The Mortgage Explorer Blog

We were just about to close one winter evening in 2005 when the telephone rang. It was a Canadian nurse living and working in London. She was married to an Australian  IT consultant. Both had a working permit expiring in 3 years’ time and were renting an apartment, at the time.

The lady was seeking a deposit to buy a flat in downtown Vancouver but would also want a mortgage. The husband had an unencumbered flat in Sydney, Australia. The nurse explained that she had contacted every lender she could imagine in London but had no luck. They all said that they could not comply because she had no permanent residence in this country. She had found The Mortgage Explorer on the web and she felt it was her last resort.
What followed may sound extraordinary to the general public but it was quite simple really.
We dismissed the working permit, concentrated on the salaries they both earned. We next applied for 2 mortgage agreements in principle from an offshore lender. One mortgage was in Australian Dollars as it related to the flat in Sydney. This was the equivalent to the amount required as deposit in Vancouver. The other was the mortgage for the balance of the purchase price on the Vancouver flat. This was in Canadian Dollars.

To some it may seem quite sensible to use the respective currency for where the two flats were located. We could have also got the two mortgages in Sterling as both earned in that currency. However we opted for the previous format because both flats were self financing through getting rented out. The respective income was in Australian Dollars in Sydney and Canadian Dollars in Vancouver. For good measure though, we ensured that there was at least 2 free currency switches annually, they could turn to, should there be a punitive fluctuation in currencies, at their expense.

The whole process took 10 weeks to complete and the happy couple could not believe that they had achieved their dream. In fact the young lady commented that if ever we were to write an article about these transactions we should entitle it : ‘Mother Flat in Sydney makes Baby flat in Vancouver’. Voila

The Canadian Property Market Has Been Boosted In Anticipation Of The Winter Olympic In 2010.

Canada has a mature and well regulated property market which has flourished for many years. Despite the global recession which has affected many major countries the Canadian property market has remained healthy. In most developed economies home prices are going backwards, whereas prices remain healthy in Canada. The Western provinces of Alberta and British Columbia have proven to be popular with foreign investors, whilst major cities of Montreal and Toronto also remain attractive for property investment.

Canada’s vast natural resources play a major part in sustaining its current and future economic growth and provide confidence for non residents to invest.

Due the cautious approach to lending that Canada has adopted over the years, it now offers a stable financial climate. For those seeking finance mortgage lenders provide loans up to 70% of the property value to non residents.

There is a huge variety of properties in Canada, from apartments to large detached properties with large plots. City properties tend to be apartments, for which demand outstrips supply in many large Canadian cities. Montreal, for example with its university at the heart of the city, provides a high demand for rental properties. This can only benefit investors

Investors who look to Spain for a lifestyle choice or as an investment will be met with considerable reductions on an already below market value properties.

Whatever the economic condition in Spain, the fact remains that tourists and investors will always be attracted to the country for the same reasons. The year- round sunshine, easy going lifestyle, and the comparatively lower cost of living are strong factors which will continue to attract foreign investors.

The Spanish property market may well still have some way to fall, but recovery from 2011 onwards looks likely. Measures to stimulate the economy are being taken through a package to create thousands of jobs, package for mortgage relief, tax cuts and credit lines for new business.

Foreigners have the right to buy and re-sell all kinds of property (residential, commercial or land) with no legal limitations whilst European Union nationals have the right to live permanently in Spain.

Residents who reinvest all of the proceeds of sale to purchase another principal residence can get capital gains tax relief, provided they have lived in the property for 3 or more years.

Spain has been at the forefront of the overseas property market for a long time, so has very strong foundations. It has a lot to offer, and investors can still buy in confidence, as long as they buy sensibly and treat their property as an investment over a long term.

Cape Verde presents an opportunity to invest in a country whose property market and tourism development are still in its infancy.

A growing and stable political and Socio-Economic environment provides the key to investing in Cape Verde. Its democratic government is supportive of direct foreign investment with a rapidly developing and adaptable local infracstructure. The currency Cape Verde Escudo is tied to the Euro.

It is looked upon by investors as an emerging market, comparable to Spain 15 years ago. Continued direct foreign investment, a tropical climate, growing demand for quality bedstock and the success of a new International Airport have and will continue to attract visitors to Cape Verde Islands.

Air links between Europe and Cape Verde are being boosted by the introduction of a 3 flights a week by Air Portugal. The move may help those keen on investing in Cape Verde, especially if they wish to combine this with investing in Portugal as well.

As for the climate: dry tropical with average temperatures ranging between 21C to 31C and water temperatures between 22C and 27C. 10 to 12 hours of daily sunshine for most of the year with no record of tropical storms or hurricanes , well known for its stable climate.

Its large, untouched expanses of white sand beaches are constantly washed by the clear warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean.

New Zealand’s House Prices at 10-year high.

Whilst house prices in many parts of Europe and United States are still very sluggish, New Zealand is seeing its house prices hitting a 10 year high in November 2009. The sudden price surge has left economists shaking their heads. This month it has taken only 31 days to sell a house on average, compared to 33 in September

The increase estimated to have reached an annualised rise of 13.1% through a shortage of listings, low interest rates and rising net migration respectively.

Meanwhile the Governement is introducing its Entrepreneur Plus Immigration legislation- effective on November 30. It will grant fast track to residency to foreign would be business migrants willing to invest 500,000 NZ Dollars in their business and create at least 3 fulltime jobs. The most interest has come from USA, Britain, India, the Phillipines and Ireland.