The interest only mortgage fits better what the client wanted (tax optimisation) as it kept his cashflow as low as possible while still reducing the income tax bill on the rental income.
Our client is a US national living and working in the UK. They were looking to get a French mortgage to keep their invested savings.
A UK client working for an international bank wanted to finance his high-end chalet in Meribel through a French mortgage to benefit from the low rates and optimize his taxes.
UHNW British / UK resident purchasing a chalet to mainly rent out during the Winter and Summer seasons with VAT refund.
Singapore resident (British citizen) purchasing a property in Morzine for lifestyle and investment goals.
British client looking to invest in the French Alps in a new build apartment for personal use and seasonal rental.
Our client is a US Resident. They wanted a holiday home in the French Riviera to also rent out during the season to maximise their investment.
The clients are British citizens and UK residents. They were buying an off-plan appartment in St Sorlins to use personally but also rent out so the income could cover part of the mortgage payments.
UK clients investing in the French Alps as a lifestyle investment using a French limited company to optimise their tax position.
Our British client was unlucky the first time around but never gave up! His first purchase had to be cancelled (after we got the mortgage offer printed!) because the owner of the land decided not to sell it anymore to the French developer…. Yes these things happen!
Our client is living and working in the UK and was looking for an investment opportunity in Les Gets. He is a company owner and is actually an insurance broker on the UK market (if you need anything, I can introduce you!).
The background Our clients are British and live in the UK. They had been working with a local broker and they had been turned down because their income was from the UK (one of the consequences of the Brexit). They contacted us desperately to see if we had a solution as time was running out. […]
The background The client (UK based) was looking for the best possible rate in the current market with a preferred requirement for a variable rate. The loan-to-value was not a factor as the client had a large deposit available. Our Approach Most banks offer rates fixed for the whole duration in France and post-Brexit, options […]
The background Our US clients came to us to finance their dream property in the Gard region – in the North of the French Riviera. As US nationals / residents, it can be a bit more challenging to find a financing solution because of the FATCA regulations set up by the IRS. Our Approach One […]
The background Our client is a US resident looking for a French Riviera pied-a-terre when holidaying with rental investment as well. Our Approach With the FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) set up by the IRS, many French banks are reluctant to lend to US residents. One of our lenders can offer up to 75% […]
In the Post-Brexit era and profitability issues with the French banks, it can be challenging to find the right option for our UK residents.
Our client is a US resident, working for a top 4 accounting firm in the world.
Our Dutch / French clients were looking for a property in Brittany for their holidays, not far from where Mrs was born.
Our clients came to us to finance a French property in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in south-western France. The first bank we approached could not finance this new build purchase as it was considered not urban enough.
Our client is British but living and working in Azerbaijan, a country that is generally not in the lending scope of our lending partners.
Two distinct families served as clients (2 sisters). This configuration is very uncommon at the moment, since banks seek for simpler transactions. They desired the greatest loan-to-value ratio possible due to the fact that their deposit was restricted by other investments / projects.
Our client is from the UK and wanted to finance a holiday home in St Raphael on the French Riviera with 85% LTV.
A British couple was looking to purchase a secondary residence and set their sights on an existing chalet in Val d’Isere.
Our British clients wanted the highest Loan to Value possible to reduce their deposit as their savings had been used to renovate their main residence. On the other hand, they wanted the longest duration possible to reduce their monthly payments as much as possible.
Our British client wanted to take a mortgage in order to benefit from tax optimization rather than purchasing the property in cash.
Our British client wanted a small loan to benefit from the low rates in France without increasing his/her debt level too much and keep some cash to potentially invest elsewhere.
One of our partners (not available to UK residents I’m afraid), offered a rate of 3.60% fixed over 20 years for a repayment mortgage, which was great.
In the current market, with the rates rising, one issue we meet is that the banks cannot finance a client because the T.A.E.G (French APRC equivalent) cannot go over the ‘’taux d’usure’’ which is the maximum rate a bank can charge a client (all included) for his/her mortgage.
So either the bank reduces its rate to finance our client but the bank is making a loss over 20 years or they just don’t finance him/her.
Our client from the Netherlands wanted to get the highest loan to value possible with a retail bank, no assets under management pledged against the mortgage while purchasing the property with a French limited company (SARL de Famille).
Two brothers-in-law co-owned their large chalets in Val d’Isere. They financed their 2 chalets via a private bank. They wanted to transfer the two chalets to their own SARL (French limited liability business) and take out a larger mortgage in order to avoid French property wealth tax.
