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Buying a holiday home

Buying your dream holiday home:

So you've found your dream holiday home and love the area... so what next.

Well, just as you would when buying a house in the UK, you need to consider money and yes, you guessed it.... the legal stuff (sorry, couldn't put it off any longer!)

If you have enough money to buy the property outright then that's great, but if you need a mortgage there's a few things to consider. Some UK lenders will provide mortgages for use abroad although in most cases this will just be for parts of Europe.

If your planning on setting up a business then you may be able to get funding in the form of a bank loan. Again, most banks will only allow this for parts of Europe as (from their point of view) they have more chance of getting their money back should things go wrong.

As for the legal stuff (or "red tape") this varies from country to country and it is important that you get help from a solicitor that know the market well and has a good, established reputation. This is where your friend the estate agent can help. By now you should know whether you can trust any recommendations they offer or whether they are just after their commission.

When buying a house abroad you should ask the same questions as you would when purchasing in the UK:

  • Who owns the land and the property?
  • Where are your boundaries?
  • Who is responsible for any maintenance to access and services?
  • Area their any new developments planned?
  • Is the land freehold or leasehold (for example - many houses in Thailand are sold on a leasehold basis... that means that in 50 years you may end up having to buy the house all over again!)
  • any other potential surprises!

In addition, you will need to find out about tax and public liability insurance if you are planning on renting the property, as well as working permits it you are planning on moving to your new home permanently.