Applications for the My House programme, with low-interest loans to young people for the purchase of a house from the DYPA, start today, Monday 3 April.

Through the website of the Public Employment Service, at the address: dypa.gov.gr, young people aged 25-39 can now find out and apply for cheap housing loans or even interest-free loans for large families.

The My Home project

The loan amount is up to €150,000 and can finance the purchase of a property worth up to €200,000.

The term can be up to 30 years and the interest rate will be subsidised by 75%. No guarantor is required for the loan.

The minimum income threshold is set at 10,000 euros, while the upper limit of the heating allowance is set, i.e. for this year 16,000 euros for single people, 24,000 euros for married people, which is increased by 3,000 euros for each child.

In addition, for single-parent families the limit is €27,000, with an increase of €3,000 for each child in addition to the first.

Analytically:

1. What is the benefit for young people who will join the mortgage scheme?

The subsidised housing loan scheme provides five specific advantages for beneficiaries.

Firstly, a lower instalment for the repayment of the loan, as 75% of the amount is granted interest-free by the FRA and the bank interest rate is applied to the remaining 25% of the amount. For third and large families, the loans are granted interest-free, with 100% interest rate subsidy from the DYPA. Thus, the interest rate on the loan is a quarter of the interest rate normally charged by banks (or zero for those with three or more children).

Indicatively, for a loan of 100,000 euros with a repayment period of 30 years and an interest rate of 5.8%, the monthly installment is normally 587.52 euros, while with the subsidy is reduced to 342.87 euros (benefit is 244.65 euros per month or 2,935 euros per year) and for third - multiple births) the installment is limited to 277.78 euros, (benefit 309.74 euros per month or 3,716.88 euros per year). Similarly, for the same loan with a shorter repayment period (20 years) the monthly instalment of 705.63 euros is reduced to 480.39 euros (benefit 225.24 euros or 2,702 euros per year) and for third - multiple births the instalment is reduced to 416.67 euros (benefit 288.96 euros or 3,467.52 euros per year).

The interest rate subsidy is also a shield, limiting the impact of any interest rate increases that may take place internationally in the near future.

Second, less private participation since the loans cover up to 90% of the commercial value of the property, compared to 80% which is the usual banking practice.

Thirdly, young people and couples with low incomes, from €10,000, who would otherwise find it difficult to meet the banking criteria, gain access to bank finance.

Fourthly, the loans are exempt from the 0,12 % levy of Law 128/75.

Fifth, the program covers the program covers the envelope costs for each potential borrower.

2. What other housing policy programmes does the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs implement apart from the My House programme?

In the coming days, the "Coverage" programme for the rental of private houses and the provision of new beneficiaries of the minimum guaranteed income with payment of the rent by the State will be launched. This is followed by the social consideration which aims to use public property to ensure quality housing at low rent and the "Renovate - Rent" action through which the renovation of private houses is subsidised so that they can then be made available for rent.

These programmes mark the relaunch of the state's housing policy with a focus on young people, young couples and vulnerable groups. The social housing strategy includes actions totalling €1.75 billion. which is estimated to benefit around 137,000 beneficiaries who will ensure affordable housing of high quality standards. Alongside housing policy actions, employment and economic activity are increased, while public and private property is exploited with national and Community resources and in line with best practices in EU countries.

3. What are the main characteristics of loans?

These are loans for the purchase of a first home, covering up to 90% of the commercial value of the property with a maximum of 150,000 euros, with a term of up to 30 years, without a grace period, with low or zero interest rate.

The initial interest rates (from which the subsidy provided for by the programme is deducted) were announced by the banks participating in the programme and are as follows:

The reference interest rate (Euribor) is currently close to 3%.

4. What categories of property can be included in the My House programme?

As provided for in Article 4 of Law no. 5006/2022 (A' 239), the Programme supports loans for properties that

(i) will be used as a main residence,

(ii) have a market value of up to EUR 200 000. (as reflected in the purchase contract),

(iii) have a size of up to 150sqm,

(iv) are at least fifteen years old at the time of purchase, as evidenced by the construction permit; and

(v) are located within a residential area.

