
November has further emphasized the trend of moving loans for the purchase of real estate of individuals from euro to lek. The Bank of Albania reports a further decline in loans in the European currency for home purchases in November, with individuals as well as banks oriented towards loans in our national currency, at a time when total loans for all purposes have marked a noticeable contraction .
According to official data, from the equivalent of 70.2 billion lek in October, the loan in euros for the purchase of housing fell to 67.3 billion in November. Calculated with the current exchange rate, from almost 700 million euros in October, the loan for the purchase of apartments results in almost 670 million euros at the end of November. At these rates, the loan for apartments in euros has gone below the levels of the end of last year, remembering that in November 2022, the loan for apartments was at the level of nearly 700 million euros.
The complete opposite is happening in recent months with the loan for the purchase of flats in Lek. From ALL 106.8 billion at the end of October, the loan for the purchase of apartments has increased by about ALL 3 billion in the space of one month, jumping over ALL 109 billion at the end of November.
While the loan for housing has kept the loan for the individual segment alive during these 11 months, seeing that other bank lending products are in strong decline. In total, loans to individuals fell to ALL 267.3 billion in November, from ALL 267.9 billion in October.
Bank financing for individuals continued at high rates during the third quarter, although the 12.5% increase in this quarter was 1.4 percentage points less than in the first six months. The slowdown of credit in foreign currency has affected this performance. Similar to the trends observed among businesses, foreign currency credit to individuals has slowed down to 13.9% in the third quarter, from an average of 21% in the first half. Individuals have also chosen to prematurely close part of their foreign currency loans - mainly in euros - and have replaced them with loans in Lek. The main factors that have supported this shift have been the appreciation of the local currency, the lower interest rates of the mortgage loan in Lek compared to that in Euro, as well as the regulatory facilities for changing the currency without penalty.