Confidence has well and truly returned to the Spanish mortgage market with lenders relaxing their underwriting procedures slightly and lending higher LTVs. It is also not only possible to get low variable rates like Euribor + 0.9% but also low long term fixed rates like 2.75% fixed for 20 years!!
In general maximum LTV is 70% although banks are prepared to lend more if it is one of their own repossessed properties with one lender lending up to 100% plus the closing costs.
Tim French of Iberian Properties, a Spanish mortgage broker since 2004 and based on the Costa Blanca is seeing more and more enquiries and 2015 was his busiest year since before the credit crisis. French says it is no coincidence that with the return of the British buyers also coincided with increased mortgage lending.
Tancrede de Pola of The Finance Bureau based near Marbella also had his best year since before the credit crisis and remarked the lenders are now approaching him for business and offering him some brilliant exclusive conditions for his clients. Tancrede, a mortgage Broker in Marbella for the last 13 years has earned a reputation in the area for his professionalism and many real estate agents offer their clients his services. Tancrede reported that not only are there many more applications than before but they are of higher value because clients are now confident enough to up their budget…
Both Tancrede and Tim advice to obtain an ‘agreement in principle’ before beginning your property search. “This costs nothing, but will tell you up front about how much you can borrow, and therefore what price range you can realistically consider before committing to anything. Also knowing which documents the bank will request is important for the client to know before hand so they are prepared and organised which can save some important time.