5. Are the limits set for the value of the houses and the amount of the loan realistic? Are there any properties available to put the My House programme into practice?

In the vast majority of areas, both in the centre and in the suburbs as well as in the periphery, there are properties with these characteristics available. This is confirmed by a recent survey - on the occasion of the announcement of the mortgage loan programme - carried out by a network of estate agents. According to this survey, the houses available for sale with an area of 75-150 square meters and a value of up to 200,000 euros constitute 60% of the total in the center, 74% in the western suburbs, 59% in Piraeus, 19% in the south, 5% in the north and 38% in the eastern suburbs,

In addition, the property values (which concern newly built properties while the mortgage loan program concerns 15-year-old properties, the values of which are obviously lower than the newly built ones) in Agia Paraskevi range from 1500-2050 euros per square meter, in Maroussi 1500-2300 euros, in Pefki 1300-2250 euros, in the 4th Municipal District of Thessaloniki (Toumba) 1250 - 1550 euros. Thus, the value of 200,000 euros corresponds to houses with an area of 90-150 square meters in these areas.

Obviously values vary by region, which means that for the same money people can buy a bigger or newer house by moving to a different area. In any case, the mortgage loan programme was drawn up with social criteria but also taking into account the reality of the market.

6. Who are the beneficiaries of the My Home Programme?

Beneficiaries of the Programme are persons aged between 25 and 39 years old on the date of application for the loan, or spouses or persons in a civil partnership, provided that one of them is aged between 25 and 39 years old on the date of application for the loan, who do not own any other property suitable for their residence and who meet the income criteria.

7. What are the income criteria for the My Home program?

The annual income must be at least 10,000 euros and the maximum, the one that applies to the payment of the heating allowance. For 2023, the limits are set at

8. What does it mean that beneficiaries must not have "property suitable for housing"?

The beneficiary or spouses or persons in a civil partnership are eligible for the My Home scheme only if there is no property suitable for residential use in their assets.

Properties suitable for housing include those that, in the case of unmarried and childless beneficiaries, have a size of more than 50 sq.m., while for the rest the size is increased by 10 sq.m. per family member (including pregnant children at the time of application). In addition, a property in which the applicant has a co-ownership percentage of more than 50 % and has either full ownership or a usufruct is considered suitable. Furthermore, the property must be located in the same Regional Unit as the applicant's place of work or profession. In the case where the place of work or profession of the applicant is located within the Region of Attica, the property is considered suitable if it is located within the Region of Attica. If the property is located on an island other than Crete, it is considered suitable if it is also compatible with the place of work on the same island.

It is noted that if the applicants, either individually the spouses or cohabiting partners, regardless of whether the application for the loan is submitted jointly or by one of them, or if the applicants and the spouses or cohabiting partners together own more than one property for residential use, it is presumed that there is a property suitable for their residence regardless of whether or not the above criteria are met (area of 50 sq.m. etc.).

9. What is the budget of the programme and how many people can join it?

The total budget of the My Home programme is €500 million. (with provision for doubling if resources are exhausted) and coming from the Public Employment Service (D.I.A.), which is paying 375 million, to finance 75% of the principal of the loans and the commercial banks contributing 125 million euros to finance the remaining 25%. In addition, there will be an additional amount from the DIA to cover subsidised interest and management fees. With an average loan of €100,000, the budget covers 5,000 loans which means that the number of beneficiaries, assuming that each house will house an average of 2 people, will be 10,000.

10. What are the specific provisions on interest rates and in which cases the loans will be interest-free?

For 75% of the loan, the interest rate will be zero. For the remaining 25% of the capital, i.e. the part provided by the Bank, the interest rate announced by each credit institution will be applied. A unilateral upward change of the maximum interest rate margin is not permitted.

The interest rates offered by the participating banks are shown in the Table:

The loans will be provided without the application of the contribution of the N. 128/75, which currently stands at 0.12%.

