<h1>Interest in Mortgages for Cottages and Summer Houses Increases</h1>

Prague - Domestic banks report an increase in interest in mortgages for purchasing cottages and chalets. For example, Hypoteční banka announced that the volume of mortgages for these properties in the first half of this year increased by about half. Their number rose by one-fifth. This is reported by today's Lidové noviny. Other banks also confirm the increase.
    "In the first half of this year, we provided loans for recreational properties in a total volume of 28.5 million crowns. Last year it was only 5.8 million, thus the year-on-year increase is nearly 400 percent," said Raiffeisenbank spokesman Tomáš Kofroň. The average mortgage for a recreational property, according to him, is around 800,000 crowns.
    "While we do not track the exact increase in mortgages for these purposes, we can confirm that people are increasingly taking out loans for cottages and chalets," stated GE Money Bank spokeswoman Eva Chaloupková.
    Real estate agencies are also experiencing the growing interest in cottages and chalets. "The most sought-after locations are in mountainous areas and southern Bohemia," said the director of the real estate agency AAA byty, Petr Illetška.
    According to economist David Marek from Patria Finance, the increase in interest in cottages and chalets has several causes. "Among the economic reasons, the growth of real incomes and the availability of mortgages are important," he believes. He also notes that there is a strong tradition of cottage ownership in the Czech Republic. Additionally, the increasing concentration of population in cities and the desire to compensate for urban life with weekend getaways to a cottage play a role.
    Sociologist Jaroslav Jůra explains the growing interest in purchasing cottages and chalets by stating that the Czech Republic is stable, and people are not afraid to spend and go into debt.