Halifax Mortgage requirements

Sorry, I wasn't sure of the best place for this post.

I have recently completed on a purchase of a property in Spain and used Halifax to gain a mortgage.  Ironically my girlfriend and I were discussing last week our lack of life assurance for the Spainsh Mortgage and lo and behold the following day I get a phone call from Halifax stating that they had been audited and realised that they had not ensured we had this.  They have said that like the property insurance we need to get it through them, which we don't have a problem with but they are also stating that we have to have a Halifax credit card!  Since my Girlfriend and I do not live in Spain we have no need for a Spanish Credit Card that we will not use, particularly one that attracts an annual charge.

Can anyone confirm if this is a requirement/usual practice, if it is then I missed it during the application process.

Many Thanks

David

Hi David,

I took out a "Halifax" mortgage three years ago at their Benalmadena office. They did say at the time I could have a credit card, but they were not insistant

on me having one. They also did the Home contents insurance and again no life policy was requested or insisted upon. My own Bank, Solbank only issue

credit cards if you ask for one, which I did, and they are useful for the times you visit. So unless things have changed in three years, don't be bullied into something

you don't want or need.

 

Best wises for the future,

Paul Smith

Dibby - Im not sure they can force you to have the policy through them at all - Smiley the resident broker could answer that one - as this may be a new policy they are enacting to try and raise funds!

I doubt you have to have the credit cards either and you should refuse them and ensure they dont charge you for them!

You are not obliged to have their life cover and best advice would dictate that if you do have life cover then you arrange it in the UK where it is cheaper, more comprehensive and not subject to Spanish IHT. It is not obligatory to have a Halifax credit card it is optional.