Bulgaria Buyer - Mortgages for Bulgarian property


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MORTGAGES

Euro mortgages are now available in Bulgaria by some of the banks.

Although we did not make use of this facility, preferring to release equity from our own UK homes instead, the current rate is around 7% and the loan to value is around 70%. There are status and non-status mortgages, but the latter may have to be facilitated by the estate agent.

The following table gives an idea of the different mortgage products available to non-Bulgarians, and some comparisons of standard mortgage criteria amongst the 7 major players in the Bulgarain home loans arena, details of which have been gathered from the Bulgarian Home Loans website in Feb. 2007.
The information presented here is intended as a guide only, as just like UK mortgages, details of mortgage products can vary at short notice.

Please do not rely exclusively on information presented here, as some details have been excluded for the sake of simplicity, and we do not accept liability if any of these details are subsequently proved incorrect.
For a comprehensive breakdown of all mortgage products, please refer to www.Bulgarianhomeloans.com

Bank	Loan type	Interest rate	Repayment method	Term in years	LTV	Age range	Loan limit	Typical fees(*)
DSK	Euro USD	7% variable	Repayment (optional 1 year interest free)	5 to 25 (with credit report) 3 to 20 (no credit report)	70% (with credit report) 80% without credit report)	21 to 65 on maturity of loan	5k to 200k euros	£1100 approx. + 1.3% of loan
Piraeus	Euro	6.95% variable	Repayment	5 to 25	70% (< 100k euro) 75% (>100k euros)	21 to 65 on maturity of loan	40k euros to no limit	£1100 + 2.2% of loan
EIB	Euro	6.75% variable	Repayment	5 to 20	75%	21 to various. At least half the original mortgage must be paid off by age 65)	5k to 200k euros	£1100 approx. + 1.25% of loan
Bulbank	Euro BGN USD	7.58% euribor	Repayment	0 to 15	65%	21 to 60 (female) 21 to 65 (male)	All	£735 approx. + 1.5% of loan + 0.25% of loan annually
UBB United Bulgarian Bank	Euro	7.95% variable	Repayment	15	60%	23 to 65	7.5k euros to 150k euros	£1000 approx. + 1% of loan + 0.5% of loan annually of remaining loan
Invest Bank	Euro BGN	9.9% variable	Repayment (interest only for one year)	0 to 20	70%	All	All	£1000 approx. + 2.5% of loan
FIB Bank	Euro BGN USD	6.9% with 1 year interest only or 7.4% with 2 years interest only or 7.9% with 3 years interest only	Repayment but with up to 3 years interest only	1 to 20	70% or 80% at 8.4% interest	18 to 65	5k euros to no limit	£950 approx. + 2% of loan

* NB: Typical fees column includes BHL fees of £600

Below are general details applicable to some or all of these mortgage products:

Processing time once all documentation received is around 12 weeks
Price on notary deed must not be less than loan amount
Identity and proof of income documentation must be supplied - here are some examples of the type of documents required by the various lenders:
- Identification e.g. copy of passport
- Credit report (from Equifax or Experian) or translated statement from bank stating income and commitments
- Last 3 to 6 months bank statements, depending on lender
- Translated statement from employer confirming position, income and start date
- Last P60
- Last 3 to 6 months pay slips, depending on lender
- If self-employed, tax return for 1, 2 or 3 previous years, depending on lender
- Preliminary contract
- Marriage certificate
- Bulgarian tax declaration
All lenders impose early redemption penalties
All lenders require Buildings and Contents and Life insurances
All lenders allow mortgages on multiple properties, subject to proof of affordability, although sometimes the lender might insist on a reasonable gap between the first and subsequent mortgage being taken out e.g. 6 months.
Most mortgage providers will allow staged payments. However, in order to qualify for this, the developer must transfer the notary deed at the earlier stage of roof level(Act 14), as opposed to the granting of Act 16.
The only lenders not currently supporting staged payments are Piraeus and UBB.
Most lenders support multiple applicants of either 2(UBB, Invest and First Investment banks), or 4(DSK, Piraeus and EIB) max.
Most lenders require payments to be made either into a Bulgarian bank account or an account with the lender with 3 to 12 months payments in advance, depending on lender.
Most mortgages currently on offer are subject to proof of affordability of the loan. So, evidence of income and monthly outgoings must be supplied. Most banks state that no adverse credit is allowed. However, Invest Bank is the exception in that no proof of income is required i.e. the loan is self-certified. It can be seen from the table above however, that this bank has the highest rate of interest.
Some lenders require the applicant to use a Bulgarian-based solicitor.
Piraeus, UBB and Invest bank supply mortgages for Ltd. Companies.
Piraeus is the only lender which currently provides a remortgage facility.
Invest bank and First Investment bank support online banking.

To obtain more details from Bulgarian Home Loans, download a Bulgarian Home Loans contact form by
clicking download contact form

Once complete, please attach and email to info@bulgarianhomeloans.com.

Alternatively, contact Bulgarian Home Loans on Tel: 0845 456 7148
please quote ref: Bulgaria Buyer when calling.

Page last updated: 30th April 2007