The information was translated using the ChatGPT service.
On Thursday, October 5, Economic Minister Viktor Valainis met with Reinis Bērziņš, the Chairman of the Board of the Development Finance Institution “Altum” (henceforth referred to as Altum), to introduce his work priorities and discuss Altum's current issues and the progress of the implementation of business and energy efficiency support programs developed by the Ministry of Economics.
During the meeting, both parties agreed that Altum would soon examine the possibility of providing support for state guarantees for housing acquisition or construction to young professionals, by temporarily reducing them.
“Given the steadily increasing credit interest rates, the government is actively seeking solutions to help mortgage borrowers. Thanks to the support programs implemented by Altum, several thousand young Latvian professionals have acquired new homes. These individuals have chosen not to build their careers abroad but to invest their knowledge and skills daily into the Latvian economy. We cannot afford to lose these people. Therefore, we are seeking a solution to temporarily reduce the fees for Altum guarantees and, consequently, the monthly payments of these borrowers, to overcome the situation where borrowers have increased interest expenses due to the rise in EURIBOR,” emphasized Economic Minister Viktor Valainis.
It is known that the state guarantee for a bank loan for housing acquisition or construction, up to 20% of the principal loan amount and no more than 50,000 EUR, is available to young professionals (persons who have acquired medium professional or higher education and are under 35 years of age), who have a steady income but lack sufficient savings for the initial payment. Currently, young professionals pay a one-time fee for issuing the guarantee, 4.8% of the granted guarantee sum, and an annual fee of 4.8% of the remaining guarantee sum. During the meeting, the Minister and Altum’s leader agreed that Altum would soon submit proposals to the Minister for reduced fees for state guarantees to young professionals.
At the same time, during the meeting, the Minister highly appreciated Altum as a socially responsible state capital company's achievements, especially highlighting its contribution to working with entrepreneurs. Altum demonstrates good cooperation in its daily operations, delving into entrepreneurs’ issues and finding solutions on how the state can most effectively assist them in various crisis situations. Over the past few years, entrepreneurship has been significantly affected both by the Covid-19 pandemic, its consequences, and the numerous restrictions imposed on various sector merchants for several years, as well as the consequences of the war in Ukraine caused by Russia. As a result, some merchants had to quickly find new markets, new supply routes, and new business partners. Therefore, Altum is a crucial partner for businesses and residents, providing support instruments for obtaining the necessary financing and loans.
Economic Ministry Public Relations Department prese@em.gov.lv