Mateusz Morawiecki presented the draft legislation at a briefing on Tuesday, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
2 million families to benefit from new regulations
He said his government was “giving a hand to some 2 million families” that struggle with paying their zloty-denominated mortgage loans.
Grace period
The new bill envisages that four mortgage instalments in 2022 and a further four in 2023, eight in total, will be postponed at no additional cost.
This measure is expected to save mortgage customers a total sum of PLN 3 billion (EUR 640 million) per year, it was said.
More support for distressed borrowers
Moreover, the Loan Customers’ Support Fund that helps distressed borrowers will be increased from PLN 600 million (EUR 128 million) to PLN 2 billion (EUR 426 million) this year, with money coming from the banking sector, Morawiecki said.
Another PLN 2 billion will be injected into the fund from the same source next year, reporters were told.
More favourable rules for calculating cost of mortgages from 2023
Finally, the cost of mortgage loans will no longer be calculated on the basis of the Warsaw Interbank Offer Rate (WIBOR), Morawiecki said.
If the banking sector does not come up with its own new mechanism, as of next year the central bank’s POLONIA overnight rate will be used for the purpose, he told reporters.
He added that "the more favourable POLONIA rate" could “save borrowers some PLN 1 billion (EUR 213 million) per year.”
Morawiecki also said that in the coming days, the government would unveil new regulations to help savers.
Meanwhile, the new bill now heads for consultations, he announced.
Inflation in Poland stood at 12.3 percent in year-on-year terms in April, the country’s Central Statistical Office (GUS) said in a flash estimate late last month.
The Polish central bank’s Monetary Policy Council last week raised key interest rates for the eighth consecutive time in a bid to tame surging consumer prices.
Tuesday is day 76 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: IAR, PAP, biznes.interia.pl