Our client is Dutch, living in the Netherlands and has been employed by his employer for quite a while, which means the situation was very stable.
Our client is a British national who lives and works in Switzerland, purchasing the chalet with a SCI (company vehicle). Numerous banks had rejected our client due to their age, despite the fact that their income and assets were enough.
Our client from the UK is quite wealthy and wanted to purchase an off-plan chalet in Val d’Isere to use for his family and friends mostly and rent out a little bit.
Our client was a couple of French expats living in London were looking for an off-plan investment property in the French Alps. The French Alps are quite attractive all year long which makes it the perfect investment spot.
They wanted to borrow as much as possible and use a limited French company (SARL de Famille) to avoid the inheritance tax in the future and make sure their income tax bill would be as low as possible.
Our clients, a French business developer and a UK professor at a prestigious university in London, were looking into an existing property in the heart of Paris. The client first contacted us and was happy to proceed with us. However the agent required a credit check from a French broker before signing the ‘’compromis de vente’’. This French broker promised an excellent deal which our client wanted to pursue (understandably, with the terms offered). However, after weeks of being messed around by the other broker, the client came back to us for advice.
A young couple wanted to finance the purchase of a vacation house in Cannes with rental possibilities. They requested a 20% down payment which is possible though many banks require at least 30%.
Our clients are Swiss residents with an excellent profile and high incomes. The clients were thinking of using the equity from the sale of their property in Sweden to purchase the property in France. Hence our clients signed the compromis de vente without a mortgage clause. However, after the Covid-19, the market in Sweden was not as strong as it was previously and our clients realised they actually needed a mortgage.
Our British client wanted the smallest deposit to acquire their dream countryside property in the Pyrenees Orientales.
Our clients are Americans. Since 2014, when the US tax authorities implemented the FATCA rules, funding US individuals / residents has become more complicated. Nonetheless, we have a strong bank network and found a solution.
A new program of Off-Plan luxury properties in Meribel with prices ranging from about 2M€ to 3.3M€.
Our clients were all UK residents (except one, from the EU) and wanted to finance those high end apartments through a French mortgage to benefit from low rates, tax optimisation (income, inheritance) and make their cash work for them to offset the mortgage rate.
The client is a wealthy partner in a London-based equity investment firm. The client had previously received an offer from a bank, but the collateral requirements were too unreasonable for him. As a result, he contacted us to inquire about a potential replacement agreement.
Our client desired the greatest LTV possible since he did not want to sell his assets. He has an excellent profile (high income, low debt) which is really important obviously.The lower the debt-to-income ratio is, the better.
Despite having a very strong income and the required deposit, it was difficult to find a lender to finance the project of our client. Born in north Africa and now residing in Dubai, most of our banking partners would not consider his application for compliance reasons. Since the villa was off-plan, it also added an element of risk for lenders.
Our client is a EU expat living in Singapore with a great financial profile. However, as he was purchasing an Off Plan property, it reduced our options as a few banks restrict this option to EU residents only. But at FPF, we have enough resources!
The client lives in Abu Dhabi which can be very difficult to finance sometimes. Plus, the client was a non-EU national which complicated the matter.
The client is a British couple living in Dubai working for a top lawyer firm and a top bank. They had found an apartment in Courchevel, St Bon Tarantaise in the heart of the French Alps.
Our British client is a Hong Kong resident. Renting in Hong Kong is very expensive and it was difficult to fit within the debt to income ratio limit allowed by the French banks (your outgoings cannot exceed 33% of your income). The client also had a mortgage on a UK property for which he was receiving some rental income.
A British living in Japan for more than a decade, our client wanted the highest Loan to Value available at the best rate possible. Many banks accept EU residents only. Others accept to finance British expats only if they are staying overseas for a few years only on a specific contract. Our situation thus presented a challenge at first.
The French mortgage market is unfair. Fortunately, for this French speaking client residing in Switzerland, this meant it could get much better terms and conditions than the average foreign borrower.
Our client has an excellent profile. However, it was a challenging case as he wanted an interest-only mortgage and this is not a common product in France, especially for such a large sum. Also, the client had plans to extend the property which meant that we needed an official architect contract to present the new project to the bank.
Our clients are avid skiers with a young family. They have been going to Courchevel for many years and dreamt of owning a property there. Our clients decided to buy an off-plan property with a rental agreement included which stipulated that the developer would manage and rent out the property for 9 years. This is very common practice in the French Alps because the local authorities fear the investors will not want to rent out their properties and many resorts do not have enough accommodation to meet the ever-growing demand of holidaymakers. As a result, many new-build properties will be sold with a rental agreement.
