When money is tight, many people end up in a situation where they cannot pay their bills, sometimes including their mortgage. This often leads to homeowners defaulting on their mortgage, and defaulting on a mortgage for a primary or secondary residence can have serious repercussions for the homeowner. The repercussions of defaulting vary by state and province and by country, and can affect a homeowner for years to come, so he or she must fully realize what defaulting on a mortgage means to financial security and status.
For instance, when you default on mortgages in Spain, there are certain consequences. If you are not a Spanish citizen but own a home in Spain, you may think its still possible to easily walk away from the mortgage with no consequences whatsoever. This used to be true, especially for second residences or vacation homes. But now Spanish mortgage holders can and do pursue every legal means necessary to collect on their mortgages.
One option you have when you default on your mortgage in Spain is to turn over the home to the bank. This option will save you money in court costs incurred by the bank when pursuing you for the balance, as well as additional interest on the mortgage during the court battle. However, turning the home over to the bank is a process that must be negotiated. The bank has to accept your offer, and they are under no obligation to do so. They will be rather unlikely to take the home back without good reason such as a hardship. Any homeowners that can prove such a hardship to the bank will be even more likely to succeed in negotiating a turnover.
If you cannot negotiate a home turnover with the bank that holds your Spanish mortgage, you will need to sell the home as soon as possible. Try to get a final sale price that will cover the remaining amount on your Spanish mortgage or one that will come as close as possible to paying it off, as the bank will still expect the full amount from you in any case. The bank will be most likely to aggressively pursue you for a large shortfall on the Spanish mortgage. However, the bank can legally pursue the homeowner for any shortfall amount at all. This means you may face liens on any assets you own, including your primary home and investments. Although it may take years to collect on the shortfall by going through the court systems, the bank that holds your Spanish mortgage will not give up until they do.
Even if defaulting on your mortgage in Spain is inevitable, you should work with the bank as much as possible as soon as you know you must default. Doing so can result in an agreement that will satisfy the bank, relieve you of your responsibilities associated with the Spanish mortgage, and allow you to keep other assets you may own.
