Over the two years of the eHouse programme’s existence, almost 13,000 Ukrainian families have benefited from its terms. However, according to Olena Shulyak, head of the Committee on the Organisation of State Power, Local Self-Government, Regional Development and Urban Planning, the current conditions of the programme require significant changes, Komersant ukrainskyi
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Shulyak, the head of the Servant of the People party, based her statement on data from Ukrfinzhytlo, and stressed that the total amount of loans issued under the programme has already exceeded UAH 20 billion. However, the majority of the preferential mortgages have gone to the military and security forces, indicating that the programme is not widely accessible to the general public. As of early September, more than 600,000 people were on the housing waiting list.
“The programme is functioning to some extent, but it is difficult to call it effective in resolving the housing issue. In particular, we see that 7185 loans on preferential mortgages were granted to families of military personnel and security forces, which is 56% of all loans issued under eOselya. This means that the programme is generally not available to the general public in need of improving their housing conditions. In particular, for veterans and IDPs. For example, over the entire period of the programme’s operation, only 226 loans were issued to the former and 258 to the latter. In other words, our IDPs and veterans have been granted almost 15 times fewer loans for the housing they need. This is an obvious disproportion that needs to be corrected,” said the MP.
Shulyak advocates revising the terms of the programme, including reducing the down payment from 20% to 15%, extending the age range to 10 years and allowing for the purchase of housing on the secondary market. According to her, such changes could improve the accessibility of preferential mortgages for more Ukrainians.
The eHouse programme was launched to provide government loans for the purchase of housing with an interest rate of 3% to 7% per annum. Starting from January 2023, the programme will also be available for purchasing private houses. In August, the government reduced the down payment to 10% for young people under 25 to increase the participation of young Ukrainians in the programme.
Author: Alyona Kaplina