The MOF issued the instruction based on a conclusion reached at a two-hour meeting Tuesday between Vice Premier Paul Chiu, Minister without Portfolio Chu Yun-peng, and Lawmaker Ting Shou-chung.

At a recent weekly Central Standing Committee meeting, Lawmaker Ting took the lead to assert that the maturity terms of housing loans should be extended.

In the following week, the Bankers Association of the ROC announced conditional extension of the loan maturity period. But the conditions attached have been deemed too rigid for general borrowers.

In the meeting with Chiu and Chu, Ting suggested that state-run banks take the lead to unconditionally extend the maturity or grace period for housing loans, and the suggestion was immediately recognized by Chiu and Chu.

Meanwhile, Chairman Chen Chung of the Financial Supervisory Commission has also called Susan Chang, chairperson of the Bankers Association of the ROC, asking the association to hold a board of directors and supervisors meeting to request private banks to unconditionally extend loan maturity and grace period, according to Ting.

He cited statistics as indicating that the number of housing units up for auction by the court has shot up to 20,000 per month from 5,000, due mainly to more and more people becoming financially incapable of repaying the loans.