Jcc

Have applied for a mortgage through Abbey National Fr who are very kind and helpful. However there has been so much paperwork involved. I have spent long hours photocopying all the financial details and personal details they needed, and because I am self- employed this is a considerable amount as I'm sure you may know! It was a conditon of the compromis that if I didn't have a mortgage offer agreed by end of February I didn't have to buy the apartment. Luckily, Abbey said by email that after due consideration of all my paperwork, they were glad to be able to issue an offer in time. I emailed the agent, and he said all was going well at the notaire's end. Because the aparmtent will not be available til end June ( as I agreed as a favour to the owner) Abbey suggested not to issue the offer end of feb as I didn't need the mortgage til june. ( I didn't want to be paying for something that was not mine yet!) Feeling rather nervous about the whole thing, I recently suggested they issue me the offer. I understood that I would have to pay life insurance instalments but for the sake of knowing everything was in place properly I didn't mind. However I am now informed that I have to send them even more paperwork, which involves me spending even more time copying bank statements and sending them off for the last month. What upsets me is that I thought this was all sorted out and that they had agreed to give me the mortgage! During this recently v frustrating time I have been re-thinking using the equity from my home in England to finance the rest of this purchase in France instead. My mortgage advisor at Lloyds has indicated that they would happily lend me the money, and this would be quite quick.  What would you do?   (sorry to be so long and involved!) Jcc

 Buying tiny one bed apartment in June. Needs modernising as the bedroom has no inside access to living room and bathroom, so needs spiral staircase, bathroom converting to shower room and all ancillary plastering, rewiring, replumbing. Also needs kitchen corner modernising. Tiny as I said (45sq m incl 15 sq m terrace!).  Want to find bona fide people with guarantees etc who can deal with planning. Any ideas? Can u advise? Jcc

Anyone able to recommend good people in this area to modernise tiny 1-bed apartment (45sq m incl terrace 15sq m) Needs spiral staircase, bathroom to showeroomm and ancillary plumbing, wiring, tiling, plastering. Also modernisation of kitchen corner. Any advice? Jcc

Buying tiny one bed apartment in June. Needs modernising as the bedroom has no inside access to living room and bathroom, so needs spiral staircase, bathroom converting to shower room and all ancillary plastering, rewiring, replumbing. Also needs kitchen corner modernising. Tiny as I said (45sq m incl 15 sq m terrace!).  Want to find bona fide people with guarantees etc who can deal with planning. Any ideas? Can u advise? Jcc

Thanks for reply. I actually don't need the account to buy the apartment as am getting a mortgage through Abbey National France! So I don't understand quite why I'm being asked to open this type of account! Jcc

Does anyone have any experience of a PEL and CEL? I opened a compte etranger bank account in St Tropez branch of BNP Paribas - v helpful english speaking manager - in january prior to completing on my apartment there this June. I think it is a homebuyers savings account. I am not sure whether I need to have it. It is part of their Archipelago account Ithink. unfortunately my french isn't up to understanding it well enough! So before I contact the Manager again, I just wondered if anyone had any experience of BNP Paribas? Jcc