Loan cap (lainakatto, maximum loan-to-collateral ratio)

The loan cap (lainakatto), also called the maximum loan-to-collateral ratio, limits how large a share of the home’s price you can finance with a loan. For a first-home buyer the limit is 95 % of the value of the collateral. For any other home purchase the base level is 90 %, but Finanssivalvonta raised that to 95 % as well from 1 July 2026. The rest is left for you to finance.

In practice you now need at least about 5 % of the purchase price in your own money or other collateral. For example, in a 200,000-euro home the own-financing share is about 10,000 euros. If the cap for homes other than a first home goes back to 90 %, the share is about 20,000 euros. The own money can come from savings, from an ASP account, or from a previous home you sold. It is worth setting aside money separately for the transfer tax (varainsiirtovero) and moving costs.

In addition to the loan cap, the bank tests whether your finances can withstand a rise in interest rates. A common practice is to calculate the monthly instalments at a stress rate of about 6 %, even if the real rate is lower. This cuts how large a loan you get, even if the loan cap itself would not be reached.

The loan cap is one reason why your maximum budget stops at a certain point. If your own money just covers the required 5 percent, a larger loan is not available without extra collateral, for example a state guarantee or other pledgeable property. The 95 % for homes other than a first home is a temporary relief: Finanssivalvonta reviews it every quarter and returns the cap to 90 % once the grounds for the relief are gone. In September 2026 it kept the relief in place.