Has it become more difficult for home buyers to secure financing? YLE put the question to three major banks operating in Finland.
Overall, banks said it's business as usual. Credit-worthy people shopping for a mortgage still have a range of financing options at their disposal.
Sampo Bank says loan officers today preach realism to starry-eyed applicants looking to move into their dream home.
OP-Pohjola Group and Nordea meanwhile both say they exercise more caution when issuing credit. Nordea, for example, requires that loan applicants sell their current home before setting sights on a new one.
All three banks said borrowers will face higher lending costs by summer.
“It’s a climate of increased risk and this also affects Nordic banks,” says Kenneth Kaarnimo of Sampo Bank.
At the moment, OP-Pohjola offers the cheapest mortgage -- with margins just under 0.8 percent on top of the Euribor lending rate. At Sampo and Nordea this bank-specific marginal interest rate is around one percent, and is likely to hit 1.5 percent by the time the weather warms up.