The interest rate of the loan for the My House program will be subsidized 100% for the entire duration of the loan for:

• New couples who have three or more children at the date of application for funding,
• Young people or young couples who, during the loan repayment period (up to 30 years), become a triplet or large family. The interest rate subsidy will start after the submission to the Bank of the required documents regarding the completion of the conditions for inclusion in the category of families with three or more children and will apply for the remaining period of loan repayment.

Eligibility for the interest rate subsidy is checked on the basis of the number of dependent children, as reflected in the supporting documents submitted. At the time of the interest rate subsidy application (whether it is at the same time as the loan application or later), a certificate of marital status is requested. With regard to the age of the children, the provisions of the Personal Income Tax Return apply.

11. What are the management costs and who covers them?

• The cost of loan file management, which includes all fixed and one-off costs of the banks' loan file for managing and checking the eligibility of beneficiaries, is paid by the Programme at the time of loan disbursement. The Final Recipient will not be charged any additional envelope costs.
• The legal and technical inspection costs for its purchase are borne by the borrower and are reflected in the table below:

The unilateral upward change of other expenses is not permitted.

- Other costs related to the registration of the encumbrance on the property such as, costs for the issuance of the court decision to register a mortgage lien on the property, the fee for the registration of the mortgage lien, costs for the application for the issuance of certificates, the summary of the court decision and the issuance of the certificates, costs for the declaration of the lien rights, if there is a Land Registry Office, costs for the removal of the lien, will be paid by the borrower.

12. Is early repayment possible?

The Borrower may repay the loan in part or in full before its maturity date without any penalty or other charge.

13. Is there a restriction on the assessment to be completed by the Bank?

For example: suppose the commercial value of the property has been estimated by the Bank's engineer at €250,000, but the interested party has agreed to buy the property for €200,000 (and therefore the contract states €200,000). Does this mean that the Bank will reject the application, or will only the amount stated in the contract be taken into account?

According to Art. 5006/2022 and the EIA, a value of up to €200,000 is defined in accordance with the purchase contract. It cannot be rejected as an ineligible home if the contract is up to the above limit.

14. What are the criteria for the seller of the property?

The seller of the property may not be a relative (of the buyer or the other member of the couple), by blood or marriage, of the first or second degree, or a person related to the buyer by a civil partnership, for example:

- grandparents in relation to grandchildren,

- brothers and sisters in relation to each other.

The certification of the degree of kinship is carried out by means of a certificate of marital status of the applicant and his/her paternal and maternal family and spouse or part of the cohabitation agreement, or a certificate of guarantor relatives, as provided for in the relevant KYA (189/2023 B' 1180, as amended by KYA 34221/2023 B' 2018).

15. What does the age limit of 39 mean? Do you mean up to 1 day before one turns 40 or until one turns 39? So if he is 39 and 1 month old he can participate?

Those who have reached the age of 39 but not 40 are eligible to participate in the programme. Therefore, if you are 39 years and one month old, you are eligible.

16. In the case of spouses or persons in a civil partnership, the application must be made by the spouse who is under 39, regardless of income? If the person who does not meet the age criterion has the income, in whose name will the application be made?

Case 1: Married and the purchase is made by both.

Case 2: Married and the purchase is only made by the person who is within the age criterion but outside the income criteria.

Case 3: Married but the purchase is only made by the person who does not meet the age criterion but meets the income criterion.

ANSWER: In all cases, family income is assessed, whether they file a joint or separate income tax return. The applicant must meet the mandatory age limit.

17. Among the supporting documents, it is mentioned that the submission of a Property Data Declaration (E9) and the ENFIA Certificate of the last year are required for inclusion in the programme. But what happens when no one owns property and cannot print such certificates?

A certificate is printed (from taxisnet) stating that no relevant declaration is made and is submitted by the applicant together with a relevant Affidavit of Article 8 of Law 1599/1986.

18. Should the property to be purchased be checked whether it meets the housing need of the beneficiary?

The property to be purchased will be a primary residence. The criteria that the property must meet are defined in article 4 of Law 5006/2022 and are explicitly mentioned in the answer to question 4.

