annais

Hi, new here.
I'm British, living in the USA as a permanent resident, and I want to buy a small place in Spain mainly for family holidays but also to rent out in the Summer months. I was wondering if anyone could help answer a few questions.

Can I get a mortgage through a british bank ?(i have a british bank account with Barclays)

Is it okay if I don't live in the UK anymore?

I am looking at MASA International for property, any opinions on them?

Is it easy to hire property management companies to look after the place when we are not there?

I am looking at Costa Blanca North, any other good areas apart from Costa del Sol?

any info would be much appreciated, thanks.

keithwalters

Why would you want a mortgage with a UK bank? Interest rates are higher there so you would pay more. Better to get a mortgage in Spain, or USA if the interest rates there are even cheaper (I don´t know).

annais

oh, i keep hearing scare stories about not trusting spanish banks or lenders so i thought it would be easier to get the mortgage in england. im looking into usa mortgages however they may not be too iterested in investing in foreign property.

keithwalters

There are plenty of horror stories going around about buying Spain (some true, some not so true) but I have never heard a horror story about Spanish mortgages. Okay, they aren´t as flexible as UK mortgages in terms of interest only deals for example, but they are nothing to be scared of! I wouldn´t rule them out as you will find them cheaper than the UK.

annais

WELL, im not looking at interest only, i understand they provide 70% mortgages which is fine, I can put up to a 30% down payment.

mikelincs

Not wanting to be too downbeat, but there are thousands of holiday owned properties over here, and the chance of geting them all fully booked for rentals would seem to be quite low, particularly looking at those advertised on line, so I wouldn't rely on it.

jdr

Too true, i know a rental agent and he is struggling, its a good job he has returning clients.

Mitzyboy

At the end of the day its what kind of property you buy. I live in Northern CB and I can tell you that a 2 bed villa in a good position with views and a pool will rent easily for most of the year, excepting most of December, January & February.

I know people who have town houses around here who struggle, because people are looking for something extra special for their holiday. And before anyone with town houses has a go, I'm not knocking them, all I'm saying is that they are not as easy to rent. I'll be living in one sometime long in the future