Chinese Banks Roll out ‘100 Year Loans,’ ‘Heart-to-Heart Loans,’ to Relieve Housing Price Pressure
News Analysis
Banks in many places in China have reportedly introduced“heart-to-heart loans” that encourage unmarried couples to apply for home loans before they are married; and “centenary loans” that allow children to inherit their parents’ loan and extend the repayment period to 100 years. Experts believe that such relaxation of loan repayment time limits and borrower conditions could be intended to relieve the pressure of high housing prices that has undermined the country’s real estate market.
China’s Agricultural Bank launched on Feb. 22 “heart-to-heart loans” for unmarried couples living in Xiong’an new area, Baoding city, central Hebei Province. It allows for one or both of the parties to apply for a home loan in cases where they are joint owners, and that even if one party applies for the loan alone, both people are considered to be co-repayers, as reported by Chinese portal site Sina….