Banks could cut commissions on real estate loans in the future

Despite the collapse of demand for retail credits, banks are in no rush to cut the number and value of commissions incurred by debtors when they take out a mortgage or a real estate loan. Bankers estimate in the future they could give up several commissions, even pressured by the authorities. “The majority of banks will give up a whole range of commissions on mortgage loans, if only to meet demands of the ANPC (The National Authority for Consumer Protection) to justify some of these costs,” believes Roxana Bolocan, retail loans manager at Volksbank. The slowdown in activity on the lending market generated a reduction in the commission earnings recorded by the majority of banks. The BCR, the largest player in the system – recorded an over 40% decline in tax and commission earnings, compared with the similar period of 2008, to 38 million euros. In the case of the BRD, the second-largest bank on the Romanian market, the growth rate of earnings from commissions slowed down from 49% in the first quarter of last year, to 12% in the same period of 2009.