The Government, acknowledging the importance of affordable housing for all and new families specifically, put in force before Christmas a new law. The measure concerns the granting of means-tested housing loans with a maximum of 150,000 euros and an interest rate of 1%, which will cover up to 90% of the commercial value of the property, for the purchase of a primary residence.
The program will concern the purchase of apartments of up to 120 sq.m. The beneficiaries of the favorable housing loans will be 10,000 young people or young couples aged 25 to 39 with low income.
In order to help families with three or more children and to contribute to addressing the country’s demographic problem, there is a special condition according to which when the applicant is a young couple aged 25-39 with three or more children or when the applicant is a young or a young couple who during the repayment of the loan has three children, then the 1% interest rate will be covered by government resources and the loan will be interest-free.
Although it is a good starting point, the Greek Large Families Association (ASPE) considers that it is far from being a demographic policy. First of all, “the age range should not be in place for large families, as well as the total surface of 120 sq.m. does not take into account the needs of families with a lot more than four children; they are not many, but still the law should have made such a provision”.
ASPE hopes that the law will be further improved in the future to allow more large families to find a safe and adequate shelter for their children.
