The initiative was proposed by the Ministry of Economy and Finance.