From the first call, the client made it clear that he was very sensitive to the rate and wanted a high LTV.
The challenge is that these two requirements usually do not go hand in hand; that is, the more you can put down the greater the number of lenders we can work with and therefore the lower the rates.
The client was buying a luxurious property in Val d’Isere. His profile was outstanding. The only request was to get the maximum loan to value at the best possible rate without having to buy with a company vehicle nor to invest within the bank as collateral.
Probably one of our youngest clients ever, this young Irish trader was looking to buy his first property. For his age, his income was excellent but he only had access to a small deposit.
The client is a French citizen working in between London & Paris. She wished to live in France as much as possible and wanted to buy a flat in Paris, not far from Gare du Nord for the Eurostar and her commute. She wanted a high loan to value originally as her personal contribution was limited.
Our Clients desired the greatest possible LTV in order to take advantage of favorable conditions in France. Additionally, they want the longest term possible to minimize their monthly expenses.
The client is a wealthy partner in a London-based equity investment firm. The client had previously received an offer from a bank, but the collateral requirements were too unreasonable for him. As a result, he contacted us to inquire about a potential replacement agreement.
Our customer has an outstanding financial profile. It is a typical case in which the mortgage is not too large, avoiding the involvement of higher-risk committees.
These serial buy-to-let owners were looking for their first overseas investment. Having sold their business a couple years ago, lenders were unable to account for the income from their new venture.
From the first call, the client made it clear that he was very sensitive to getting the highest LTV as all his savings were not available at the moment (mainly pension funds). The client was purchasing through a French company as well, the SARL de Famille.
Our client, a successful French expat living in London, was looking for a mortgage with the highest LTV possible and the longest term possible. The reason? He is planning to buy other properties in the future and did not want to affect his debt-to-income ratio too much (hence the longer than usual duration) and did not want to dip too much into his savings on the first property to keep his options open (hence the high LTV).
Our client, a German living in the UK, first purchased his property in Courchevel cash as he didn’t have time to work on a mortgage application at that time. Once his schedule got clear, he decided to contact us in order to obtain post finance for his property which is possible in France within 6 to 9 months after the purchase.
Our client, a High Net Worth Individual, british resident, wanted to buy a property in the French Alps. However, his search for a property was a bit rocky between vendors pulling out at the last minute due to a change of heart, a failed negotiation to reduce the purchase price of another property… The 3rd time’s a charm as we say!
Our client is a veteran of the property business and knows a lot about property renovation but he never saw the French mortgage process to secure a renovation loan. This was an adventure on its own.
Our client, a British resident wishing to buy a property in the Alps, is a successful businessman with an excellent profile. He was interested in getting an interest only mortgage.
Our clients, HNWI british residents wishing to buy a property in the French Alps, were seeking an Interest Only mortgage. Unfortunately, the bank thought that the level of savings was not high enough to cover 75% of the whole mortgage (which is a criteria to have an interest only mortgage).
Our French clients, living and working in London, have been renting through Air Bnb the same apartment in Annecy for years for their holidays in the Alps. When they heard that the owner was looking to sell, they did not hesitate as they knew it was an interesting opportunity for a rental investment.
Our client, a UK resident, was looking to purchase a property in the French Alps. He initially went through a first application with a local bank (through us) in order to achieve an excellent rate. Unfortunately, Brexit came into the equation and the lender stopped financing UK residents.
The client was an Australian citizen living in Hong-Kong searching for the lowest rate possible. He also wanted the process to be done as remotely as possible due to the Covid situation. Travelling from Hong Kong was not made easy.
Having just sold their business, our clients made a lifestyle purchase for family holidays. Because of their strong and straight forward profile, we had many financing solutions available to this couple looking to buy a second home in the Alps.
Our client, a high net worth individual (HNWI), was looking into an existing property in the French Alps. Due to the recent Brexit changes, the criteria became different for UK residents wishing to apply for a mortgage in France.
Our client is a Dutch resident buying a property in the French Alps. He wanted the best rate possible on the mortgage and was seeking a low LTV as he had enough liquidity for an important deposit.
The product our client was looking for is not really commun. I would even dare to say it is extremely rare amongst retails banks, a bit less with private banks. Unfortunately we could not use the help of our private banks as the property is Off Plan, which is not favoured by them.
We sent over 6 years of accounts to prove that the business he was a partner from was financially sound and put forward the job stability to override the lending policy.
An interest only mortgage was the best fit as the monthly cost is significantly smaller compared to a capital repayment mortgage which allows the client to take other mortgages to invest in other properties.
