Rapid economic growth in South Asia, urbanization, and a rising middle class have created considerable pent-up demand for housing and housing finance. More than 14 percent of low-income South Asians have no home. In response, South Asia's dynamic housing and housing finance markets have grown at rates of around 30%, but are still limited to upper-income groups. The contribution of housing and real-estate sector to overall economic growth, social uplift and employment is considerable. Housing and housing finance services have the clear potential to expand to middle- and even lower- income families. This requires an improved land administration, strengthened legal framework for land titling, registration, and foreclosure, better market data provision, and promotion of long-term funding for mortgage lenders and developers. Innovative traditional mortgage products and Islamic finance could match demand in underserved market segments. This report, a first regional effort on the topic, examines housing shortages in South Asia, as well as outlines shortcomings of the market for home mortgages. Information on good practice and country-specific examples are presented on enabling builder/developers, mortgage lenders, land administration, as well as foreclosure and other relevant regulations, to strengthen home ownership in South Asia. Special emphasis is accorded to low-income housing solutions.

Author: Nenova, Tatiana
Publisher: World Bank Publications
Illustration: N
Language: ENG
Title: Expanding Housing Finance to the Underserved in South Asia
Pages: 00392 (Encrypted EPUB) / 00000 (Encrypted PDF)
On Sale: 2010-06-22
SKU-13/ISBN: 9780821383223
Lib Category: Low-income housing - South Asia - Finance
Lib Category: Housing policy - South Asia
Category: Business & Economics : Finance