African countries with the highest mortgage interest rates
It is arguably one of the uttermost desires of every adult to own a home of their own. After all, having a shelter over one’s head is just too sacrosanct, according to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Considering how important housing is, therefore, nobody wishes to spend the rest of their life paying rent to some landlord.
Africa’s inefficient mortgage industry and high mortgage interest rates are major hurdles
Unfortunately, owning a home anywhere in African can be very difficult. This is due to a number of factors, including the fact that the mortgage industry in Africa isn’t really very reliable and accessible to those who need it. Also, there is the issue of high mortgage interest rates.
This explains why many people in Africa would rather build their own houses from scratch. Sadly, this process could often take years to complete due to the high cost of doing so. In the 2018 open access book Housing Market Dynamics in Africa, authors El-hadj M. Bah, Issa Faye and Zekebweliwai F. Geh detailed the construction cost conundrum in Africa.
Do note that the inefficient housing finance market is one of the major causes of the housing shortage crises in Africa. Now, two question a lot of Africans (especially young adults) ask themselves are:
- Why is the mortgage industry in Africa almost inaccessible to those who need it?
- Why are mortgage interest rates generally so high in African countries, compared to other parts of the world?
Perhaps these are questions only banks, regulators and lawmakers in Africa can be able to answer.
What is mortgage interest rate?
According to The Balance, “a mortgage interest rate is a percentage of your total loan balance that’s paid on a monthly basis until your mortgage loan is paid off, along with your principal payment. It’s a component in determining the annual cost to borrow money from a lender to purchase a home or other property.”
15 African countries with the highest mortgage interest rates
In the meantime, let us focus on 15 African countries that have the highest mortgage interest rates. In one of these countries, mortgage interest can be as high as 50%!
It’s important to stress that this list was compiled using data provided by Statista.
- Zimbabwe: Has a mortgage interest rate of 50%.
- Zambia: Has a mortgage interest rate of 30%.
- Angola: Has a mortgage interest rate of 24%.
- Mozambique: Has a mortgage interest rate of 22%.
- Malawi: Has a mortgage interest rate of 21%.
- Sierra Leone: Has a mortgage interest rate of 21%.
- Uganda: Has a mortgage interest rate of 19%.
- Democratic Republic of Congo: Has a mortgage interest rate of 19%.
- Gambia: Has a mortgage interest rate of 18%.
- Rwanda: Has a mortgage interest rate of 18%.
- Madagascar: Has a mortgage interest rate of 17%.
- Sudan: Has a mortgage interest rate of 17%.
- Ghana: Has a mortgage interest rate of 17%.
- South Africa: Has a mortgage interest rate of 16%.
- Nigeria: Has a mortgage interest rate of 16%.
