Speaking at the London Mortgage Business Expo, Nia Jones, international services manager for Goldsmith Williams Overseas, claimed brokers should be aware of the problems as it was often not brought to the attention of clients, but could make the difference between being able to afford a property and having to walk away.
Jones said a tax specialist should always be consulted when buying abroad. She explained: “Tax and inheritance tax are a huge and complex issue. There’s a lot to take into account and it’s amazing how many clients don’t take this into consideration when buying abroad.
“Brokers don’t have to be experts themselves, but they must highlight the potential negatives to clients so they can research and make an informed decision. Just because a country is in Europe, people think it has the same legal system and that couldn’t be further from the truth. It should always be at the forefront of people’s minds to get specialist advice.”
She cited one of the problems as the fact that UK and foreign treaties could actually counter each other, meaning a person’s Spanish will would not cover their property there, as it would be their UK will which had precedent.
Simon Conn, managing director of Conti Financial Services, backed the comments, but added that convincing a client to take advice could be hard. “What is always a problem is how far clients have bought into the dream. It makes it very hard to persuade them to delay for legalities and taxes. But people often only get one chance to buy their dream home abroad and you don’t want to make any mistakes.”
