In all, 30,940 teachers and medical specialists were able to build or purchase their own housing using loans with low, two-percent, interest, according to the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic.

“Since the low-interest mortgages program also involved doctors and teachers three years ago, we can see that it has become highly popular with this category of borrowers. The loans allow these valuable public-sector specialists to improve their living conditions and to gain a foothold in Far Eastern and Arctic territories,” said Sergei Potanin, Director of the Corporation’s Social Projects Department.

The number of teachers and doctors taking out these loans was approximately equal.

According to the Corporation, the program involved over 162,000 families and specialists, with residents of the Far Eastern Federal District taking out 146,000 loans; over 16,000 loans went to Arctic residents. The total value of the loans issued was 791 billion rubles.