The Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation (HKMC) yesterday announced that it will enhance the mortgage insurance program (MIP) by lowering the threshold above which insurance will be made available, from current 70 percent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio to 60 percent, up to a total LTV ratio of 90 percent for the mortgage loan.

The HKMC said the MIP will take effect from Dec 18 this year.

The relaxation aims to assist lenders in managing their risk exposure and facilitate their extension of mortgage financing to homebuyers, the HKMC said.

To minimize the risks of over-leveraging, HKMC unveiled a slew of refinements to the eligibility criteria for 95 percent LTV loans.

The refinements include adjusting the maximum debt-to-income ratio from 50 percent to 45 percent in general, shortening the maximum tenor from 40 years to 30 years and capping the maximum loan amount at HK$8 million.

Speaking about the enhancement, Joseph Yam, deputy chairman of the HKMC and chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), said that it can help lessen the impact of the credit crunch in the mortgage financing market on potential homebuyers, as well as provide banks with a greater degree of flexibility in conducting mortgage business.

Moreover, the size of the Revolving Credit Facility offered by the Exchange Fund to the HKMC will be increased from HK$10 billion to HK$30 billion.

James Lau, chief executive officer of the HKMC, said that his company provides liquidity through purchase of mortgage loans from authorized institutions and the facility provides bridge financing to the corporation as necessary.

HKMA deputy chief executive Choi Yiu-kwan said that the move will motivate homebuyers to buy houses. "Many of them cannot be granted 70 percent mortgage from lenders because of the decline of property price... but the situation will be stabilized."

Ricky Wong, an executive director at Wheelock Properties, said the enhancement is positive to the property market. "Home buyers will have one more choice in borrowing," said Wong, "in particular, for those who bought the properties last year but need a mortgage loan drawdown now."

According to the new amendment, homebuyers can borrow 60 percent of the property value from banks, and a further 30 percent will be provided by the HKMC under its mortgage insurance program, Wong explained.

"It can partly offset the problem of differential in valuation," Wong said, adding that the banks' valuation for certain properties is lower than the purchasing price due to a sharp fall in property price this year.

Sharmaine Lau, mReferral mortgage chief economic analyst, said that the enhancement will have a positive impact on the property market, as it helps lower the risks lenders have to take.

(HK Edition 12/12/2008 page2)