Offshoreonline Launches Italian Mortgage Service
Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Offshoreonline.org, the UK regulated overseas and euro mortgage broker, has announced the launch of a new Italian mortgage service aimed at UK and European Union residents.

Announcing the launch of the new service Managing Director Tim Harvey said that UK buyers in particular have found it more difficult recently to source a euro mortgage to buy a home in Italy since the withdrawal of a number of banks from the market around two years ago.

"In practice, we have had to deal individually with local bank branches for clients, with each branch having widely varying standards and processes, all of which has complicated what should be a straightforward process," he said. "This new service will be welcomed by UK buyers in particular, who historically have been responsible for nearly 30% of all foreign property purchases in the country.”

The new service has a minimum loan requirement of EUR250,000 and can be used to purchase new properties or refinance those bought for cash recently where owners are now looking to restructure. Offshoreonline.org says that loans are available on a capital and interest repayment basis only at this stage. The service covers all of Italy with the exception of Calabria. The company can also help buyers with the setting of a current account, which will be needed to pay local bills, and advise on the best ways to transfer currencies into euros.

A comprehensive range of euro mortgage interest rate options is available including fixed, variable and capped rate products, with deposits of just 20% needed from clients. Loan terms can be from seven to 25 years. Interest rates start at 3.25%, with five year fixed rate products available from 3.95%.

Harvey concludes: “With interest rates starting at 3.25% and options to fix or cap interest rates, we think this will be a popular service for UK buyers in particular who are looking to take advantage of the softening of prices in prime areas of Italy such as Tuscany.”