By REUTERS
Somkid Jatusripitak
Thailand’s cabinet on Tuesday approved short-term measures aimed at reviving the property sector and helping low- and middle-income earners to buy a home amidst a struggling economy.
The package includes fee cuts and relaxed mortgage conditions, Deputy Prime Minister Somkid Jatusripitak told reporters.
“The measures are aimed at reducing the burden on home buyers and one target is the low-income earner,” Somkid said.
The government would provide 10 billion baht (RM1.17 billion) worth of loans via its state-run Government Housing Bank to homebuyers with monthly income of no more than 30,000 baht, said Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong.
The loan programme will start next week and last through next year.
Mortgage approvals have been among the main problems facing the property sector as commercial banks have tightened lending as non-performing loans have risen.
The Land Department’s transfer fee was to be cut from 2% to 0.01% of an appraised home price while
mortgage registration fees would be reduced from 1% to 0.01%, Apisak said.
Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy has struggled to regain traction since the military seized power in May 2014 to end political unrest.
— By Pracha Hariraksapitak & Kitiphong Thaicharoen
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