Public Housing Institution introduces new platform for loan prepayments

Between 1999 and 2018, the number of loans granted by the Public Housing Institution reached 85,000 loans. However, in just two years, between 2021 and 2023, due to the collapse of the Lebanese lira and the consequent devaluation of the loans and their interest, the Institution's offices were flooded with requests from citizens who wanted to pay off their loans before they became due. 

The number of such requests reached 29,000, while only twenty employees remained out of the original two hundred.

Therefore, to avoid further accumulation of files, the Public Housing Institution has stopped accepting new requests for prepayment and has created a platform that will be launched in a few days through its website for filling out prepayment requests for loans, but under specific conditions.

So, what information is required to be entered on the platform for those who want to apply for prepayment of their loan?

The name of the bank, the full name of the borrower, the phone number, the number of the application, and the duration of the loan.

There is no need to panic, says the Director General of the Public Housing Institute (PHI) Rony Lahoud, because the loans and their interest are in Lebanese lira, and their value will not change. 

All loans will be paid off gradually, and the Public Housing Institution has two messages to citizens; pay off the remaining loan amount to your bank until you receive permission from the Institution. 

"This is what its management decision allowed," he added.

On another note, he advised citizens not to rush to pay their loans so as not to fall victim to transaction trackers because the Institution did not license any of them. They will not be able to expedite their transactions. 

"All they will do is steal your money," he stressed.