Offshore Mortgages For Investment Properties
Anyone familiar with these? Supposedly you can get much better rates and terms with a foreign currency mortgage (Swiss Franc-based loan rate is about 4.25% and you can get interest-only payments for up to 30 years) to buy or refinance properties in certain states (Florida, California, etc.). Are the potential risks worth it?
With the dollar in free fall, I would consider this too risky for myself- but I am very risk adverse when it comes to investing. How do you think the U.S. Dollar is going to do against the Swiss Franc in the next few years?
In my inexpert opinion, you will wind up with a mortgage for many more dollars than you started with. Will the interest savings make up for it? Let me look into my crystal ball...
Chris
depending on how hairy a transaction you want to have, I think they can be an interesting.
If the are non-dollar denominated, you have the currency risk, but there are transactions to protect against that risk. Buy this hedging transaction generally cost $$$.
Foreign debt is an interesting for non-us citizens to invest in US RE.
One of the loan brokers I deal with approached me with money from a Japanese bank. The loan terms were somewhat unusual and required that someone under a certain age be on title among other things. I backed away because payments were in Japanese yen.