This self-employed client wanted to obtain a mortgage on the longest possible term and wanted to use his rental income to cover the mortgage repayments. Originally, we decided to apply for a repayment mortgage with 70% LTV to be repaid over a course of 20 years. However, our French bank has strict rules when it comes to affordability which meant that this option was not feasible due to two reasons: the high debt to income ratio and a lack of savings.
This French client living in the UK had already purchased a new-build property in Courchevel with our help a couple of years ago. We kept in touch and when he saw the opportunity of buying a better, bigger, improved version of his chalet in Courchevel, he contacted us to seek a financing solution.
Our clients, a couple owning a couple of companies, wanted a holiday home to enjoy the French lifestyle and also work from home when they could. They had a very good profile and were quite flexible.
For French banks, income is always the focus when it comes to deciding whether or not credit will be granted to the borrower. This made things very challenging for this retired CEO living in Mauritius.
Our client, an EU citizen, works for a big company in London. With the changes in working conditions (like working from home becoming the norm), he and his family were looking to buy a property just across the Channel to benefit from the French lifestyle while still being able to commute to London if necessary very easily.
We have known this amazing client based in London for quite some time now as a previous deal had fallen through (negotiation went a bit sour). He already owned an apartment in the French Alps but wanted to upgrade.
Our client is a young yet successful investment fund manager / company owner. He was interested in getting the lowest rate possible to finance his property in Grasse, on the French Riviera.
Another French expat in London treating himself with an exceptional chalet in Val d’Isere for both personal use and investment.
Our client wanted the highest LTV possible to limit his exposition to the French Property Wealth Tax while having the lowest rate possible as a second request.
Our client, a successful CEO in Jersey (UK), was looking for a mortgage with the highest LTV possible and the longest term possible. He had already contacted a bank and had been turned down for the max LTV and offered only 70%…
A British investor who just came back from the Middle East wished to purchase an amazing chalet/apartment in Meribel.
A CEO of a fast-growing startup company has contacted us to ask for help organising a French mortgage. He has found a property in Meribel with a vast amount of constructible land.
Our client, a Slovenian citizen living and working in France for the legal service of a multinational research group, was finding the process of getting a French mortgage difficult. Most banks will speak only in French and many of them do not have a proper international department. Our client was fluent in many languages but not French…
It is no secret that cash buyers have more negotiating power than clients who rely on a mortgage. However, that did not stop our clients from getting a good price for their apartment in Cannes.
A British couple looking to purchase a secondary residence within the biggest ski area of France, the Three Valleys, set their sights on a new project being constructed in the village of Les Menuires, nested between St Martin de Belleville and Val Thorens.
Our clients, a British couple, were seeking a mortgage to purchase a new build property in Chatel. They were looking for the best rate possible and were willing to deposit up to 30% of the purchase price.
Our clients are British residents with an excellent profile and high incomes. Their goal was to take a mortgage in order to benefit from tax optimization (and particularly avoid paying the French Property Wealth Tax called Impôt sur la Fortune Immobilière – ‘’IFI’’) and excellent conditions with a long-term, low, fixed rate. It makes so much sense applying for a French mortgage at the moment rather than purchasing the property in cash.
Our client is an Irish citizen living in the UK. He was looking to buy a new build property in Les Gets in the Alps. He wanted the lowest rate possible and FPF made its best to fulfil his will.
Our client is a British resident who was looking to refinance his property in the French Alps that we helped finance a few years ago. He was seeking for a better cash flow flexibility by extending the remaining mortgage duration and was attracted by the possible lower rate.
The client came to us following a chat with the notaire on the low interest rate environment in France. As with many buyers, this wine importer was intending to buy the property cash before learning about the favourable loan terms in France.
Our clients, a couple of British residents, part employees and part self-employed, were looking for an existing property in Les Gets, French Alps. Their wish was to capitalise on the low, long term-fixed rates available in France which makes borrowing quite cheap compared to other markets and keep the cash to invest somewhere else in the UK.
The client is a French national living in the United States of America, in New York City. He had found a very spacious, 3-bedroom apartment in St Jean de Luz on the South West of France, near Spain, on the Atlantic Ocean coast.
The larger and the more complex the transaction; the longer it tends to take. It took us nearly a year to finalise the mortgage deal for this Val d’Isere buyer. With multiple income streams coming from various countries including the US and latin america, many lenders declined the application for compliance reasons.
