Almost 70% of Cuencanos own their own homes, the highest rate in the country

A new study shows that 69% of homes in Cuenca are owned by their occupants. It is the highest rate of home ownership in Ecuador, according to the Ministry of Social Inclusion.

The study, which is intended to provide information to government planners, also showed that 86% of residential dwellings are houses; that 62% of homes are owned outright with no mortgage; that 60% of all dwellings have between 100 and 200 meters of living space; and that the average mortgage is $338 a month, while renters pay an average of $390 a month.

One surprise from the survey, according to the ministry, is that only 3% of Cuencanos take advantage o national Social Security mortgage financing. The Bank of the Ecuadorian Institute of Social Security (BIESS) offers mortgages to all its members at below market interest rates. BIESS offers mortgages of as much as $125,000 for terms of up to 25 years.

The study showed that 51% of households in Cuenca’s urban areas had Internet service but only 19% in rural parts of the canton did.

According to the Cuenca Chamber of Construction, the areas with the highest rates of residential construction are Av. Ordonez Lasso, Misicata, Challuabamba, Hospital del Rio, Ricaurte, El Valle and Monay.