Mortgages??????

laurajane said:

Hi all

Can anyone advise me about martgages in the D.R? Which banks have a good reputation and have the best rates?

What kind of term are mortgages spread over here?

What kind of percentage are the norm as far as deposits go?

Any advice would be welcome, we have been renting for years and are young and feel it is time to take the plunge and buy our own home. I wanted to ask here first so i am clued up before we start going to banks.

Thanks

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• Bottom line is, that local bank's mortgage rates may seem horrendous to you, depending on where you are coming from. 13% to 20-some % are common in local currency.
• Few local banks may offer mortgages in USD at with rates ranging around 8% to way over 10%... basically, if you take the constant (currently slow) fall of the DOP against the USD... it's about the same ratio.
• Some banks do participate in "ferias de hipotecas" (grouped mortgage sales events) where the lowest rates may be offered every once in a while.
• Some builders / developers may have a deal with a bank to help sell their real estate. Other developers may do some in house financing, not always at very attractive rates, as they may pitch their real estate at first time or entry level buyers which do not have much relationship with any bank and thus no access to bank financing. Many of these "buy here-pay here" developers actually bank on the possibility of foreclosing on the properties again and again.
• Many mortgages offered locally have very short terms and may include a huge balloon payment after 5 or so years. Some have monthly rates which don't cover more than, or not even the interest, resulting in an increase principal to be negotiated into yet a worse deal at the end of the term... until they too can foreclose on the property and sing "play it again, Sam!".

• Some re-sales are offered with part owner financing by foreign sellers with near reasonable rates.
• Some US and Canadian mortgage brokers have, here and there, now and then offered foreign mortgages. I would venture to suspect that since fall of last year, these deals may be hard to get however, as banks have tightened their money lending policies, especially for "exotic" risks.
• Some buyers have taken the equity out of continental property back "home" (re-financed) and bought Real property locally with that money, effectively "exporting" their home rate and conditions. Many of the ill advised ones who used that scheme when their home properties had an inflated (bubbled) "value" a few years ago, now face the grim situation of owing more on their home Real Estate than it now is worth and some of them find themselves forced to now sell the Caribbean dream in order to same their HOME.