Special thanks to Geoff Bramwell of Nicaprojects.com for all this:
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Nicaragua
is becoming a hotspot for second and vacation homes -- and big financial institutions may be soonb to follow. We're getting rumors of plans by bigshots like HSBC to offer mortgages to foreigners, following years of mounting demand for such financing.
HSBC
recently announced that they're preparing to offer mortgages on second
homes and vacation homes in 35 countries by March 2008. HSBC completed
a financial merge with Banistmo Bank of Nicaragua about April 2007. The Banistmo Bank signs were lowered and HSBC signs raised. HSBC also has a presence in Panama.
The following newswire explains:
HSBC Plans New Cross-Border Mortgage Product for Early 2008
HSBC
has announced plans to launch a cross-border mortgage product - a
pre-approved loan with an LTV of up to 60%, which is currently only
offered to HSBC Premier clients (who are required to keep at least
$100,000 in deposits and investments with the bank.)
The
new "much, more open," middle market mortgage will be offered in the
same 35 countries that HSBC's Premier service operates, which includes
the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, and the U.K.
The
UK-based bank hopes to take advantage of a recent trend in people
buying second and third homes abroad as investment properties or
retirement destinations.
A
bank spokesperson noted that " complying with all the regulations has
been difficult," and that it was too early to provide specific details
of how exactly the product would be formulated.
Source: marketwatch, September 3, 2007
Meanwhile, the Leon area of Nicaragua
has been getting good press in North America. An article that came out
on October 13 2007 in the weekend "National Post", the Canadian
national newspaper, alerted us to the growing tourism interest of Leon.
It highlights various activities in the Leon area including lagoon
swimming in a crater and volcano hiking. The originating article was published in the Seattle Times
on August 17th. The article suggests moving beyond the normal route of
Granada/San Juan del Sur and suggests that Leon, the third tourist
area, is worth a good look.
Naturally
we encourage that view -- we have been living it for over two years.
Tamarindo Beach continues to be the best choice in the Leon area for
ocean front living. With a large expanse of beautiful beach and well
designed infrastructure, the future is bright.
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This is very interesting news. Many thanks, Geoff.
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