In San Marino, someone asking for €10,000 to redo a bathroom pays an average of 10.55% a year. Someone borrowing €150,000 to buy a home pays between 4.53% and 5.09%. And for an instalment purchase under €5,000, the rate climbs to 15.09%: these are the official rates published by the Central Bank, in force since 1 October.
The smaller the loan, the steeper the bill.
The topic comes up again and again in San Marino’s social media groups, and under a post dedicated specifically to loans, the responses all sound remarkably alike.
“Finance companies do grant them, but when you do the math, the interest rate runs from 10% to 14%,” one user writes. “We’re always left out of the loop, and San Marino’s banks charge sky-high rates even for small loans,” another adds.
On the figures, those who did the math got it right.
Every three months the Central Bank publishes the average rates actually applied by San Marino’s banks and finance companies, and the table in force until 31 December shows this: for a personal loan up to €15,000 the average is 10.55%; above €15,000 it drops to 7.48%. For a household mortgage up to €200,000, however, it’s 4.53% at a fixed rate and 5.09% at a variable rate.
In other words: someone asking for €10,000 for home renovations or a household expense pays more than double what someone borrowing €150,000 to buy a house pays. And it’s worse for those buying something small on instalments: financing tied to a specific purchase costs an average of 9.41% above €5,000, but below that threshold it jumps to 15.09%.
And what about turning to an Italian finance company?
In the groups, the answer comes bluntly: “I’ve heard of a couple, but they require Italian residency.”
“You need to be a resident or have a business in Italy,” another confirms.
That’s what people say in the groups. Whether it really applies to everyone is another matter.
Questions remain that only banks and institutions can answer, figures in hand: how many loan applications get rejected, how much of a down payment is typically needed for a first home, and why those who borrow less end up paying so much more. Until that data is made public, the debate will remain a matter of impressions from those who have lived through it.
This article grew out of discussions that emerged in San Marino’s social media groups. If you’ve applied for a loan or a mortgage in San Marino and want to share your experience, write to our editorial team.
