OREANDA-NEWS. May 26, 2014. Sviaz-Bank (Vnesheconombank Group) had a portfolio of mortgages issued under traditional programs* in excess of 15 billion rubles.

Traditional mortgages are among priorities in Sviaz-Bank’s retail business that was launched in 2009.

Sviaz-Bank’s mortgage portfolio was growing from beginning to end of 2013 and keeps growing in 2014 as well, not least due to changes made in the program terms. In particular, the amount of down payment was halved from 20% to 10% of the total cost of housing to be purchased for individuals who want to take out mortgages, and the expiry date of the Bank’s favorable decision to issue a mortgage was moved forward to four months. The age brackets, too, have been widened to 21 years as the youngest age for mortgagers, down from 23 years previously, and to a maximum age of 65 years on the expiry date of a mortgage contract.

Sviaz-Bank’s share in the portfolio of the Top 30 Russian banks has grown, pushing Sviaz-Bank up to ninth slot, with 37.5 billion rubles in its portfolio, 65.1% more than it was in 2012.

“As we observed, the number of mortgage applications has grown significantly since early in the year, and the category of potential mortgagers has expanded considerably. Lately, an increasingly large proportion of our population wants to invest their savings in real property, even though they gave little thought to this opportunity previously. Saving what you earn is a very wise idea,” said Olga Oleinik, Vice Chair of Sviaz-Bank’s Management Board.

* Less the Military Mortgage program.