Hi guys,

I've recently been appointed as an agent of Solbank and of Halifax, though my experience is only in Fuerteventura in the Canaries, the agency is for whole of Spain. Happy to pass any information I have without obligation.

Halifax is a particularly good deal for UK expats, provided you can prove income. They will do up to 15 years interst only and for non-resident, they will lend up to 70% of loan to value (bank valuation) OR 80% of loan to cost (which is purchase price plus all taxes and costs) whichever is lower.

Rates are normally fixed for one year and relate to Euribor (either monthly or annual Euribor rates) and are typically Euribor +1% to Euribor + 1.25% for non-resident depending on LTV and customer credentials. Rates are cheaper for residents, but the acceptance criteria are different.

I think the best thing Halifax offers (for Brits) is a dedicated UK contact, and all documentation in English language.

Solbank, on the other hand, are a bit more flexible with customer forms. But both banks require what you would expect to provide in the UK, i.e.:

proof of income
letter from an accountant verifying your income
Experian credit report

and if you own other properties, a list of addresses, values, mortgages, income and lettings contracts.

Here is some information that may help you;

Any property in Spain that is classed as RUSTICA (defined on the land registry slip known as a NOTA SIMPLE and this is held by the agent or the vendor) is always more difficult to obtain a mortgage on than an URBANA property.

Why? Because there may be doubt over permissions granted many years ago and becasue there is less of a pool of people wanting to buy these properties and this may make it more difficult for the lender to sell the property on if they reposess.

There are lenders who will provide a mortgage on the properties but it is more on an individual basis rather than using the banks traditional criteria but in the current 'risk adverse market' you would be unlikely to pick up more than 50 % of the purchase price in a mortgage. You will also not be able to get a self certified mortgage(no proof of income) on a RUSTICA property or a self certified remortgage in the future.

On the positive side a lot of RUSTICA properties have been re-registered as URBANA so this increases your possibilities.

If you can cope with 50% or less as a mortgage then start your search, and ask for the nota simple for any property that you are interested in. Pass this to a reputable mortgage broker to review and becasue of their expereince they will know if the property and your income will get a mortgage, then you can move forward.

If the 50% is definitely not going to be enough then still look at rural areas but advise your agents that you can only consider URBANA registered properties.

I hope this helps

Hi there,

As a non-resident you will be able to obtain a mortgage of up to 70% of the valuation of the property. As a resident 80% plus. FACT.

I am a resident and bought a finca with a mortgage equivalent to 80% of the valuation.

Regards,

MPG

Pre credit crunch, banks were offering 90% loan to value, in some cases 100% mortgages, and properties had higher valuations.

Post crunch it is a little different, valuations are coming off, banks are far more cautious who they lend to, impacting the markets and bringing prices off.

Some banks are not even doing some mortgages. Some of the products interest only 30 years, were withdrawn.

So what is fact today, may not be fact tomorrow, it depends on conditions of the market, if the bank is a bank or a caixa, caja, their current market situation.

There are variations in the markets between banks.

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I agree with above comments. It has become more difficult since December, however I maintain that you can achieve up to 70% non-resident and 80%+ on resident mortgages for rustica property, not only urbano.