Getting a mortgage in Belgium as an expat

What a lender checks

According to Wikifin, the lender must make sure you can repay what it lends. It looks at:

• your monthly income, which must cover capital, interest and the premium of the outstanding-balance insurance;
• the value of the property, estimated by an expert after valuation, and the loan-to-value ratio (a loan above the value of the home is likely to be refused);
• your own contribution, from savings or help from relatives;
• the guarantees you can offer.

Wikifin states: “chaque banque dispose de ses propres critères”. It also gives a rule of thumb that repayments should not exceed about one third of monthly household income, after deducting other loan repayments. Wikifin’s own example: a loan of 80% of a €250,000 home is €200,000; if the valuation only recognises €200,000 for the home, the loan falls to €160,000.

Expat-specific points: what the official pages say and do not say

Income in another currency, foreign employer, short contract. None of the official sources I read set a rule. Because each bank sets its own criteria, ask each lender in writing which income it accepts, which documents it wants (payslips, employment contract, tax returns), what it requires for a fixed-term or posting contract, and whether it applies any haircut to income paid in another currency. A credit broker can compare lenders’ answers: see the credit broker.

Residence. The sources I read do not make residence a condition of a bank mortgage. Residence conditions do exist elsewhere:

• The Brussels Housing Fund (Fonds du logement) loan, for households within income scales, requires that you live permanently in Belgium and own no other property in Belgium or abroad (fonds.brussels).
• In Wallonia, the 3% registration rate counts every dwelling you own, in Belgium or abroad (notaire.be). In Flanders, the 2% rate requires that you are not full owner of another home or building plot in Belgium or abroad (vlaanderen.be).
• Brussels’ abatement requires you to move in within 3 years and stay 5: see registration duties.

Credit history. Belgian lenders must consult the National Bank’s Individual Credit Register before granting credit; it holds consumer and mortgage loans taken out in Belgium by individuals, and payment defaults (nbb.be, Wikifin). You can ask to see your own data free of charge, online with an eID, by signed letter or e-mail with an ID copy, or in person (Wikifin). The sources I read say nothing about how a lender treats a credit history built abroad.

The National Bank’s expectations

The NBB’s “prudential expectations” are not a law and not a rule about your file. They set reference levels for banks’ new lending (NBB FAQ):

The NBB says it does not forbid high-LTV loans; banks that depart from the expectations must explain why (“comply or explain”). A bank can therefore lend more or less than 90% to you: see deposit and loan-to-value.

Costs you fund yourself

Wikifin writes that one-off costs “ne sont en principe pas financés par la banque”: registration duties or VAT, notary fees, mortgage duties, the lender’s file fee (maximum €350 for a mortgage loan) and valuation costs, which are separate and due only if the valuation takes place. Wikifin also lists fire insurance and the outstanding-balance insurance among the costs to plan for. See purchase costs.

Who may lend

Since 1 November 2015 the FSMA supervises access to the activity of mortgage lender and intermediary in Belgium (fsma.be). Its site has a “Check your provider” search; before signing with an intermediary or a lender from another EEA country, check the status there, and ask for the FISE/ESIS information sheet, a standard European sheet that lenders must give with an offer (Wikifin). A simulation is free; accepting an offer triggers file fees.

Which professional to consult

A credit broker compares offers and knows what each bank accepts for your profile; your bank gives you the prospectus and ESIS sheet; a notary calculates the deed costs, including the mortgage deed.