Glossary
What is installment plan?
An installment plan is the schedule on which a buyer pays for an off-plan home: a down payment, then periodic payments over a fixed number of years, sometimes with instalments continuing after delivery. In Egypt the plan is part of the price, not a payment convenience.
Why the plan is the price
Two units at the same headline price with different plans are not the same offer. A ten-year plan at 5% down is materially cheaper in present-value terms than a five-year plan at 20% down, and buyers choose accordingly — which is why developers compete on plan structure as much as on price.
It also means a price comparison that ignores the plan is meaningless, including in market data. Sakneen carries the eligible plans on the unit record for exactly this reason.
Typical structure
A down payment on contract, quarterly or monthly instalments across the construction period, sometimes a delivery payment, and increasingly a post-delivery tail. Cash discounts are offered against the plan, which is the developer pricing its own cost of capital.
What buyers underestimate
The instalment continues while finishing costs, maintenance deposit and service charges arrive at handover. The affordability question is not the monthly instalment; it is the monthly instalment plus what delivery costs in the same year.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a payment plan be renegotiated?
- Sometimes, at the developer's discretion, usually by rescheduling remaining instalments rather than reducing the price. It is far easier to negotiate before a default than after one.
- Is there interest on an installment plan?
- Plans are usually quoted without a stated interest rate, with the financing cost built into the price difference between the cash price and the plan price. The cash discount is the clearest indication of that cost.
Related
See it against your own inventory
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