•• HOUSING ••
Mortgages can be fixed for the term of the loan, variable annually, or reviewed every three or five years, with different options on the type of interest payment.
arrangement. Also bear in mind that mortgage offers have a time limit. Lastly, single market mortgages are available from, say, Germany but these can only be obtained via a broker.
Ask your lender for a printed tabular estimate covering the loan period, usually between 15 and 30 years, and discuss the options available to you. The loan can include the 15 percent additional costs if your lender agrees. Another option is to opt for a guaranteed collateral agreement (hypothecaire volmacht/ mandat hypothécaire). It is not an actual loan and instead the bank puts the mortgage on the house, but it means you avoid the mortgage fees and only pay those charged by solicitors.
Some lenders will try to link the loan to their own property and life insurance products. Therefore, you should ensure that the insurance and mortgage costs are clearly separated on your documentation so that you can make an accurate comparison with insurance quotes from other companies. Additionally, the cost of insurance in Belgium is quite high.
Some lenders will charge you for the mortgage offer itself, even if you do not subsequently draw down the loan. Check this in advance and walk away if you are uncomfortable with the
If you have existing life insurance, there should be no need to duplicate the cover at a higher cost. Lenders are no longer able to insist that you buy insurance from a specific company.
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