According to the latest report from the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, there are 5.8 million foreigners without a permanent residence in the different autonomous communities, especially in cities like Madrid and Barcelona.
When moving to another country, one of the most important steps is finding a place to live. Some people choose to rent, but it also happens that a person wants to buy a house and has to take out a mortgage for it. What happens if the future owner is not a local resident? Despacho Lamas Law Office will explain this below.
First of all, it is important to know that the category of non-residents includes several groups: People from countries of the European Union, from a country that is not part of the European Union, foreign people who want to settle in Spain and even people who have their tax residence in another country.
It is not necessary to be Spanish to apply for a mortgage, but depending on the type of non-resident, the future owner must provide different documentation. Therefore, the procedures are not the same in all cases.
Generally, the first document required is the NIE, the Identification Number for Foreigners (Número de Identificación de Extranjeros). This document is issued by the authorities to people who do not have Spanish nationality and who have come to the country with an employment contract or to study, among other things. It is also advisable to have a bank account in Spain from which mortgage payments can be collected by direct debit.
Another document that the bank will request is a credit risk report. This includes pay stubs, tax returns and employment history so that the bank has assurance that the person will be able to pay the future loan.
In addition, one must present a document that provides information about the economic behavior in the country of origin. In other words, the bank uses these documents to check whether the future owner has outstanding loans, a negative balance sheet, etc. in other countries. Depending on the location, the certificate has one name or another: SCHUFA (Germany), Experian (UK), Transunion (USA) or Transunion CRIF (Russia). Despacho Lamas Law Office will assist you with all your concerns.
If the documents are in another language, it is necessary to hire a translation service so that the bank receives all the information in Spanish.
And what are the conditions for these mortgages? For the banks, a non-resident involves more risks, so the conditions are usually stricter: lower financing (it must not reach 80%), shorter repayment periods (20 years maximum) and higher interest rates.
However, if the bank, after reviewing the submitted documents, concludes that it is a solid profile, there is no reason to tighten the credit conditions.
The probability of obtaining a mortgage change for non-residents depending on their country of origin. This is due to the difficulty of the operation, as the bank has easier access to information in European Union countries than outside the Union. Therefore, individuals coming from an EU country may appear more reliable than those coming from America, for example.
However, this does not mean that it is not possible to obtain a mortgage if the client is from another country. In this regard, one can always contact the Despacho Lamas Law Firm in Mallorca, which will help in finding the most suitable mortgage for one’s needs and provide the relevant documentation.
