A question of currency

Borrowing in a foreign currency is often an option for real estate buyers seeking a mortgage at an interest rate lower than they could get in their domestic currency. While there has been some foreign currency borrowing by Spanish investors, this has been more limited.

The attraction of a foreign currency loan depends largely on the interest rate differential. The favourite currency in recent years in many parts of the world has been the Japanese yen, which has consistently offered low interest rates. But interest rates in Spain over most of the past decade have been low, especially in real terms, and have on occasion been negative. Compared to some countries with higher interest rates, in Spain there has been less of an incentive to seek out foreign currency loans.

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