Expat Mortgages

Expatriate mortgages are mortgages specifically offered to Brits you have lived abroad and wish to come back to live in the UK or purchase a buy to let property in the UK.

Should you be an expatriate returning to the UK or considering investment in purchasing a property, you are going to come across limited options in the UK.

Such mortgages are hard to arrange due to lack of proof of residence in the UK and limited credit history.

What are Expatriate Mortgages?

Should you have been living outside of the UK for a while, it is highly likely you could either no credit history left here or you score a very low credit history score. This means that lots of lenders are going to be reluctant to offer you a mortgage as they are going to be unable to sufficiently assess your credit risk.

Mortgage lenders who do deal with expatriate mortgages are usually part of a very vast banking group of specialist lenders operating in non standard buy to let lending.

Expat mortgage lending requirements usually differ a lot from arranging a standard UK mortgage; proof of income, address and credit history requirements are all different.

The expat mortgage lenders consider whether you are seeking to purchase a property to rent out in the UK or you are wising to move back to the UK after some time abroad. It helps a lot if you have continued with some forms of UK credit whilst you have been away.

Types of Expat Mortgages

There are several expat mortgages to select from. The first decision you have to make is between an interest only mortgage and a repayment mortgage.

Interest only mortgages

An interest only mortgage involves paying only the interest to your mortgage lender each month. The outstanding loan remains the same during the course of the mortgage. Hence, it is crucial you put aside sufficient funds to pay off the mortgage when it has to be repaid, i.e., after 25 years.

Repayment mortgages

Each month your payment to your mortgage lender covers all of the interest and part of the capital. Hence, your outstanding mortgage balance is reduced every year.