New mortgages totaled NIS 3.21 billion in December 2011.
New mortgages totaled NIS 3.21 billion in December 2011, 11.6% more than the amount granted in November, the Bank of Israel reported today. However, the figure was 33% below the peak in new mortgages in April, before the Bank of Israel began its macro-prudential measures to tighten the real estate market.
Variable interest rate mortgages rose 10% from November to NIS 2.4 billion in December. Variable interest mortgages accounted for 75.1% of total mortgages in December, down from the 76.3% of total mortgages in the preceding month. The amount of fixed-interest mortgages rose 17% to NIS 799 million in December.
In the review, the Bank of Israel reiterated its prediction that the rise in home prices will continue to slow, and that rents will continue to rise.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 15, 2012
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