Shanghai home buyers recently revealed that when they applied for a second-hand house mortgage loan at a bank in June this year, the bank provided them with a 5-gram gold bar as a rebate. The bank staff mentioned that they are not allowed to provide cash directly.
The buyer, Chen Qing (pseudonym), disclosed to “Everyday Economic News” that when she arranged the second-hand house mortgage loan in June, the commercial loan rebate was given in the form of a 5-gram gold bar. During the loan application process, the bank staff presented several options to the buyer, including choosing a gold bar or other gifts. Chen did not calculate the exact amount of the rebate in terms of the commercial loan she applied for, but only stated that for a commercial loan amounting to over 1 million RMB, the bank offered a 5-gram gold bar.
However, multiple buyers mentioned that to receive rebates from bank mortgage loans, one must find the bank that provides the loans themselves, not through intermediary banks. Intermediaries tend to keep the rebate for themselves.
Another home buyer, Yang Xiu (pseudonym), stated that theoretically, buyers can find the bank for the loan on their own, but it is essential to clarify with the intermediary before signing any contracts. Yang opted for the middleman to arrange several banks for convenience, but the intermediary only arranged the bank they collaborated with, ultimately pocketing the rebate.
In response to this, Zhang Bo, the director of the 58 Anjuke Research Institute, pointed out that rebates essentially function as a form of commissions. Banks pay fees to intermediary agencies providing mortgage services to compete for a share in the mortgage business market, and these fees have a certain proportion to the mortgage amount.
Li Yu Jia, Chief Researcher of the Housing Policy Research Center at the Guangdong Province Urban and Rural Planning Institute, also mentioned that under the pressure of performance assessment and large loan issuance, mortgage demand contraction necessitates such rebates, often in the form of shopping cards or gifts.
A loan department manager at a commercial bank in Shenzhen mentioned that mortgage loan rebates are tiered, with the highest being 6‰ of the loan amount. In a poor market scenario, the rebates are higher, but in a good market, they decrease.
Another real estate expert disclosed that bank mortgage rebates have always existed, commonly ranging from 5‰ to 1%. Depending on the company, certain large platforms may absorb these rebates at the company level, leaving even the sales staff unaware of this practice.
Regarding banks using mortgage rebates to attract customers, Zhang Bo believes that for banks facing significant lending pressure, offering rebate commissions can yield short-term benefits. However, it may lead to cutthroat competition, impacting the bank’s profit margin and long-term operations negatively.