SCB shifts focus to condo mortgages, repair loans
Siam Commercial Bank, the largest mortgage lender among commercial banks, expects a shift in residential demand from houses to condominiums because of the flooding, and will focus more on that market.
Pikun Srimahun, SCB’s executive vice president for mortgage business, said yesterday that the bank next year would aggressively chase condo loans, which currently make up 40 per cent of total housing loans.
The bank plans to double the proportion of its condo loans to 60 per cent next year to ensure a 30-per-cent share of the mortgage market.
The supply of condos is expected to be limited next year, so the market will see fierce competition among lenders.
The bank forecasts 46,000 units next year, up from 40,000 units this year.
Condo prices will also rise, so small units will become more popular, she said.
Growth in the residential loan market next year will be supported by home repairs rather than purchases of new homes because of the floods, Pikun said.
SCB will also focus on loans for repairing residences and commercial buildings. It projects its rehabilitation loans will reach Bt20 billion, higher than the normal Bt2 billion.
The overall demand for loans to repair just homes next year is expected to jump to Bt10 billion from between Bt3 billion and Bt4 billion normally.
Demand for loans for new homes should rebound in the second quarter of next year, but new home loans will still be lower than this year.
The bank predicts its new mortgage loans will drop to between Bt70 billion and Bt80 billion from Bt90 billion expected this year, so its outstanding loans will increase only slightly to Bt345 billion from Bt330 billion this year.
