The type of home they can buy will be of between 180,000 and 1 million pesos. All customers have to do to start the savings program is open the El Libretón Destino Hipotecario account and choose an appropriate savings plan.

Adrián Aguirre Ojeda, Product Manger for Commercial Banking at BBVA Bancomer, highlighted the importance of offering an alternative form of savings to one of the most important sectors in the economy, whose access to formal lending is still limited. "The Ahorra y Estrena program gives our customers a product designed to generate a history of saving, so that at the end of the chosen period they can access a formal mortgage loan with the bank," he explained.

The synergy between mortgage banking division of Bancomer and the subsidiary company Hipotecaria Nacional means that the Ahorra y Estrena program can be offered at any of its branches.

Antonio Calderón Nava, Channel Development Manager for Hipotecaria Nacional, highlighted the bank’s efforts and interest in its customers being able to acquire a home through a mortgage. “Ahorra y Estrena allows us to offer customers who find it difficult to prove their income or who have little credit experience a savings instrument that demonstrates their capacity to pay."

Depending on the characteristics of the product, the savings period varies between 6 and 18 months, during which the customers have to make their monthly repayments on time. After this period, the amount saved can be used to offset the mortgage downpayment or arrangement fees. 
On the last working day of each month the system withdraws from the account the amount that the customer has decided to save. Full transparency is ensured as the detailed information will be available in the customer's individual savings program. If the customer does not want to continue with the program, the plan will be canceled and the accumulated savings will be returned to the customer's account without any penalty.

It is important to point out that just over 40% of the economically active population (EAP) receives income via the informal economy. This type of activity can sometimes limit their access to formal bank lending. The Ahorra y Estrena program is available for customers whose applications for loans were denied due to lack of a sound credit history and proof of income, or a stable employment history, among other reasons.
BBVA Bancomer will continue to innovate in its products and services to provide social welfare and satisfy its customers, with the aim of confirming its leading position in the Mexican banking system.

BBVA Bancomer is the leading bank in Mexico in indicators of savings and loans. It offers financial services through a network of more than 1,778 branches in the country, a network of 6,370 ATMs and an online banking system with 1,409,000 customers.