The Executive Yuan will soon approve a proposal to offer another NT$200 billion (US$5.9 billion) in home loans with preferential interest rates to people who qualify under certain conditions, an official said yesterday.
The move is intended to extend the effectiveness of the policy that aims to boost the housing market.
Chen Tain-jy (陳添枝), chairman of the Council of Economic Planning and Development (CEPD), said the proposal had been sent to Premier Liu Chao-shiuan (劉兆玄) for review.
Vice Premier Paul Chiu (邱正雄) organized a meeting on March 20, following instructions from Liu, where it was agreed to increase the funding for low interest home loans by NT$200 billion.
The Ministry of the Interior’s Construction and Planning Agency said the NT$200 billion offered to homes buyers from last September will run out by the end of this month.
As of March 3, about 69,000 people had applied for more than NT$199 billion in loans.
Under the proposal, a citizen aged 20 or over who has not applied for preferential loans provided by the government since 1999 is entitled to apply for funding.
Taipei residents can obtain up to NT$3.5 million each, while the maximum amount for residents elsewhere is NT$3 million, at an interest rate of 1.375 percent, or 0.7 percent lower than the interest rate on bank loans.
Currently the interest rate on bank loans is calculated by adding 0.09 percent to 2.012 percent, rate on two year-time deposits issued by the state-owned Chunghwa Post Co (中華郵政).
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