Gov't Issues Decree on Changes to Home Subsidies Scheme
The government has issued a decree raising awards available in the Home Purchase Subsidy Scheme for Families (CSOK) but limiting the scheme to smaller settlements, according to a report by state news wire MTI.
The measure was announced at a government press briefing late in June.
The decree, in force from January 1, 2024, raises CSOK awards for the purchase of resale homes from HUF 600,000 to HUF 1 million for families with one child, from HUF 2.6 mln to HUF 4 mln for families with two children, and from HUF 10 mln to HUF 15 mln for families with three or more children.
Awards for renovation or additions will rise from HUF 300,000 to HUF 500,000 for families with one child, from HUF 1.3 mln to HUF 2 mln for families with two children, and from HUF 5 mln to HUF 7.5 mln for families with three or more children.
Awards for purchases of new homes will remain unchanged: at 600,000 for families with one child, HUF 2.6 mln for families with two children, and HUF 10 mln for families with three or more children.
The decree contains a list of 2,631 smaller settlements in which residents are eligible for the subsidies. Eligibility also extends to homes in rural areas.
In a statement coinciding with the issue of the decree, the Culture and Innovation Ministry said CSOK is no longer of "substantial assistance" to city-dwellers as they must cover the cost of home purchases "in large part" from their own resources or bank credit because of high-interest rates. In smaller settlements, CSOK "remains effective", it added.
Another home purchase subsidy scheme for city-dwellers is being drafted, the ministry said.
Some 226,000 Hungarian families have availed of HUF 734 billion in CSOK subsidies since the scheme was rolled out in 2015, it noted.
Another decree issued in the latest Magyar Közlöny, the official gazette, raises the maximum size of prenatal baby support loans from HUF 10 mln to HUF 11 mln, but also lowers the age threshold for eligibility from 40 to 30, for the wife, albeit with a one-year exemption for women between 30 and 40 who are already pregnant.
The government said earlier the measure was intended to encourage women to have children sooner.
Since the prenatal baby support loans were introduced in the summer of 2019, almost 220,000 applicants have availed of the credit, taking out HUF 2.125 trillion.
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