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Spain challenges UK mortgage buyers

Date: Tue, 01 Nov 2005

Brits planning to purchase a property in Spain are being urged to stay away from unscrupulous Spanish brokers and deal with regulated UK mortgage providers.

The lack of a regulatory body in Spain means that many brokers are encouraging their clients to falsify documents in order to purchase that new home in the sun.

Many brokers in southern Spain are not independent and often have direct connections to real estate companies, meaning that they may actively encourage applicants to lie on official documents in order to secure the sale.

Anyone planning to purchase a holiday or retirement home are being warned to ensure that their broker is reputable and has the backing of UK regulatory bodies; otherwise they could risk losing their property or even facing a prison sentence.

John Murphy, director of Spanish Mortgages Direct, said "When I set up this company I did many months of research and was pretty shocked at a) the relatively infancy of the concept of mortgage brokers in Spain and b) the bad practice that was going on. Spanish Mortgages Direct had to be different.

"We only employ UK qualified mortgage advisers," he added.


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