YEREVAN, December 1. /ARKA/. Mortgage borrowers in Armenia will be allowed to repay their loans early without penalties, the head of the Central Bank Artur Javadyan said at a government meeting on Thursday.

In a related move the government approved a package of legislative changes concerning the rights of mortgage borrowers, which, according to the head of the regulator, are aimed at protecting their interests.
"The draft government decision obliges banks to explain mortgage borrowers a number of important terms of the loan, such as rates and repayment rules, including early repayment. Borrowers will have the right to repay loans early without penalty," – Javadyan said.

Javadyan said also strict and clear rules for the selection of real estate appraisers and their activities will be set. In particular, the appraiser can not be a person affiliated with the bank.

At the end of September, 2016 the mortgage lending by Armenian banks stood at 181.6 billion drams (1.5% growth from the beginning of the year), of which 147.6 billion drams were provided for purchase of homes, 26.8 billion drams for home repair and 7.1 billion drams for home construction. ($ 1 - 480.20 drams). -0-