Nicosia, Cyprus. A bill to regulate mortgages and foreclosures is not expected to be submitted to parliament before it dissolves ahead of May’s election, a finance ministry spokeswoman told the House finance committee.
Bill timeline and legal review
Finance ministry spokeswoman Avgi Chrysostomou-Lapathiotis said the ministry is still working on the bill and that it must be reviewed by the legal service before submission to parliament. She said the process will not be completed before parliament dissolves on April 23, and that the bill would be submitted to the House at the earliest after the May 24 election.
Proposals on the financial commissioner and insolvency framework
Chrysostomou-Lapathiotis told the committee the ministry wants to strengthen the institution of the financial commissioner, including making decisions issued by the finance commissioner on debt cases binding. She also referred to further use of the insolvency framework.
Financial commissioner’s recommendations
Incumbent financial commissioner Valentina Georgiadou said an additional measure could be a way to regulate repayments following a court decision on the amount of debt owed on an outstanding loan. She also called on the state to consider the rent-for-instalment option, also known as the mortgage-to-rent scheme, under which households struggling with mortgage repayments sell their home to state asset management company Kedipes at 65 per cent of its market value and then pay rent to Kedipes to remain in the property.
Political reactions and calls for action
Asked whether a bill would soon be put before the House finance committee, Chrysostomou-Lapathiotis said the ministry has collaborated with Georgiadou and the insolvency department and that a bill will be submitted.
Akel MP Aristos Damianou warned that bills changing the legal framework regarding insolvency and foreclosures may be unconstitutional. Diko MP Zacharias Koullas called on the government to immediately submit a bill to make the financial commissioner’s decisions binding. Dipa MP Alekos Tryfonides said that due to limited time before parliament dissolves, MPs should instead vote to suspend all foreclosures until the end of the year. Ecologists’ Movement leader Stavros Papadouris accused the government of delaying action, saying the finance ministry prefers not to change the current legislative framework.
What changes to mortgage and foreclosure rules would you like to see addressed in the upcoming bill?
