Mehmet Şimşek's plan for housing loans up to 50 years: Experts weigh in

At the consultation camp organized by the AKP in Kızılcahamam, it was alleged that Treasury and Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek is working on "40-50-year maturity housing loans."

According to a report by the pro-government newspaper Türkiye, various suggestions have come from economists and real estate consultants for this model, which is expected to provide a lifeline to the housing sector.

Experts point out that for such long-term loan systems to succeed, both banks and citizens must be incentivized. One of the most frequently proposed formulas for this is the establishment of a new structure under the name "Public Housing Finance Institution."

This structure could act as a state-supported financing mechanism that operates independently of private banks. Furthermore, by having the state assume a portion of the interest burden, the repayment process for citizens could become more sustainable. In other words, while banks apply standard interest rates, the state could cover a portion of these interest costs to lower monthly payments.

It is not just this long-term model that is on the table; projects for "becoming a homeowner while paying rent" are also being considered. In this system, the state becomes a financial partner in projects and covers a certain portion of the cost. Citizens, in turn, make payments for 30 to 40 years as if they were paying rent, and receive the title deed to the house at the end of the process. This eliminates the burden of a high initial down payment and makes housing accessible to broader segments of the population.

However, experts agree that structural steps alone will not be enough for these models to achieve lasting success. It is stated that for long-term housing finance systems to function healthily, fundamental conditions such as low inflation, stable economic growth, and a permanently low-interest environment must be ensured.