Numbers down but Czech mortgage market stable

Czechs signed just 6,491 mortgage loan contracts in January for the third consecutive monthly drop in that indicator. But idnes.cz writes that despite slowly rising interest rates, the mortgage market appears to have stabilized. Moreover, the average loan size continues to break new records each month, with the current value at CZK 2.6m. This is being driven by the rising cost of real estate in the country and possibly by the financial muscle of the people who are still in the market for a mortgage. The total value of all mortgages signed in January was CZK 16.88bn, an increase of more than CZK 1.1bn. The average monthly installment for 20 years loans is CZK 5,230, while those paying down the loan within 15 years are doing so with payments of CZK 6,601.