In Celebration of International Women’s Day 2020: #IWD2020; #EachForEqual”
IFC’s has just released a major study on women and housing finance titled, “Her Home: Housing Finance for Women.” The study proffers country-specific insights into the barriers women consistently face in obtaining housing finance, details the nature and size of women’s housing finance markets, and proffers recommendations for policymakers and financial institutions to overcome these barriers, improve women’s access to finance, and ultimately improve the lives of millions of women and their families around the world. Key takeaways include the following:
– Facilitating women’s access to housing finance could potentially improve their economic and social well-being.
– Developing housing finance value propositions for women could also benefit these financial institutions. For example, financial institutions that have tailored value propositions to women-owned SMEs report business growth coupled with a low rate of non-performing loans (NPLs).
– Financial institutions should adopt marketing strategies, innovative housing finance products and services geared to women, while public policies should be geared towards supporting women’s access to housing finance in general.
Women make up half the world’s population, and half of its economic potential. Yet they are far less likely than men to own a home. That’s because women work in informal jobs, are unfamiliar with formal loan-application procedures, or are stifled by traditional cultural norms. This new study sheds light on the women’s market for housing finance in three countries: Colombia, India and Kenya.
Source: https://www.ifc.org/wps/wcm/connect/industry_ext_content/ifc_external_corporate_site/financial+institutions/resources/her+home+-+housing+finance+for+women
