For eternal years: the average term of a preferential mortgage has exceeded 27 years
The average term of a preferential mortgage in August 2025 exceeded 27 years, according to Dom.Russian Federation", which were studied by Izvestia. The overpayment on such a loan, even with a reduced rate, will be more than twofold. Increasing the term of housing loans allows you to reduce the amount of monthly payments and make them more affordable for borrowers. Nevertheless, not all Russians are eligible for preferential terms, and the percentage of refusals for mortgage applications exceeds 60%. To what extent mortgages are actually available in the Russian Federation, see the Izvestia article.
How much has the average term on a preferential mortgage increased?
The average term of a government-backed mortgage in August was 27 years and 4 months. This follows from the statistics on the implementation of preferential programs from Dom.rf, which was studied by Izvestia. For family mortgages, which account for the bulk of housing loans, the average term has reached 28 years. Even taking into account the preferential rate of 6%, the overpayment on such a loan will be more than twofold.
The average term for an IT mortgage in 2025 was 27 years and 7 months, according to the Analytical Center Dom.RF. The maximum term for these two types of housing loans is not formally limited, but banks rarely issue them for more than 30 years. A limit of 20 years has been set for Far Eastern and Arctic mortgages, and the average term in 2025 was close to the limit of 19 years and 6 months.
— Increasing the loan term allows citizens to reduce the amount of monthly payments, — explained in the Analytical center "Dom.RF".
Not only citizens, but also banks themselves are interested in making the mortgage term longer. Currently, the Central Bank has special restrictions on the share of borrowers with a high debt burden in the Russian Federation. As a result, banks practically do not issue housing loans to customers who spend more than half of their income on servicing them.
It is the increase in the mortgage term that allows the client to reduce the monthly payment and get his loan, having passed the bank's requirements for the ratio of income and debt burden, said the head of the expert analytics department of the financial marketplace "Banks.<url>" by Inna Soldatenkova. Nevertheless, this is not always possible — the share of housing loan refusals in September exceeded 60%, according to data from the National Bureau of Credit Histories (NBKI).
In addition, preferential programs are more often used by young families with moderate incomes, for whom this is often the only way to purchase their homes, said Evgeny Shavnev, CEO of the Flip real estate investment company.
Why have housing prices increased?
The situation is also affected by the rising cost of apartments. According to the head of the Central Bank, Elvira Nabiullina, since the beginning of 2020, prices for new buildings have doubled, while construction volumes have increased by only 10%. As a result, housing affordability has not increased, even though household incomes have increased. According to the regulator, the price gap in the primary and secondary markets in some regions can reach 80%.
The reason is the effect of a massive preferential mortgage at 8%, which was available to all Russians until July 2024. It was launched in the spring of 2020 to support the market amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The Central Bank has repeatedly criticized it for artificially accelerating demand for housing, which led to an accelerated increase in prices.
Today, government programs are aimed at specific groups of the population, such as IT professionals, families with children, or residents of the Far East. Nevertheless, even now it is government support that remains the main driver of the market — according to the United Credit Bureau (OKB), preferential mortgages account for more than 70% of the total volume of housing loans.
This situation has developed due to the long period of validity of the high key interest rate - because of it, the cost of a mortgage on market conditions can still exceed 25%. The overpayment on such a loan for a period of 25 years will be fivefold, and the monthly payment amount is three times higher than on a loan on preferential terms. For most Russians, ready-made housing is simply not available.
— Technically, preferential mortgages are available to the majority, but in fact they are available only to a limited number of borrowers. Only about 40% of applicants receive approval," said Oleg Abelev, head of the analytical department at the Rikom—Trust investment company.
A common reason for mortgage refusals is insufficient down payment, concluded Valery Tumin, Director of Russian and CIS Markets at fam Properties. With its size of less than 20%, only 3% of candidates receive approval. According to Dom.Russia", the average initial payment level now reaches 28%, which means that housing is available only to those borrowers who have already been able to save a large enough amount.
The increase in mortgage loan terms creates systemic risks. The longer the mortgage lasts, the longer the borrower must maintain the stability of their income, which is far from always possible, Oleg Abelev noted. For banks, this means an increased likelihood of delay or default.
In addition, there is a risk of overheating of the market: artificially supported demand through preferential programs may inflate housing prices, and after they are curtailed, the cost of collateral will be lower than the remaining debt, the expert explained. This means that in the event of a default on the loan and the sale of the mortgaged apartment, the bank can still make a loss — this creates risks for the entire financial system.
Reducing the average mortgage term is possible no earlier than 2027, when, according to the forecasts of the Central Bank, the key rate will drop below 10%, said Vasily Kutyin, Director of Analytics at Ingo Bank. This will make secondary housing affordable for Russians again, and it is now cheaper than new housing. Many borrowers will be able to afford smaller loans at an acceptable rate for a shorter period of time.
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