A growing momentum around the IT mortgage program has become evident as additional details from the Ministry of Digital Development indicate a sustained uptick in applications following the latest adjustments to the policy. Izvestia notes that the revised conditions have spurred a noticeable rise in demand, with February 2023 seeing 4.7 thousand loan applications submitted under the program. This figure represents a doubling compared with the pace observed in the months prior, signaling that the revised terms are resonating with IT professionals and their employers across the country. The shift reflects a broader trend: targeted financial support for technology workers is attracting more interest as the program becomes more accessible and its benefits more visible to potential borrowers. The Ministry’s data suggests that the adjusted scheme is achieving its goal of expanding access to affordable housing for a growing segment of the workforce, with a wide geographic footprint backing these efforts.
Izvestia further highlights that the geographic distribution of the strongest activity under the IT mortgage scheme maps onto major metropolitan and regional hubs. The program has seen considerable participation in Moscow and the Moscow region, along with significant volumes in Sverdlovsk and Voronezh, and continues to show robust engagement in St. Petersburg, Novosibirsk, and Nizhny Novgorod. Regions such as Perm and Krasnodar also report meaningful uptake, while the Republic of Tatarstan appears prominently in the lending activity. This spread underscores the program’s intent to reach IT professionals dispersed across large urban centers and regional centers alike, rather than concentrating benefits in a single city. The geographic breadth also reflects the presence of accredited lending entities operating nationwide and a growing network of IT companies that recognize the program as a viable path to workforce housing for their staff.
The government’s policy teams introduced the updated IT employee housing scheme on February 7, 2023, enabling lending through accredited financial institutions under more favorable terms. A key feature of the update is an expanded eligibility base: employees from nearly 20,000 Russian companies now qualify to participate, broadening who can access preferential mortgage conditions. The age acceptance window has remained aligned with a typical working-age range, and officials have clarified that applicants aged 18 to 50 can participate if they meet the program’s other criteria. This widening of the applicant pool is designed to accelerate homeownership opportunities for a broader slice of the technology workforce while maintaining prudent risk controls that lenders use to assess mortgage applications. The change also signals an ongoing commitment to integrating the tech sector with housing policy as a lever to recruit and retain skilled professionals in a competitive labor market.
In a development announced later in February, the government expanded the list of IT companies that are eligible to benefit from government support under the IT mortgage program. The broadened company designation means more employers can sponsor employee access to the program, reinforcing the connection between corporate IT capacity and access to affordable housing. Analysts view this expansion as a practical bridge between industry growth and housing affordability for workers who drive that growth. By enabling a wider pool of tech firms to participate, authorities are aiming to sustain demand for IT talent while supporting stable, long-term housing solutions for staff in key tech centers across the country. The overall effect, as observed by industry observers, is a more inclusive framework that aligns financial incentives with the real-world needs of technology teams and the regional economies they bolster. In summary, the IT mortgage program is gaining traction as the policy environment becomes clearer and lenders increasingly align their products with the evolving needs of tech professionals, contributing to a healthier housing-market dynamic for IT workers nationwide.