13 November 2025
Russia has a problem with mortgage payments. Banks are mostly refusing to lend money to citizens for housing. At the same time, overdue loans are growing in financial institutions themselves. If this continues, then next year Russian banks will face a wave of defaults on housing loans.
For more information about this, read the material on OBOZ.UA.
Russians are not given housing loans
Russian banks have begun to massively deny citizens loans for the purchase of housing. According to the Credit Histories Bureau, 60% of Russians were left with nothing after requesting a loan for an apartment.
Even after the key rate on loans in the Russian Federation decreased from 21% to 16.5%. There are almost no preferential mortgages left in Russia, and it was thanks to them that citizens acquired housing. Now you can get a preferential loan only if you want to go to live in the Far East or in the village. Well, even in occupied Mariupol.
And since the ruble is devaluing greatly and everyone is sure that it will soon drop back to 100, Russians have decided to buy real estate even at draconian interest rates (from 21 to 29%) in order to somehow protect their savings. But that’s not the case. The Russians are afraid that mortgages could accelerate the already huge inflation in the country.
Therefore, loans are given only to those who do not have many debts and can make a down payment of 50%. And there are few such Russians.
The construction industry and materials production are also suffering losses . Apartments are not being bought, developers cannot sell square meters, and repairs are not being made. And affordable housing has become unaffordable.
There is no money to pay off loans.
There is another problem – Russians are often unable to repay mortgage loans they took out in previous years. The number of defaults this year has doubled compared to the previous one. All this is due to the growing insolvency of Russians and threatens the loss of real estate.
The largest loan payment delays are in the Caucasus, as well as in Tuva, Khakassia, Krasnodar Krai, Tambov Oblast. Also in Moscow, Chelyabinsk, and Samara Oblasts.
Russian realtors suggest that a wave of mass defaults may begin next year .
In addition, developers cannot sell square meters. Even in Moscow, only 49% of housing under construction has been sold. But in Krasnodar Krai, where houses have been sprouting like mushrooms after rain in recent years, only 21% have been sold. In Rostov Oblast – 24%, and in Leningrad Oblast – 25%.
The Russian mortgage bubble was “inflated” thanks to preferential mortgages. The Russian government bribed citizens with its generosity while there was money. And developers tried to build as much as possible to make money. Now everything has gone to war, and there is no point in supporting citizens’ pants anymore.
As a result, in many cities, unfinished buildings gape with empty windows and frozen taps. One hope is that the government will reduce the key rate, which has now decreased from 21% to 16.5%. But it will not be possible to revive the real estate market so quickly.
As interest rates fall, housing prices and demand for them will rise. Greedy developers will want to make up for lost profits.
“Creative” Russian MPs are already coming up with various ways to solve the problem of buying housing for Russians. They are taking examples from the Soviet past: the head of the “A Just Russia” party, Sergei Mironov, came up with the idea of reviving the Budoshchadkas system and social housing rental.
Budoshchadkasy are credit organizations that issue loans for the purchase of housing. According to Mironov, these financial organizations are half the price of a mortgage.
And Vladimir Koshelev, deputy chairman of the State Duma committee, even proposed killing two birds with one stone – luring young people to work in factories and giving them mortgage loans with zero interest rates. Like in Soviet times, when young people were encouraged to go to construction sites in remote regions and were given apartments. After that, it was forbidden to resign for ten years.
One day, the mafia state will collapse like a house of cards. Hopefully soon.