A solution to the challenge of property financing in Gibraltar

Since 1981 Kleinwort Hambros have had a presence in Gibraltar and is an active property lender for High Net Worth clients, Trusts and Family Offices financing residential and buy-to-let properties. In addition to lending against properties located in Gibraltar, we are also active in the UK and Channel Islands property markets. Kleinwort Hambros is fully authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Commission in Gibraltar.

Challenges

We understand that our clients have wide ranging property needs which can often be complex and require lending through professionally managed structures as well as requiring lending in personal names.

Whether it is a purchase, a refinance or an equity release of a residential property, our locally based team can assist. The regulated mortgage licence we hold from the FSC ensures that we can accommodate a wide variety of needs including owner occupation, wider family occupation, second / holiday homes and buy-to-let properties.

For many clients, arranging and managing mortgages, covering property portfolios in multiple jurisdictions can be challenging. It is common for clients to have to establish separate relationships with branches of the same bank in different countries or find separate providers altogether, which can be costly and time consuming. For High Net Worth clients looking for £500,000+ lending arrangements, this can be even more challenging, particularly when having to deal with separate banks who may each require the depositing of additional assets/investments in advance of any lending requests being considered.

What we can offer

Whilst Kleinwort Hambros, like most private banks, would like clients to establish a full service relationship, the main difference is that we treat a mortgage as a core service. This means that we can consider our clients’ needs more effectively by considering mortgage requirements without the need to deposit additional assets/investments. We also understand that clients who are eligible for our products may not have traditional income or a defined salary and we will assess each loan according to the client’s individual circumstances, rather than using a prescriptive underwriting approach.

Being part of Societe Generale, a French multinational banking and financial services institution, means we have access to an extensive European Network. We are therefore able to refer clients who require banking and lending services in France, Switzerland, Monaco, Luxembourg, UK & the Channel Islands.

Our team of 18 client relationship managers and assistants have extensive lending knowledge with many holding mortgage advisory qualifications, as well as retaining extensive experience in general lending and underwriting practices. In addition, we have a locally based mortgage specialist to support this core service.

A typical mortgage will range between £500,000 and £20,000,000 although we will consider higher value loans on a bespoke basis. Our mortgages are available in Sterling, US Dollars and Euro on an interest only basis. Fixed rate options are also available in Sterling. Flexibility, effective decision making, execution and client service are our key priorities. With this in mind, we have established a strong lending team including credit sanction and administration and have our own in house legal representation within the group.

Melissa Riggs is the Kleinwort Hambros Credit Advisory representative in Gibraltar. The mortgage and lending products we offer are on a non-advisory basis and are devised to cater for our client’s unique needs and the local market.

Melissa can be contacted at melissa.riggs@kleinworthambros.com or by telephone +350 2000 2006