Families with one child have become 23 times more likely to spend maternity capital

In January-March, families with one child submitted 95,000 applications for the disposal of maternity capital. Compared to last year, the number of such appeals has increased 23 times, according to the report of the Accounting Chamber (JV) on the budget of the Social Fund (Izvestia studied it).

Family values: the authorities are discussing new options for using the maternity capital

What investment instruments can it be invested in and are there any risks involved?

The majority of parents with one child have allocated funds for improving housing conditions (74 thousand applications), as well as for education (20 thousand).

"The increase in the number of applications is due to the fact that previously families with one child were more likely to put off maternity capital for the future, and now — against the background of rising prices and rates — they are trying to use it immediately to increase the initial mortgage payment and reduce the loan amount," said Evgeny Shavnev, CEO of Flip.

At the same time, since March, the possibilities of using the certificate have expanded: now it can be used to build a private house through escrow accounts under a contract, recalled Vladimir Chernov, analyst at Freedom Finance Global.

Also, matkapital has begun to be more actively used by families whose children will soon go to school, said Alexander Safonov, professor at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation. He recalled that the certificate began to be issued for first-born children in 2020, which means that many children are already about five years old — they can be enrolled in clubs and sections, as well as sent to private kindergartens.