UK sees build up in offshore mortgage book

Barclays International has seen its offshore mortgage book grow by 25% during 2005, due to an increasing number of foreign nationals coming to the UK to live and work. Pieter Van Rooyen, head of banking at Barclays International, said offshore mortgages could provide savings of up to 40% on UK tax for people eligible to use their offshore income to buy a home in the UK. He said an offshore mortgage was ideal for someone moving to the UK for a fixed period of time but planning to return to their home country in the future or someone with offshore income and investments that could be use...