President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva stated, this Friday (10), that, from now on, the middle class will also be assisted by the country’s housing programs. Lula announced the new real estate credit modelwhich restructures the use of savings to expand the supply of credit, especially for this part of the population that earns more than R$12 thousand.
During his participation in the Incorpora 2025 event, in São Paulo (SP), one of the largest in the housing sector, Lula said that he has always had “a concern” to meet the housing needs of the middle class.
“A metal worker, a banker, a chemist, a printer, a Caixa Econômica worker, a teacher […] These people do not have the right to buy a house, because they are not poor, they are not in band 1 or band 2 [do Minha Casa, Minha Vida]”, he said.
“This program was created with these people in mind, thinking about giving those who don’t yet have the right to have their own little house a little better,” he said.
For the president, the middle class can choose where to live.
“He doesn’t want a 40 square meter house, he wants an 80 square meter house. He doesn’t want to live in Cafundó do Judas, he wants to live in the closest place where he is used to living. What we are going to try to do is adapt people’s economic difficulties taking into account respect for the human dignity of living in a place where they think it is good to live”, he said.
The country’s new real estate credit model restructures the use of savings to expand the supply of credit.
End of compulsory
After a transition period, the total resources deposited in the savings account will be a reference for use in the housing sector, with the end of compulsory deposits at the Central Bank (BC). Furthermore, the The maximum value of the property financed in the Housing Financial System (SFH) will increase from R$1.5 million to R$2.25 million.
Today, families with incomes of up to R$12,000 are served by Minha Casa, Minha Vida, with lower interest rates, and, since the beginning of his third term, Lula has defended financing alternative for the middle class.
The forecast is that, with this change, Caixa Econômica Federal finance another 80 thousand new homes by 2026.
Currently, 65% of the resources raised by savings banks need to be directed to real estate credit; 15% are free for more profitable operations and 20% remain with the Central Bank in the form of a compulsory deposit.
Financing via SFH had been losing ground in the market amid withdrawals from savings accounts, the main source of funds for housing credit in the country
In 2023 and 2024, net savings withdrawals were R$87.8 billion and R$15.5 billion, respectively. In 2025, the passbook already has net redemption of R$78.5 billion. Among the reasons for the withdrawals is the maintenance of the Selic – the basic interest rate – on the rise, which encourages investment in better-performing investments.
Transition until 2027
The reform announced today “modernizes the rules” governing the Brazilian Savings and Loan System (SBPE), with the aim of maximizing savings as a source of financing.
“As more amounts are deposited in savings, more credit will be made available for real estate financing, which tends to expand the supply of credit, also considering market funding, for example, via LCIs (Real Estate Credit Letters) and CRIs (Real Estate Receivables Certificates)”, explained the government, in a statement.
After a transition period, the mandatory targeting of 65% of savings deposits will end and the compulsory deposits at the Central Bank relating to this type of investment will also end. The total resources deposited in the savings account will become a reference for the volume of money that banks must allocate to housing credit, including the SFH and Real Estate Financing System (SFI) modalities.
When the new model is fully implemented, if an institution raises, for example, R$1 million in the market and fully directs this amount to real estate financing, it will be able to use the same amount raised in savings, which has a lower cost, for free investments for a predetermined period.
To achieve this, 80% of housing financing must be made under SFH rules, which have interest rates limited to 12% per year.
“The new model increases competition, as it incorporates real estate interbank deposits into the targeting, which allows institutions that do not capture savings to also grant housing credit under conditions equivalent to others”, argues the government.
The transition will be gradual, starting later this year. The new model should come into full effect from January 2027. Until then, the mandatory allocation of 65% of resources raised in savings to housing credit operations remains in effect.
Of the remaining 35%, under current rules, 20% is collected from the Central Bank as a compulsory deposit and 15% goes to free operations. During the transition, the volume of reserve requirements will be reduced to 15% and the 5% will be applied to the new regime.