The eligibility criteria related to meeting housing need apply only to existing properties owned by the applicant.

19. How do those interested in obtaining a loan under the Programme apply for funding?

Interested parties submit an application to a bank of their choice that cooperates with the My House Programme, in order to determine their eligibility in principle. Then, and within specific timeframes, the normal mortgage loan assessment and approval process is followed.

20. Is there a time commitment by the bank to inform the applicant of the result of the assessment of the application?

Banks check the fulfilment of the eligibility requirements and the supporting documents requested for each applicant and, if they are fulfilled, assess the creditworthiness of the applicant on the basis of their relevant internal regulations and decide on the pre-approval or not of the loan within 60 days from the time the applicant submits the application.

21. For how long is the financial pre-approval received by the person concerned valid and what must he/she do next to complete the request?

The prior authorisation shall be valid for 60 days from the date of its notification to the applicant. Within this period, the applicant must inform the bank of the amount of the loan requested, the property he/she intends to buy and the price at which he/she intends to buy it, and provide the documents required for the bank to complete the necessary verification. If this time limit expires without effect, the financial pre-authorisation shall cease to apply.

22. Are there any time limits for signing the loan agreement and disbursing the loan?

Yes, the signing of the loan contract and the disbursement of the total amount must have been made by the interested party within a period of six months from the approval of the application by the EBA. If the above period expires without action, the application is removed from the Portfolio. Only in cases where there is a confirmed delay in the transfer of the property, the interested party may request an extension of the time for signing the Final Acceptor and Disbursement Agreement by a maximum of two additional months, provided that the relevant application for the registration of a mortgage or a lien has been submitted within the six-month period.

23. Is it allowed to apply to more than one bank?

YES. In this case, the applicant will of course bear the cost of each legal and technical inspection of the property. However, the approval and the corresponding commitment will be made on one application.

24. What are the documents that people need to collect for the My House programme?

In order to determine whether the criteria for inclusion in the programme (age, income, ownership of other suitable property) are met, the interested parties must submit the following information:

Α. OWNER OF THE MY HOME PROGRAMME

Α1. AGE OF APPLICANT:

1. Birth certificate. Ή
2. A copy of your identity card.

Α2. MARITAL STATUS:

1. Certificate of marital status issued no earlier than one (1) month prior to the submission of the loan application.
2. Responsible declaration of article 8 of Law no. 1599/1986 that he/she has actual and exclusive parental responsibility for one or more minor children (in the case of a single-parent family).

3.A copy of a court decision in case of divorce or annulment of marriage or dissolution of cohabitation agreement or other exceptional cases.

Β. INCOME CRITERIA ABOUT THE MY HOME PROGRAM

1a.Personal Income Tax Return (E1) for the applicant's last tax year.

1b.Personal Income Tax Return (E1) for the last tax year of the applicant's spouse/partner.

Ή

2α. Statement of Income Tax Return / Personal Income Tax Assessment for the last tax year of the applicant.

2b.Tax statement/ Administrative Determination of Personal Income Tax for the last tax year of the applicant's spouse/partner.

In the case of spouses or cohabiting partners, their family income is taken into account, regardless of whether they file separate returns or one of them applies for a loan.

C. EXISTENCE OR OTHERWISE OF A PROPERTY SUITABLE FOR HOUSING

1α. Declaration of property data (E9) for the last year

1β. Or Printout from taxisnet that there are no property declarations (E9)

1γ. . Certificate of the Single Real Estate Tax (EN.F.I.A.A.) of the last year.

2α. Form E3-Statement of financial data from the applicant's business activity

2b.A certificate from the employer proving the place of employment.

3. in the case of pregnancy, a relevant medical certificate

D. DECLARATION OF RESPONSIBILITY

Responsible declaration of article 8 of Law no. 1599/1986 (A' 75), by which the applicant certifies that the information provided in the documents submitted is true and complete, that the documents are authentic and that he/she has taken note of the terms of the Programme and fully accepts them.