Two great new opportunities have opened up in the international mortgage market over the last month. The first is in Portugal, where the first lender has been brave enough to stick their head above the parapet and start to offer 90% LTV mortgages. The second is in the USA where full status and self cert low value mortgages (starting from just $50,000) have become available up to 75% LTV. The USA has become a popular hotspot for many international property investors over recent months due to the strong Return on Investment (ROI) deals on offer, and we hope that this loosening of criteria both in USA and Portugal is start of things to come.

Our new international mortgage website has proven really popular and I have spent the last month training up 5 new advisers to cope with the demand. I have also been working on acquiring more sources of finance in the USA, and looking for finance options in developing markets such as Brazil and the Caribbean which are now starting to prove popular destinations with our clients.

To help ensure the economic recovery and steady growth within many countries, we have seen almost no change in interest rates over the past month, which is great news for property investors seeking finance. But many analysts have predicted that interest rate rises are on the horizon, and therefore this month's tip is for property investors to take advantage of the current low rates of borrowing while they can. There are some cracking 5 to 10 year fixed rate deals available at the moment with interest rates in Spain starting at just 2.62% and in France at just 2.92%. More information on these products can be found on our website www.overseasmortgagefinder.co.uk or alternatively if you would like a free mortgage consultation with one our advisers please call us on 01708 676128.

Geoff Simmonds,

Head of Overseas Mortgages