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Housing policies of the central and eastern European countries are changing dramatically. Governments as suppliers of housing for the public are being replaced by market mechanisms in the private sector. To facilitate the development of housing markets, establishing well-functioning housing finance systems has emerged as an important policy issue for transition economies. This publication contains selected papers originally submitted to the workshop on housing finance in transition economies organised by the OECD in June 2000. It provides the first in-depth survey of current situations and challenges in the development of housing finance in major transition economies, in particular, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia. It also reviews current trends in housing finance in advanced market countries and their implications for transition economies.

Housing -- Finance -- Europe, Eastern. --- Housing -- Finance -- Former Soviet republics. --- Housing -- Finance. --- Housing --- Business & Economics --- Real Estate, Housing & Land Use --- Finance --- Affordable housing --- Homes --- Houses --- Housing needs --- Residences --- Slum clearance --- Urban housing --- Social aspects --- City planning --- Dwellings --- Human settlements --- Logement --- Finances

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The Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC), which consists of Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon, is one of the oldest regional groupings in Africa. Urbanization and growing population will put increasing pressure on existing housing resources. Without a step change in the level of housing construction and the necessary long-term finance to invest, slums will proliferate as short-term solutions fill the gap. The State is often the biggest actor in the sector with programs which are often costly and ineffective. CEMAC's housing value chain displays high levels of dysfunction on both demand and supply sides. The enabling environment creates significant challenges in addressing the affordable housing challenge. A comprehensive and far reaching program of reforms will be needed across multiple sectors to create the conditions under which private sector investment can thrive and be properly channeled into housing investment. Lack of long-term finance is a key constraint preventing long term investment into housing. This report focuses on the road map and recommendations for development of housing in the CEMAC region.

Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Gender --- Housing --- Housing Finance --- Refinancing --- Urban Development --- Urban Governance and Management --- Urban Housing

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Morocco has made important progress in economic development and financial inclusion since the 2007 Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP). Sustained economic growth has contributed to reducing poverty and greater sharing of economic prosperity. The financial sector has emerged as one of the most developed and inclusive in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. This technical note covers a large spectrum of financial inclusion topics in Morocco, mostly from the vantage point of banks, microcredit associations and finance companies. However, limits to the FSAP budget prevented extending the analysis to important policy initiatives or subjects, including low-income housing finance, rural finance, financing start-ups, promoting long-term saving, facilitating Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) listings, the role of the National Initiative for Human Development or tax incentives to formalize economic activity. The analysis relies on benchmarking Morocco to the averages of (i) Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries and (ii) its income group as defined by the World Bank. In addition, Peru, South Africa and Turkey were selected as emerging market peers based on income level, financial depth and degree of financial inclusion in specific areas: Peru (microfinance), South Africa (low-income household access), and Turkey (SME finance).

Finance and Development --- Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Financial and Private Sector Development --- Financial Regulation & Supervision --- Housing Finance --- International Financial Standards and Systems --- Islamic Finance --- Remittances --- Secured Transactions

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The housing deficit in Argentina is estimated to affect 6 million out of the 24 million households nationally. Macro-economic turmoil has contributed to this imbalance in two ways. First, the continuous inflation and currency depreciation made real estate a refuge investment protecting the capital value of investors. Second, rapid inflation acts a strong deterrent to the provision of long term finance and in particular mortgages. The government overhauled the public housing assistance policy by launching a 2016-2019 integrated housing and habitat plan (plan integral de vivienda y habitat). This plan aims to stimulate the production, or to provide one million housing solutions through two programs: a neighborhood improvement program targeting informal settlements, and a credit-linked subsidy program, solucion casa propria, through which up-front subsidies are granted to first time home buyers who contract mortgages, thus leveraging the impact of public intervention with bank credit. The broad prohibition of indexation has for a long time stunted the provision of long term, finance. To successfully grow the mortgage market, banks need funding and tools to manage interest rate and liquidity risks - that is, in the absence of significant derivative markets, funding from the capital market. The eventual development of a mortgage bond market based on housing loan portfolios, will help to increase the supply of stable long term funding instruments.

Access to Finance --- Capital Markets --- Capital Markets and Capital Flows --- Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Housing Finance --- Urban Development --- Urban Housing

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This paper examines the state of reverse mortgage markets in selected countries around the world and considers the potential benefits and risks of these products from a financial inclusion and economic benefit standpoint. Despite potentially increasing demand from aging societies - combined with limited pension income - a series of market failures constrain supply and demand. The paper discusses a series of market failures on the supply side, such as adverse selection, moral hazard, and the costly regulation established to address these problems, leading to only a small number of providers, even in developed markets. Demand-side constraints are equally relevant, in particular high non-interest costs, abuse concerns, and the inability of reverse mortgages to cover key risks facing the elderly, particularly health and elder care. In developing countries, constraints are likely to be even higher than in advanced economies, due to high transaction costs and lack of consumer knowledge and protection. The enabling conditions for such markets to develop are outlined, along with examples of regulatory oversight. The paper concludes that these still seem to be largely products of last resort rather than well-considered purchases as part of good retirement planning.

Aging --- Consumer Protection --- Finance and Development --- Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Financial Inclusion --- Housing Finance --- Pension --- Pensions and Retirement Systems --- Reverse Mortgage --- Social Protections and Labor