Abstract
This paper describes the growing trend for microfinance institutions in many different nations to provide loans for home improvements – with examples drawn mainly from India, Peru, Mexico, the Philippines and Bangladesh. It describes the nature and scale of various institutions’ homeimprovement loan portfolios and the modifications needed in loan terms and conditions from conventional micro-enterprise loans. It also considers what is known about the impacts of such loans, and examines their financial sustainability and the conditions that allow for rapid expansion in the number of home improvements supported. It ends by discussing what is needed from national governments and international agencies to support such an expansion.