Are you an Australian overseas or non-resident looking for finance? (you may be buying off the plan, or buying an existing property)
Right now obtaining mortgage finance in Australia is extremely difficult for non-Australian citizens and even Australian expats. This has become well-known since mid 2017 when all of the major banks severely restricted or stopped lending to non-current residents of Australia and those with foreign incomes not earned in Australian dollars.
In a previous article we wrote about the mortgage changes for borrowers in this category. It’s true that if you are an Australian citizen employed in a job overseas, with taxes regularly deducted by your employer (not yourself) and in an ‘accepted country’ there are a couple of bank options.
Challenges for the Self-employed
However self employed people and those contracting their services or earning income not provided in a major global currency, are struggling. In the event a bank does have a policy for non-residents (and some do), it’s often a very strict policy, applying to a narrow, wealthy category of buyer, with hurdles that are difficult to overcome.
One such hurdle includes applying Australia’s consumer protection-oriented responsible lending principles which demands that existing overseas mortgages are recalculated over the remaining term at an inflated interest rate being 2.5% above the current offered Australian rate!
Mortgage solutions for non-resident or expat
So what can you do ? There are few options remaining today, and we don’t believe the current Covid-19 crisis is going to improve the situation greatly, however at Aussie Finance & Property we specialise in finding mortgage loan solutions for non-Australian citizens and Australian expats, including the self employed and company applicants.
Finding such solutions is not straightforward and requires specialist assistance. Most brokers and lenders will not be aware of solutions within the market because they are not mainstream products. We can provide workable solutions today for those buyers and investors in the situation of wanting to buy or complete a purchase in Australia, who are left stranded by the Australian banks.
Typically each application is decided on a case-by-case basis. We are able to source finance that is catered to non-residents. That finance could be personal (in the borrowers name) and resemble typical mortgage lending terms but with a higher interest rate, or it could be a solution to buy in a company name and save on foreign buyer stamp duty surcharges applying in Australia today.
For more information and if this applies to your situation, provide me a brief summary on our contact page along with your contact details and we will be in touch soon.
Daniel Shillito
Aussie Finance and Property