There are U.S. lenders that finance Brazilian buyers in Brickell Key with no local credit history. What decides the deal is which Brazilian documents they accept and in what format they want them.
A lender that cannot pull an U.S. score asks for equivalent proof from the home country: the Brazilian income tax return, proof of earnings, statements from Brazilian banks and, almost always, a bank reference letter. What is particular to the Brazilian buyer is that Brazil requires residents to declare assets held abroad to its own authorities, so the financed unit in Brickell Key will appear in two separate files: the lender's and the Brazilian declaration. Making the amount, the date and the named owner agree in both is something to settle before signing, with an accountant in Brazil, not when the filing deadline arrives.
What makes Brickell Key different in paperwork is not the view: above each tower there is a master association that governs the whole island. That adds a document the mainland does not produce. Besides the estoppel and your own condominium's records, you need the master entity's certificate and rules, its budget and its dues, which are paid separately from the building's. It also changes who approves what. Move-ins, vendor entry, interior remodeling and even a contractor's access can depend on the island regime and not only on your own board, so a city permit in good order is not by itself enough to start work. Because this is made land with a single point of entry, ask your insurer and the managers how elevation and perimeter maintenance are documented, and who is answerable for the shared edge works, which belong to no single tower. If you are buying from abroad, have your attorney review both bodies of rules together, the tower's and the island's, because they conflict more often than you would expect and a buyer ends up bound by both at once.
What is specific to Brickell Key
A man-made island off Brickell, with a single way in and out and a pedestrian loop that rings the whole island. A closed set of towers, with no street retail beyond the basics. You enter by a single bridge from Brickell Avenue; there is no transit station on the island.
- what the single access road means during a hurricane evacuation and at afternoon rush hour
- whether the tower has an open bay view or another tower on the same island blocks it, which is the most frequent complaint here
- which services you have to leave the island for, and how long that takes
What to verify, step by step
- Ask each lender whether it runs a foreign-national programme without local credit history, and request the full document list in writing.
- Confirm whether it accepts the Brazilian income tax return and supporting documents in Portuguese, or requires sworn translation.
- Ask which identification it accepts from a Brazilian buyer and at which stage of the file it is needed.
- Ask the lender for the bank reference letter template it accepts and take that to your bank in Brazil, instead of sending the standard letter.
- Ask an accountant in Brazil which details of the transaction are needed for the declaration of assets held abroad, and request those same details in writing from the lender.
- Confirm that the Brickell Key building you are interested in is financeable for that lender before making an offer.
Mistakes that cost money
- Forgetting that the financed unit also enters the declaration of assets held abroad before the Brazilian authorities, and learning this after the deadline has passed.
- Sending Brazilian statements without asking how many months the lender wants or in what format, and then repeating the whole exercise.
- Searching for an unit before knowing whether there is financing and of what size.
Frequently asked questions
- Can a Brazilian bank finance the purchase in Brickell Key?
- Lending secured on a Florida property is usually done by an U.S. lender. If your bank in Brazil offers some alternative, ask it directly and request the terms in writing.
- Does the lender ask for the declaration of assets held abroad?
- No: that is an obligation towards the Brazilian authorities, separate from the lender's file. What must be declared and when is a question for an accountant in Brazil.
- Can you buy in cash and finance later?
- Some buyers do. The terms are set by each lender, so it is worth asking before closing rather than after.
Where to check it
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — borrower rights and how to compare mortgage offers
- Florida DBPR — whether a broker, appraiser or contractor holds a current licence
- Internal Revenue Service — the non-resident owner's federal tax obligations
- City of Miami — the rules of the municipality Brickell Key belongs to
Official bodies. Specific figures are requested there, not copied from a listing.
Updated 2026-11-06
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