Reports: Gov’t, banks reach deal over debt relief for certain category of mortgages

The government and Greece’s four systemic banks have reportedly come to an agreement, in principle, to offer relief to at-risk households servicing mortgages for primary residences.

The agreement, leaked by sources on Wednesday in the wake of yet another meeting between the finance ministry’s leadership and banks’ representatives, mainly revolves around a proposal by the latter to offer relief to certain categories of mortgage holders, with one prerequisite being that such housing loans are currently serviced.

The government has recently pressed lenders in the country – thrice bailed out by European institutional creditors and the Greek state after 2010 – to shrink the wide gap between continuously increasing interest rates tacked on to borrowing and meager yields offered for bank deposits. The government also wants reductions on fees charged by Greek banks even for the simplest electronic transactions.

The same sources said the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) has not expressed objections over the agreement, which is reportedly linked with income and asset criteria.

Based on the same information, the proposed relief measure is distinctly modest, involving mortgages worth a total of 1.5 billion euros. One income criterion cited, still unofficially, is 20,000 euros in annual household income.