expat mortgage - is it the mythical unicorn ?

[ohdogoaway]

We have been living abroad for a few years now - DH is European citizen and main earner, we don't earn in sterling and salary doesn't go into UK bank, and we don't have a credit history in UK despite paying mortgage on a small flat. We are want to buy a bigger property to eventually live in when we return in a few years but NOONe wants to lend to us, despite having good salary, never missing a mortgage payment. Even the expat mortgage people who give shitty rates don't want to lend to us . Has anyone else been through this and had any success in finding a lender?

You need a specialist broker, try using google. I found one, however the rate offered to me was crap, I took out bank loans instead for the amount of money I needed to pay (off to own my own home again).

If you bank with an offshore branch they can normally sort you out with a mortgage. Going direct saves you money. The day you return you refinance as a resident for a lower rate.

Thanks for the advice - it's very frustrating !

Saffron Building Society

Marking place.
We rent our house out in the UK and had a 0.5% mark up on our residential rate when we first emigrated and rented out then a five year fixed rate but then nothing was available, so we now have the default standard variable as no other product incl BTL are available to us

If you earn a lot Barclays do them. Otherwise I never found one my bank in the country I live in advised bank loans but the default rate on my existing btl Ws better so stuck with that.

We were offered one with HSBC. It helped because we bank overseas with a related bank. The deposit needed was way too high for us though, sadly.

We got one with HSBC from overseas as well.

We have two through HSBC in Hong Kong, where we have never lived. 30% deposit was the minimum requirement though.

When you got a mortgage from HSBC abroad were the interest rates really high? We have found that despairs required are 30-40% and for a home in Thw south east that is just too much

I have an expat btl with saffron. 5.39 % It took me 2 years to get one!!

In the southeast and yes interest rates are high

Cittigirl - if you don't mind sharing here - why did it take so long? And also - is it possible to remortgage to more favorable rates after an initial period?

Just some companies would agree in principle then take forever to decide they wouldn't lend after all. I couldn't be a safer bet. It was so frustrating. Some would lend on ridiculous terms. A credit card would have been cheaper. I can't remember how long Saffron took on the end but it was mail biting. No tie in either. Good luck

Thanks - the combination of high house prices high deposit demands and high interest rates make the process soul destroying even at the outset.

It's totally stupid the way they do it. You are better off moving back to the UK for a short time and buying as a resident and then taking another posting. This is how a friend did it. She worked in the UK for 3 months. It was just enough to allow her to buy and then she paid the extra 0.5% to switch to a BTL and went on her merry way. Totally dumb that as a British citizen we are subject to the same treatment as non British citizens. That's regulations for you though.

Is that all it took- three months? The problem is that I am the occasional earner (and British citizen) and DH is main earner and European . Has anyone in this position moved back and managed to get a resident mortgage even if non citizen partner is not resident and earning abroad ?

But it does make me wonder if I could find myself a three month project and move home and apply for a mortgage

If he is the main earner can he take a short term project in the UK?

That would be pretty much impossible sadly.

You need a massive deposit and s high salary to get s mortgage after three months.

You need a massive deposit regardless of your residency status. For each place I mortgage I put down a 40% deposit.

Another thing I have done in the past is used a line of credit against my primary residence to buy another property. You are not supposed to do this. I bought the second place 'for cash' but in reality it was bought on credit. Advantage of this is that you don't have closing costs.

Want thanks for the info - it is really helpful to hear from you and PP how it can be done and has certainly given me a few ideas I didn't have before

Are you eligible for HSBC premier? If so you can get a mortgage through them. Still took us a year and a lot of chasing though.

We have done it with HSBC too (btl) but it does depend on what country you are based in. Spain apparently is on their blacklist along with various others.