Securing Bank Loans and Mortgages Using Real Estate Information Aided by Geospatial Technologies

Abstract

Due to liberalization within the financial market, there has been increased cash flow in banks. This has resulted in increased competition among banks to secure and increase their customer base, in an effort to remain profitable. Banks are foregoing the multitude of checks that used to be conducted before granting any mortgage facility to customers, in an effort to remain competitive. This has led to a drastic increase in the number of credit card and loan defaulters, leading to increased operation costs and reduction in profit margins.

This research proposes an integrated GIS approach enabling banks locate defaulting real estate properties used as collateral. Using data provided by Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) for a locality in Kenya, a geodatabase was developed and a custom application developed for the bank loan appraiser to use. This application retrieves property information about a client based on his/her bank account information. Based on a series of spatially driven queries embedded in the solution, the appraiser can prepare a detailed appraisal for the client in a very short time, thereby satisfying the client, while not prejudicing the banks position.