Dear Editor,
I wish to warn fellow Guyanese on the way they report their income to Republic Bank. My daughter is a first time home buyer. She took a mortgage with Republic Bank nine years ago for $5M and the interest rate was 12%. When the government gave new concessions to the banking sector for housing development she asked for an interest rate review and had her interest rate reduced to 10%. Should she apply for a loan right now under similar conditions, the interest rate as a first time buyer will be 7.5% I was informed. So she appli-
ed once again for an interest rate review.
My daughter presently lives and works in Barbados. Republic Bank denied the application based on their assessment “that she can afford to pay an interest rate of 10%!” So if I understand this policy, there is no standard, precise way to evaluate an application. The rate of interest is based on affordability? And if the bank determines that your income can support an interest rate of lets say 25% then that’s it? Or is it once you are hooked into their system then it’s a ‘take it or leave it,’ indifferent attitude? Oh, and there was one late payment of an instalment so she does not qualify for a review ever.
I will be in Trinidad next week and will go to see the CEO/Manager of Republic Bank. I want answers that make sense, not excuses.
Yours faithfully,
Hema Persaud
Editor’s note
We sent a copy of this letter to Ms Michelle Johnson, Manager of Marketing & Communications, Republic Bank Ltd, and received the following response:
“We are grateful for the opportunity to advise that Republic Bank’s lending rates are not determined by income levels but by the respective category of borrowing and the security provided for the loan.”
