Penza, 25 April 2018. PenzaNews. At the end of 2017 the average rate on mortgage loans in the Penza region amounted to 10.7%, whereas in 2016 it reached 12.4%. This was reported by governor Ivan Belozertsev.

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"There has been a noticeable recovery in the mortgage market with simultaneous reduction in bank interest rates. The number of mortgage loans grew by 35.8%. The volume of lending increased by 41.7% compared to 2016. The growth of mortgages in the Penza region is higher than that in the Volga Federal District and the national average," he said giving a report on the work of the regional government at the 8th regular session of the regional Legislative Assembly on Wednesday, April 25.

According to Ivan Belozertsev, the Penza region is among the regions of the Volga Federal District with the lowest prices on real estate market.

"However, from my point of view, [...] housing prices for accommodation in our region are still too high and unaffordable for many residents of the Penza region," the governor said.

He reminded that 886,000 square metres of housing was commissioned in 2017.

"The crisis affected the construction industry. The reduction of investment expenditures of enterprises, remaining lending barriers, falling demand for housing became the main reasons for the decrease in construction works," the head of the region explained.

Ivan Belozertsev also mentioned the issue of deceived construction investors and that the authorities were doing their best to solve it.