Will this bring the British back?
 

I’ve been lurking around estate agents for a few months now, because we may be moving later this year, and this is what I found which may get the market for expats moving again.

The three or four big developers around here are all in administration, with many new properties completed but unsold. They were valued at 200K two years ago, before the big bang, and are now being offered by the banks (agents) at 120K.

The builders mortgage is around 130K for each of the thousands of empty houses, which they can’t pay and the banks don’t want to repossess. The new buyer takes over the builder’s mortgage (subrogates) and pays the builder’s notary costs of around 2K

The amazing thing is that the new mortgage to the buyer from the bank has a three-year payment freeze. You get a new house for 2K, with nothing to pay for three years.

You could, of course, have a house with negative equity in three year’s time. I suppose it’s for the gamblers who want three years in Spain for nothing, as long as there’s a plan B in place thereafter.

The banks are bound to have a plan B as well, I can only think of interest rates.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Interesting , do you have a link to the vendors site?

Ta

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Sorry, no, the bank I was in was the CAM bank - the developers were San Jose and one of the Masa companies. The local English mortgage brokers have cottoned on, but they're adding their charges on top, and you don't need them.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Seeing as the real market (houses that are actually selling) has dropped by more than 50% that doesn't look a very good deal.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Sounds like a huuuuge catch. People do not just give away something for free, or practically for free. Read that contract TEN times over to make sure that you are not gonna be paying through the roof with very high interest rates once the "introductory period" expires. Boy sounds like one of those interest-free credit cards for a year that carry a high interest rate when it expires :rolleyes:

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

As the old saying goes "If it sounds too good to be true it probably is". I would get someone legal so go over the paperwork a million times before signing anything.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Hold on, please, there is no way I would go in for such a deal, I was merely pointing out what has just become available.

We viewed three houses in the same street recently, two next door to each other, and one a few doors away, two with different agents and one being sold privately. The houses were identical, all built around 30 years ago, and the prices were 100K apart.

From my looking recently, nobody has got a clue where the prices are going, apart from not going up.

And what about illegal houses, with bank mortgages? Apart from the land they stand on, do they have any value?

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

I think that could be a big reason why they would be so desperate to give such favorable terms to the consumer.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

This is a huge problem for the Banks. I can't think many people have any sympathy for them. They were keen enough to finance all these building projects when they thought it would return them huge profits. Now it has collapsed the crafty buggers won't register their ownership of the properties because in the case of urbanisations they would have to pay the community charges for the huge stock of unsold property under the horizontal property law. I am not at all supprised they are offering good deals to take over the builders mortgages. Obviously they don't want them. I just wonder how long before the Banks will be forced to admit ownership and pay up! or do they have a loophole? I fully agree with you, there will be some amazing offers around for gamblers.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

If these properties are like all the samie lego types then I think most will remain unsold, or take a very long time to shift.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

I'm sure you are right! but if the Banks now own them....They have to surely sometime admit ownership and pay up to the community.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Errr....so the banks lent monies to constructors who now can't move the properties built. And at the same time the banks are entering the real estate business in direct competition to those same poor constructors who need to sell themselves in order to service their debts to the same banks. The sky has fallen.
Back to the OP's question....it'll take much more than a lowering of prices to bring UK buyers back. With so many outstanding issues concerning the legality of builds, along with years of rampant corruption, land-grab, and the vague Ley de Costas, and all these and more horror stories being repeated almost daily in the UK press, well it would make anyone nervous.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Yes I think you are right just the currency exchange rate would be a deterent. So many have had their dreams shattered with scams.

In the news yesterday was a development in Arroyo called Sensara. Aimed at the 55+ it was going to provide everything, shop ,health facilities etc bit like sheltered housing. I remember the ad's and it sounded great for the elderly. After 5 years there are still none of the promised facilities. One said they bought as the Husband is disabled and she is not well and didn't want to go in a home. They have just finished up with a basic apartment development which they could have bought cheaper and the community fees are 300 euro per month!

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

I think your right, I also reckon the only way to get foreign confidence is to have an amnesty on houses or to back up sales with a government insurance policy guaranteeing the house legality or your money back, so if your house is illgal you wont be able to get a policy.

Re: Will this bring the British back?
 

Doesn't this deal have an official name, I,m sure I saw someone mention it on here a while ago and I have seen the huge posters advertising this but I can't for the life of me remember the name.
Also I can't remember if it has the backing of the Junta. As a country that relies so much on the construction industry I guess they are desperate to kick start something. It does seem a good deal but this is Spain and would you trust anyone here offering a good deal.:unsure: