On September 19, Sber and Domklik processed a substantial volume of mortgage lending, approving 11.4 thousand loans with a total value approaching 52 billion rubles. This surge was made possible by strategic staffing increases and extended office hours, with some locations operating until 10 PM. The head of Sberbank’s Domklik division, Alexey Leipi, emphasized that the results set a new daily benchmark for the unit and demonstrated the bank’s capability to scale rapidly under the right conditions.
Leipi explained that the expansion in lending is tightly linked to preferential mortgage programs designed to make housing more accessible to a broad segment of Russians. Under these schemes, borrowers can secure loans with favorable terms that vary primarily with the size of the down payment, thereby enabling more households to move from renters to homeowners without facing prohibitive upfront costs.
In the breakdown shared by Leipi, a large share of the volume went to loans under preferential programs, which accounted for roughly three-quarters of all mortgages (about 77.4%). A further portion came from second-home purchases (around 21.7%), illustrating a mixed demand for housing solutions that combine living space with investment potential. Within the preferential program family, approximately 4.3 thousand loans (38%) were issued under the Family Mortgage option, about 3.7 thousand loans (32.6%) under State Support, and smaller contributions from the Far East Mortgage program, IT sector mortgage initiatives, and other targeted subsidies. This distribution highlights how government-backed incentives shape borrower choices and bank engagement across regions.
Ahead of adjustments to down payment requirements, Sber began preparing in September to scale concessional mortgage programs in accordance with new government directives. This preparatory phase included operational readiness measures intended to sustain customer access to favorable terms even as policy conditions evolved.
During the week preceding the legal changes, the bank undertook a concerted effort to ensure that as many customers as possible could obtain mortgages on the same favorable terms. To support this objective, more staff were brought on, and the network of Sber offices extended their operating hours, with several locations remaining open late into the evening. By leveraging modern technologies, the bank also shortened the time required to finalize agreements for all preferential programs, improving the overall customer experience and accelerating loan processing timelines.
As a result of these measures, the bank reported that more than 22 thousand privileged loans were approved between September 15 and 19, illustrating the effectiveness of the expanded capacity and process enhancements. The geographic distribution of demand showed that the majority of prospective borrowers seeking uniform terms were concentrated in the Moscow metropolitan area, followed by the Krasnodar region, the central city of Moscow itself, Tyumen region, and St. Petersburg. Beyond these hubs, notable activity came from the Sverdlovsk region, the Republic of Tatarstan, the Republic of Bashkortostan, Novosibirsk, and the Chelyabinsk region, reflecting a wide geographic spread of interest in standardized mortgage terms across major urban and regional centers.
Earlier reporting from socialbites.ca drew attention to broader market dynamics, noting a rise in prices for newly constructed housing across Russia in August. The price increase stood at 137 thousand rubles per unit, representing a roughly 2.4 percent year-over-year change. These price movements interact with mortgage policy, influencing borrower decisions and bank lending strategies as the market balances affordability with supply factors across different regions.