International Banking

Obtaining a mortgage in Portugal in Euros will probably give you the best interest rate for your mortgage, however it is often easier to raise the money in the UK (or your home country) and then purchase the Portuguese property outright. 2010 was the last year where the number of residential loans was higher, according to data released by the central bank led by Carlos Costa on Tuesday. Said Diário de Notícias early this morning, the Finance ministry has refused to comment on negotiations underway with the Association of Portuguese Banks and the Bank of Portugal".

Laid out in its simplest terms, they'll use an outgoings-to-income calculation to figure this out, which means your total monthly income, subtracted the monthly outgoings (including the new mortgage payment). They have access to international lenders who offer funding for home purchase loans and re-mortgage financing.

The early redemption penalty during the fixed rate period is 2% as per the regulation of the Bank of Portugal. So if you are purchasing your dream four bedroom villa in sunny Algarve for €450.000, add approximately 8% to the purchase price to cover all costs including taxes, stamp duties, registrations and legal fees.

Banks in Portugal usually offer fixed rate deals for two years, five years and even up to 10 years. The cost of borrowing for a mortgage in Portugal is normally less than the cost applicable to an equivalent UK mortgage mainly because Euro Interbank Offered Rate is historically lower than the London interbank offered rate.

Fixed-rate mortgages are available from some lenders and the fixed-rate period can range from one to 30 years. Holiday home mortgages are available for private non-resident property buyers, who are not Portuguese residents. Fixed rate mortgages can be a great way to plan ahead or work to a budget.

The Portuguese government does encourage foreign investment in property, so there aren't any restrictions on non-EU residents looking to purchase property in Portugal. Interest rates are higher for this type of mortgage, normally between 2% and 2.5% above euribor with a maximum loan to value of 75%.

The steeper price of land plots and the superior quality of the properties in Portugal has led to the property costs becoming higher than that in Spain. In April 2016 Bankinter closed the purchase of Barclays' retail business in Portugal thus forming Bankinter, SA - Sucursal em Portugal.

If you're a tax resident in Portugal you may be eligible for IMI (Council Tax) exemption if your property's rateable value is less than € 236.250. For Portuguese nationals residing overseas it is possible to go up to 85% of the purchase price but they must be in possession of either a Portuguese passport or a Portuguese identity card.

In fact in some cases you can get a better deal from another bank, when buying bank owned properties. The competitive UK mortgage market provides several advantageous deals on sterling loans. However, many banks don't lend for international properties or restrict their lending to particular types of property or locations.

It is important to establish the price range the purchaser can afford and most banks will offer to work out a simulation (Simulação) based on the price range required and average monthly income. Commercial mortgages, including mortgages taken out by companies, are for those who seek to buy property for commercial purposes and might include investment mortgage.

We offer here some reasons for caution in the property and mortgage process for Portugal. Via our established network and the relationships we have built Property Management Vila Sol (https://www.google.co.uk) with the banks, we are able to offer preferential deals for our clients, which results in much lower offered rates and more attractive conditions.

You can get a reasonably competitive mortgage in the US and most of the established European overseas property markets like Portugal, Spain, France, Switzerland and Italy. ItвЂs possible to secure mortgages up to 80% of the property purchase price (when you are a Portuguese taxpayer) with rates from Euribor + 1.5% or fixed rates from 2.25%.