CyprusLiving

A very interesting article in yesterday's Times about Swiss Franc Mortgages

One guy had paid GBP50K but still owed more than he did at the beginning due to exchange rates

It's obviously ©Times Newspapers, but if anyone wants a copy, I could be persuaded to pass it on

Hi JB

Is this an article by David Budworth? I spoke with him in the week and put him onto Sarah Hordle and Chris Christofi of Healys. And I asked a number of people with CHF mortgages to get in touch.

If you could scan the article into your computer & email it to me, I'd be grateful.

Cheers,

Hi, having a large CHF mortgage I would appreciate any info .

Nigel-Howarth wrote:If you could scan the article into your computer & email it to me, I'd be grateful.

Nigel

First you accuse me of being some spurious (?) 'property management' company and now you are asking me to reproduce copyrighted material

Disgraceful


Yes it was David Budworth

Y H M

Edit - can't find your e mail address, sorry.
If you send it to me 'james at brickyardfolly dot co dot uk' I will try and help you

Hi

Would also appreciate any info on CHF mortgage!!
Many thanks

redrobin

I too am in the same situation.

However looking back at the circumstances when the mortgage was taken out I think the banks have done us all a misservice. At the time the developer wanted paying in CHF. No problem with that, but why did the banks tie us into a CHF mortgage.

Why did they not take create a mortgage in Euros of sufficient amount that when exchanged for CHFs would provide the developer with the CHFs he required. We would then be paying in Euros which not only be the currency of Cyprus, but mean that we were not suffering the problems of exchange rates even more than we now are.

Another question, was it legal for the banks to arrange a mortgage in any other currency than that of the country.

If anyone wants more info, please e mail me at the address I gave in my last post

Remember the old saying "If it sounds too good to be true"

Peter Thompson, a boat pilot on the Thames, regrets the day that he decided to buy a two-bedroom holiday home in the Cyprus resort of Pernera with a Swiss franc mortgage. He says: "The mortgage was recommended to me by the personal banker at the Paralimni branch of the Bank of Cyprus because the interest rate was so low compared with a euro mortgage. They said that the repayments could fluctuate with exchange rates but they didn't really emphasise the potential risks. In my wildest dreams I never imagined what would happen."

The 53-year old, from Beckton in London, bought the property in June 2007 with a loan of SwFr 238,000. At the time you got 2.5 Swiss francs to the pound. Four years on, the Swiss currency is 1.35 to the pound, which has had terrible consequences for Mr Thompson. He says: "I've made nearly £50,000 worth of payments but, when you convert what I owe in Swiss francs back into sterling, I owe nearly £15,000 more than at the start."

Mr Thompson has talked to the Bank of Cyprus about switching to a euro mortgage but has been told that he will have to pay hefty exit penalties. "It has become a millstone round my neck," he says.
When you take a risk don't ask others to sort it out for you

I know of someone who this applies. I have been with her to the bank to discuss this matter. Because her mortgage was originally in euros and then changed to swiss currency it increased her payments by around 30% due to exchange rates. Of course the bank is making a tidy profit from the needless currency shifting.

Fortunately because the mortgage contract was originally drawn in euros there is more scope to get this reverted. Failing this a redemption and remortgage has been threatened as this would still be more financially viable.

If anyone is having the same issue please PM me, I think if enough of us stand together we may be able to get the banks to fold on this issue.

I would be very interested in information re Swiss FRanc mortgage. I always thought to ride the situation out but after starting at 2.4 rate and now probably 1.2 I owe double?

Am I understanding there may be options out of it which are expensive but cheaper than owing double. Wasn't that many years ago it was 4CHF to GBP , could that ever return. All a bit like gambling and while CHF has good interest rates and neutral I doubt we will get back to those levels for a very long time.

I do not know if my mortgage was in Cyprus pounds converted to CHF which I pay from sterling .. ouch........

The paperwork is currently being viewed by a friend of mine who is looking through the terms and conditions of the agreement.

What appears to have happened in this instance is Alpha Bank who mortgaged the property were borrowing money from a Swiss Bank and passing on the cost of exchange to their customer.

The theory is; if you signed a contract to sub rent a room in Alphys house (all inclusive). But Alphy didn't factor in the rising cost of his own bills so he's struggling to pay back a loan he has to Franc. Alphy can't expect you to pay his bills to franc just because he messed up. Because ultimately you'd turn around to Alphy and say "Ill rent a room off somebody else".

With experience, class action works best in these instances. Because Alpha Bank can't afford for the hundreds of people in this situation to walk away from their mortgages. Please get in touch.

Another article in last weekend's Sunday Times, advocating that, as the rate is now so poor, it may be a good idea to take out a CHF mortgage as the rate will possibly come back!!!

As above ... e mail me if you want to see it, but please don't ask for advice, I am NOT a financial advisor