"New Youth" Loan Applications and Disbursements Both Fell Month-on-Month in April; Banks Cite Wait-and-See Market

(CNA, Taipei, 20th, by reporter Lu Yen-tzu) The Ministry of Finance today released statistics for the New Youth Peace of Mind (NYP) housing loan for April 2026, showing a month-on-month decrease in both the number and value of applications and disbursements. The eight public banks accepted 3,880 applications, a 19% decrease from March, with the total application value at NT$32.438 billion, also a 19% decline. A bank executive pointed out that the property market is in a price and volume consolidation phase, mainly due to a prolonged wait-and-see period for transactions and a return of the market to owner-occupier demand. According to the NYP loan statistics released by the Ministry of Finance today, there were 3,880 applications in April this year, totaling NT$32.438 billion, a decrease of 895 applications and NT$7.853 billion from March, both representing a 19% decline. This marks the lowest performance this year, excluding the Chinese New Year interference in February, and is also below the level of the same period last year. Disbursements also showed a monthly decrease. A total of 4,055 loans were disbursed, with a total value of NT$33.087 billion, representing a 5% and 4% decline from March, respectively. Compared to the same period last year, the figures are nearly flat with April of last year. Examining the performance of the eight major public banks in handling NYP loans in April, the results were mixed. Bank of Taiwan had the most applications with 731, followed by Land Bank of Taiwan with 722, and Taiwan Cooperative Bank third with 521. The remaining public banks all had fewer than 500 applications. In terms of disbursements, Land Bank of Taiwan led with 840 loans, Bank of Taiwan was second with 744, Taiwan Cooperative Bank third with 558, and Mega International Commercial Bank fourth with 521. The remaining public banks all disbursed fewer than 500 loans. Compared to March data, the overall ratio of disbursed loans to applications slightly increased from 96.59% to 96.65%, and the ratio of disbursed value to application value slightly rose from 96.21% to 96.28%, with the ratio for all eight public banks exceeding 90%. A public bank executive observed that due to more conservative consumer confidence and a longer wait-and-see period for transactions, the property market is returning to owner-occupier demand and is still in a price and volume consolidation stage. On the other hand, as the market is still supported by solid demand from owner-occupiers and home-swappers, it is expected that this year's housing transaction volume will be roughly the same as last year's. (Editor: Pan Yi-ching) 1150520