Clients come to us at various stages of the purchase process and it’s rather common to speak to someone who has been looking at buying a property in France for years. This real estate investor and his wife came close to pulling the trigger many times but were unable to proceed because banks did not want to give them the finance.
British living in Japan for more than a decade, our client wanted the highest Loan to Value available at the best rate possible.
Our British client is a Hong Kong resident. Renting in Hong Kong is very expensive and it was difficult to fit within the debt to income ratio limit allowed by the French banks (your outgoings cannot exceed 33% of your income). The client also had a mortgage on a UK property for which he was receiving some rental income.
Our clients were a mixed couple (British / French) and the husband wanted to buy a second home in his wife’s hometown in the Lot department (South West of France).
The client had an existing mortgage in the UK which was hurting his affordability based on the French calculations. A debt ratio of 33% is the benchmark for retail lenders in France. However, we work with a couple of lenders that can go up to a 40% debt to income ratio as well as private banks which can be more flexible given the assets pledged with them.
The client is a successful and experienced business owner. One of the criteria was to respect the maximum age to repay the mortgage while providing one of the best rates on the market.
Our clients have been looking to purchase a property in the little known Alpine village of Chatel, Northern Alps. They have visited the region during the winter 2017/18 before finally setting their sights on a new development near the village centre.
The client is a British citizen living in Singapore working for a major corporation focused on the grain and agricultural commodities. He was very interested in an off-plan apartment in Megeve, one of the most famous and fanciest ski resorts of the French Alps.
One of our real estate partners contacted us to introduce an australian client who has been struggling to secure a loan on a small holiday apartment in the beautiful village of St Gervais. She has been refused by a couple of lenders by first trying to apply on her own and then with a broker. In both cases, the banks didn’t approve the mortgage due to her residency in the Middle East.
The client is a British couple living in Dubai working for a top lawyer firm and a top bank. They had found an apartment in Courchevel, St Bon Tarantaise in the heart of the French Alps.
Despite having a very strong income and the required deposit, it was difficult to find a lender to finance the project of our client. Born in north Africa and now residing in Dubai, most of our banking partners would not consider his application for compliance reasons. Since the villa was off-plan, it also added an element of risk for lenders.
One key element we keep referring to in the transaction of the month series is timing. Buyers tend to widely underestimate how long it takes to arrange a mortgage. If everything lines up, the offer can come in under a month but on average it takes about 3.
This borrower’s main requirement was the ability to pay off the mortgage in chunks without penalty. As a business owner, he also liked the idea of an interest only mortgage which gave him more freedom on his company drawings to lower his tax.
The clients were looking to invest in a holiday family house outside of the UK. They have been to the French Alps on number of occasions, in particular the Three Valleys. They have decided to invest in an off-plan, second residence/investment property. Investing in new built attracts an important discount in taxes most notably stamp duty.
The couple already owned a few buy-to-let properties in the UK which they rent out. They were also accustomed to working with international agents and brokers as they own a couple of properties overseas. However, this was their first purchase in France and the clients were not aware of the mortgage process. The clients were looking to purchase a property near the National Park of Camargue right by the mediterranean sea. They’ve negotiated the price down from €595,000 ask to €535,000.
The client was buying a fabulous property in the south of France, near Sainte-Maxime. He had a few requests and FPF delivered on all of them:
The client wanted the highest LTV available at the best possible rate as her personal contribution was limited because she had just paid off the mortgage on another second home.
This client wanted to buy a new-build property in Courchevel which was part of a Residence de Tourisme development. Financing a Residence de Tourisme can be harder than a normal freehold property as some banks refuse to finance this type of property due to the enforced rental obligation.
The client wanted the highest mortgage possible to optimise his tax whilst keeping the rate as low as possible. He also wanted the same monthly repayments in order to plan his long-term finances. This meant that a variable rate was out of the question.
This client, working in the heart of the City, dreamt of purchasing a property in the Alps. He has been looking for a while and finally found a refurbished four-bedroom apartment in Megève.
A small British business owner of Isreali descent was interested in acquiring a property in the Ardeche mountains as a summer retreat for him and his family. They’ve visited the area on a number of occasions and found the right property at last.
This retired private equity investor was concerned about his ability to secure a mortgage with a French bank. As he had multiple income streams, including remuneration as a board member of 3 different companies, he was concerned about how strict French banks can be on borrowers with complex financial affairs.
A couple from London was looking to buy a property in the South of France as a holiday retreat for the whole family. They had previously missed out on several properties as they were not able to secure a mortgage quickly enough, or they had lost out to cash buyers.
A Spanish-British couple wanted to purchase a holiday home close to the popular and historic city center.