Housing conditions in Armenia are plagued by a lack of insulation, an intense winter, and a lack of maintenance of Soviet era dwellings. Renovations of homes have increased as the middle class has been able to access loans, but low income populations – those who are also the most effected by high energy prices – remain unable to access finance for energy efficient renovations. It is essential, then, to find solutions that utilize both bank and non-bank financing activity for investments in housing energy efficiency renovations.
In 2008, the National Mortgage Company (NMC), which is a state-owned financial institution, was created to boost mortgage lending access across income groups. NMC was granted a concessional credit line, with the aim of facilitating access to microcredits for low-income households, in order to cover the renovation needs of 3,000 households. The loan is also paired with a 1.5 million euro grant, which will provide the necessary finance for technical assistance from NMC and reward energy efficient investments.
Source:
AFD. (2013) Stimulating Renovation and Energy Efficiency of Housing.