NHA readies Bt500 bn for low-income projects

NHA Governor Tachaphol Kanjanakul said yesterday that the Cabinet approved its 20-year plan on Tuesday.
The NHA has also proposed that the Cabinet set up a Bt5-billion housing fund to provide mortgage loans to NHA customers who cannot get home loans from banks. 
Up to half of the agency’s customers see their loan applications rejected by commercial banks, including the Government Housing Bank, because their financial situation does not meet the banks’ standard, Tachaphol said.
In addition to developing residences for lower-income people nationwide, the investment plan also includes both residential projects and mixed-use projects for lower-income people in Greater Bangkok. The mixed-use projects would combine residences with retail and office spaces located close to mass transit systems.
The plan also includes Pracha Rat residences. 
If approved, the plan would see construction of over 2.2 million residential units nationwide, or nearly half of the government’s estimate of the country’s need for up to five million residences over the plan’s lifespan.
“Half of the total will be developed by the private sector for the middle- and upper-income markets,” Tachaphol said.
Under public-private partnerships, NHA plans to develop both residential and commercial buildings in Greater Bangkok, including Lat Krabang and Din Daeng, and in Lum Luk Ka district of Pathum Thani province. 
The projects fall under a public-private partnership contract with private firms worth over Bt100 billion between this year and 2019.
In fiscal 2017 (October 2016-September 2017) NHA succeeded in selling 14,000 residential units for the lower-income market nationwide, but half of them faced loan rejections.
Despite this, NHA maintained its net profit in fiscal 2017 at Bt840 million and transferred over 10,000 residential units to its customers.
NHA helped its customers rejected by banks by allowing them to buy a home through hire purchase financing and also to pay rent until they can improve their income to buy a home in the future.
“Our strategy is how to help our customers to own a home, so we tried to find a solution. Our proposal for the Housing Fund is part of the effort to help lower-income people to have the opportunity to become homeowners,” he said.
In Chiang Mai, NHA developed 12 projects with a combined 12,000 units that were successfully sold in the market because some of projects had Chinese investors.
The Chinese investors were interested in expanding their investment in residential projects in Chiang Mai and asked to jointly develop projects with the NHA.
“We are considering and also opening the opportunity to join with both local and foreign investors to develop residences for our lower-income earners following our 20-year plan,” Tachaphol said.