The paper discusses the key issues of mortgage banking development in Poland. The author deals with the macroeconomic and organisational conditions necessary to release a rise in mortgage lending. He also considers mortgage banking models from the point of view of their adaptability to the Polish conditions. This is done in several stages. First, the author seeks to define two elements: Polish borrowers' expectations as to banking products on one hand, and the areas of banking risk involved in mortgage lending on the other. With these established, it is possible to define the requirements for an effective mortgage banking system in Poland. The author assumes that the key problem arising when housing is extensively credited is the procedure for refinancing. Setting off from there, he discusses two mortgage banking models: the American and the German one. This includes a presentation of the sales and debt payment systems. The emphasis however is on the distribution of the risk involved in mortgage lending. Another focus is the relationship between mortgage lending and the system of credit refinancing through debt securities. Against this background, the Polish mortgage banking model as implied by the Law on Mortgage Bonds and Banks is evaluated. Final conclusions relate to the operating Polish mortgage banking model, combining various institutional solutions (universal and mortgage banks, building societies). It is pointed out that in the light of the expected rise in bank-financed housing it is necessary to create common standards for granting mortgage loans. Standardisation of mortgage products should not only revitalise credit debt trading, but above all provide a framework for a secure development of this area of banking.