High effort rates limit young people's access to public housing credit guarantees.
Young people's access to state-guaranteed housing credit has faced significant challenges, with the main obstacle being the high level of effort required to benefit from this support.
State guarantee on mortgage credit continues to be out of reach for many young people.
Despite being created to facilitate access to home purchase, many young people end up not meeting the criteria defined, which limits its effectiveness.
State guarantee was implemented to support young people facing difficulties in accessing housing credit, especially in the current context of high prices in the real estate market.
However, for young people to benefit from this guarantee, the effort rate - the percentage of net income allocated to loan repayment - cannot exceed 35%. This limit has proven to be a hindrance, as many young people cannot meet this requirement due to low incomes or high housing prices.
The requirement of a reduced effort rate contrasts with the reality experienced by most young people in Portugal, where initial salaries often do not match the high costs of housing.
Many young people are forced to postpone buying a house or resort to renting, even when this also represents a high financial burden. At the same time, the limitation in access to state guarantee leaves out a segment of the population that should be a priority.
Experts suggest that the flexibilization of access criteria, namely increasing the limit of the effort rate or introducing special conditions for young people, could make the measure more effective. Others advocate the creation of complementary programs, such as direct subsidies or tax incentives, to compensate for difficulties in accessing credit.
Meanwhile, young people continue to face a double challenge: balancing ambitions of owning their own home with difficulties imposed by market conditions and restrictive criteria of government support.
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