The International Finance Corporation (IFC) supported a commercial bank in Honduras that aimed to increase housing segments as part of their growth strategy, moving down-market. This housing finance expansion exceeded its targets of loan value and number, which likely increased finance access for middle and upper income groups. Though this expansion was intended to serve low and middle income households, the high average loan size and minimum/maximum requirements indicate that the bulk of mortgages likely went to borrowers in the upper middle class and above income requirements.
Despite the fact that this expansion of the housing market outperformed its targets, there remains the question of how housing finance – and therefore access to secure housing – can reach lower income groups. In countries like Honduras, it is possible that reaching down-market will requiring improving infrastructure and encouraging the gradual expansion of existing lenders.
Source:
World Bank Group. (2016) World Bank Group Support to Housing Finance. International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank.
Link: https://ieg.worldbankgroup.org/evaluations/world-bank-group-support-housing-finance