BKN, the National Housing Credit Guarantee Board, is a national government agency under the Ministry of Finance. BKN administers government credit guarantee programmes for housing development. BKNs role is to promote housing policy and to work for effective guarantee provision for the financing of housing development by running its guarantee operations in a businesslike way within existing regulations.
BKN has a responsibility for analyzing and providing information on the functioning of the credit and capital markets for housing.
A municipality that considers it needs help to reconstruct or reorganise its housing company can apply for support from BKN. Government support is only available if the municipality itself cannot bear the cost for the reconstruction and if other measures are not sufficient.
BKN also administers a government grant for municipal rent guarantees and home purchase guarantees for first-time home-buyers.