Taipei’s Cabinet announced it will complete studies on a possible reverse mortgage plan within a year and expects concrete results by the end of 2010, Minister of the Interior Jiang Yi-huah told the Taipei Times.
“The government is still in the process of evaluating the reverse mortgage policy,” Jiang said at a seminar. “As for whether the policy should be legislated or included in the social welfare program, we need to listen to public opinion.”
The minister said the matter was complex and factors such as property value and interest rate fluctuations must be taken into consideration.
Chang Chin-oh, land economics professor at National Chengchi University, said the program should not be viewed merely as a financial product, but as a policy that above all ensures the welfare of the nation’s elderly.
“If the policy is carried out successfully, it will ease the government’s financial burden and have a positive impact on the local real estate industry,” Chang said.
Because of the aging population and low birth rate, the minister said, more older people live alone.
