President clears Dhs3b housing loan for 1,900 capital’s citizens
ABU DHABI: His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, in his capacity as Ruler of Abu Dhabi emirate, has ordered the disbursement of housing loans to 1,900 citizens in Abu Dhabi, worth a total of Dhs3 billion.
The third housing package of 2022 coincides with the UAE’S 51st National Day celebrations, and reflects the leadership’s commitment to ensuring social stability, enhancing living standards and enabling citizens to raise strong and stable families that will benefit the future of the UAE.
It brings the total value of housing packages disbursed during 2022 to approximately Dhs7 billion, benefiting more than 4,000 beneficiaries.
The package includes housing loans, and the exemption of retirees and families of deceased mortgagors in Abu Dhabi from loan repayments.
According to a report in August this year, the UAE’S citizens’ housing file in 2022 has achieved significant regulatory progress, and atained massive financial allocations for federal and local plans and projects amounting to some Dhs25.28 billion.
On 5th June, 2022, Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed ordered the completion of the housing grants from previous years’ worth Dhs2.3 billion, as part of the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme and through the President’s Initiatives.
The Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure said that the initiative covers the applications of those eligible to receive housing grants from the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme.
On 9th May 2022, the UAE Cabinet adopted a new federal housing loan policy aimed at providing housing loans via partnerships with the private sector and national banks.
The housing financing programme under the new policy also aims to issue 13,000 housing resolutions from 2022 to 2026 worth Dhs11.5 billion.
Under the new policy, the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme will pay the interest income on the loans on behalf of citizens, which will double the annual number of resolved loans and accelerate the completion of applications.
On 7th June, 2022, the UAE Cabinet approved citizens’ housing loans worth Dhs2.4 billion for 500 beneficiaries per month.
On 6th July, 2022, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure, represented by the Sheikh Zayed Housing Programme, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with First Abu Dhabi Bank, Emirates NBD, Dubai Islamic Bank and Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank, with the aim of financing housing loans.
Coinciding with the Mou’s signing, the Ministry of Energy and Infrastructure announced the first batch of beneficiaries under the new housing policy, which included 500 resolutions worth Dhs400 million, followed by the second batch announced on 3rd August, 2022.