Since the introduction of the Mortgage to Rent scheme, 3.4 thousand people have applied for the scheme. Of these, 2.4 thousand applications fall within the criteria of the scheme.
This was announced recently by the chairman of KEDIPES, Lambros Papadopoulos.
He expressed the hope that the total number of applications will increase by another 1.5-2 thousand by 2025. Papadopoulos mentioned that the organisation's staff continues to actively process the documents of the beneficiaries. By the way, out of the total number of applications, 100 people have been approved and 25 have already signed the corresponding contracts.
Recall that the government's Mortgage to Rent programme was launched for the first time in 2023. The scheme proved so popular with the island nation's residents that the government decided to renew it in the autumn of 2024. The scheme covers overdue loans secured on primary residences of up to €350,000. Beneficiaries are people from low-income groups and pensioners, whether or not they have applied to join the ESTIA and Oikia schemes.
The programme is also open to borrowers who have defaulted on their mortgage but whose application to join the ESTIA and Oikia schemes has been rejected because they were deemed unviable due to low income.
A separate company, KEDIPES EED Ltd, has been set up to administer the new scheme and maintain separate accounting records, including a fixed asset register. As part of the scheme, arrangements have been made to insure the properties that will come into the ownership of KEDIPES. Call centres and service points have been opened in five towns in Cyprus, staffed by qualified personnel who are available to answer questions from the public and those interested in participating in the scheme.
Applications for the Government's Mortgage to Rent Scheme can only be submitted in paper form to the KEDIPES offices at the following addresses:
- 7 Grigori Afxentiou Street, Nicosia, 1096;
- 97 Gladstonos Street, Oasis Complex, Block E, 3rd Floor, Limassol, 3032;
- 5 Giorgos Christodoulidis Street, Larnaca, 6041;
- Kinira and Koriou Junction, 7, 4th floor, Paphos, 8011;
- Griva Digeni Street 4, Paralimni, 5281.
For more information about the project, please call the reference number: 22 743400
The main function of KEDIPES in the Mortgage for Rent programme is to purchase non-performing loans and other high-risk assets from Cypriot financial institutions.
As conceived, KEDIPES is supposed to buy mortgages from debtors. The troubled borrowers will then be allowed to rent their property from the 'bad bank' for 14 years. During this period, they are charged a rent of 65% of the market average. At the end of this period, they can get the property back if they pay the arrears. The current price of the property for borrowers in arrears is equal to the price at which KEDIPES bought the property, less the rent paid over 14 years. If the borrower is unable to repurchase the property, for example due to lack of funds or death, his next of kin are entitled to do so under the same conditions. Finally, if the conditions of the scheme are not met, KEDIPES can sell the property at its discretion after 14 years.