How do I get a mortgage in France?

With property prices falling in many parts of the world we are seeing an increasing number of people seeking to take advantage by purchasing a holiday, retirement or even investment property abroad. The most popular country that UK citizens buy in is, and always has been, our near neighbour France. For this reason we thought it would be useful to prepare a brief blog on how you go about getting a mortgage in France. Step One: Get Assessed Tell us your needs, the kind and amount of mortgage you need.  How are you planning to repay the mortgage and for how long?  Based on these questions, we will be providing you with a set of proposed mortgages that would best suit you. Step Two: Choosing Your Property Upon finding the property of your choice, your agent or notary will need to make you sign a Compromis de Vente.  This is a legally binding contract that states that you will be purchasing the said property within a given time frame.  Since you will be using a mortgage in purchasing the property, a Clause Suspensive should also be included in the contract.  Bear in mind that there are a lot of documents to submit in support of your application and it may take time for the lender and underwriter to assess these, so prepare these as soon as possible.  If you are unable to get a mortgage or purchase the property in the time given you will lose your deposit posted for the property. Step Three: Submission and Checking of Requirements We will send you the required Application documents. Complete them and return them to us via fax or email. Once we confirm they are all correct we ask you to send originals in the post.  We will then forward these to the lender, who would in turn issue a proof of application which we would send to you via email.  You would need to supply a copy of this to your agent or notary. Step Four: Mortgage Review The lender would then again look at your application before submission to an underwriter for decision.  This would usually take around 14 working days upon submission.  If deemed necessary, you would be asked to submit additional documents to strengthen your application. Once your application is forwarded to an underwriter, it would take around one to seven days for a decision.  Within this time, they may be requested to view the property, clarify certain points, or even submit more documentation.  Unlike in the UK, French lenders do not have credit checks to rely on to build your profile and assess your financial situation. Step Five: Decision Lenders use various methods to appraise a mortgage, and the criteria for this vary for each lender.  In case of a negative decision, we will be offering you with alternative options and acting upon this as soon as you agree with it.  If needed, we can ask from the lender a proof that the mortgage has been refused. In the case of an approval, the property will be subject to a valuation or subject to insurance.  We will be coordinating this with you, the lender, and your agent or notary.  By this time, you will also need to open a French bank account.  This is where the lender will be automatically debiting all payments for the mortgage.  If you do not have a bank account yet, we will be pleased to assist you in opening one, free of charge. Step Six: The Offer The mortgage offer will be sent directly to your home address.  The mortgage offer is valid for one month upon issue but you would need to wait at least 11 days before returning the signed offer.  Make sure that you understand all documents before signing them.  If you have any questions, we will be on hand to assist you with these. Step Seven: Acquiring Of Property and Starting Your Mortgage Upon return of the signed offer, the lender would furnish a copy to your notary who would then draw up a mortgage deed.  This mortgage deed will be needed together with the property purchase.  This is also the time that the notary would be requesting the transfer of funds from the lender. You are now the proud owner of a new piece of property.  The next step would be the start of your repayments, based on the terms and conditions agreed upon. At Choice Loans our French mortgages are arranged by a bi-lingual British citizen who lives in France and has been arranging French mortgages for UK (and other) citizens for over 10 years. They are fully qualified and licensed to work in France and can provide you with a professional service in English or French! To find out more or make an enquiry please either call us on 0845 1260350 or complete our Overseas mortgage enquiry form here and we'll get in touch with you.