Swiss Franc Mortgage Settlement In Paphos

EU Property Solutions were appointed by this client to assist with their property in the ‘Expat’ hotspot of Paphos in Cyprus.

The client had taken a Swiss Franc Mortgage with Alpha Bank for CHF 414,000, or €384,000. This was taken before 2008 so the value of the property has since decreased significantly.

The Property Value at the time was €130,000, leaving a shortfall of €254,000. On top of this, his mortgage payments were at €1,300pcm and there were arrears, penalties, and interest accruing.

What we did

• We worked diligently to get the Alpha Bank’s Committee to accept the Transfer of Ownership of the Property to the Bank,
• On top of this, we negotiated a lump sum payment of £25,000 to settle the issue.
• We have avoided a Property Sale which, given the circumstances currently with COVID and mass supply in Cyprus, could have been nearly impossible.
• This was all signed off in Cyprus by our appointed lawyer, George attending Land Registry and finalising the deal.

The various currencies can be extremely confusing, but this is how Alpha Bank work. It illustrates how it can be difficult to even know what you owe when Swiss Francs are involved.

The client was so happy that he avoided the drawn-out process of selling the property while still having to pay ridiculously high payments.