Property for Sale France | Real Estate for Sale France - Sotheby's International Realty France (2024)

FAQs

What is the best website to find property in France? ›

There are no restrictions for foreign investors buying a house in France, even non-residents. All investors need is a French bank account and a valid ID. Besides your deposit, you can also expect to pay notaire's fees.

The French property market has remained stable, thanks to the continuous demand from both domestic and international buyers. However, non-cash buyers have found it challenging to enter the market due to high interest rates and unfavourable borrowing conditions.

Early signs in 2024 have so far confirmed that prices are falling. Indeed, they started falling in Paris last year, however the trend has since spread throughout the country, with prices dropping below the rate of year-on-year inflation everywhere, according to notaire data from January.

The relatively sparsely populated departments in Central France (Creuse, Vienne, Haute Vienne, Indre, Cher, Allier and Loiret) have traditionally been the cheapest places to buy property in France.

But in a country famous for complex bureaucracy, it is easy to make mistakes – especially if you have rose-tinted glasses. From unfamiliar taxes to septic tanks, succession law and now visas, it is a minefield for the nouvelles arrivées. Here, the experts pick 10 things to beware of when buying or relocating.

Depending on your purpose, you will be eligible for a job, study, family reunion, or other French visas. If you're a non-EU citizen and you plan to stay in France for longer than 90 days, you will likely require a Long Stay Visa to be eligible to apply for a temporary residence permit.

The most common visa for retirees is the Long-Stay Visa for Retirement (Visa de Long Séjour pour Retraite). To qualify, you must demonstrate stable financial means, such as a pension, savings, or investment income, to support yourself without working in France.

Once you have bought your dream home in France If you would like to relocate to France or visit for longer than 90 days you will require a visa, which is easy to obtain once you are the owner of a French property. You may wish to apply for a Long stay visa valid for residence (VLS-TS).

Americans can get a French mortgage under some circ*mstances, but it is extremely difficult. The 'Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act' (FATCA) is part of the US tax code and was introduced in 2014 to help counter tax evasion. French banks find the cost of complying with this to be prohibitive.

Do I need a French bank account to buy a house in France? ›

A French bank account is essential if you plan to buy a property or take out a mortgage in France. It's also useful for everyday living in France if you want to make your purchases in euros, even if you are just on holiday.

You may be happy to know France does not currently have restrictions against buying property as a foreigner. However, the process may be trickier for you than for French residents. You will have to deal with a lot of due diligence and paperwork. A French property lawyer can assist with this.

Supply V Demand

In Normandy there are enough houses to meet demand (unlike the South East of England) for the amount of people and surface area. We cannot say the same for the larger French cities eg Paris, Bordeaux, Rennes etc and these will come at a premium, much as you would expect in any major city the world.

France is about 1.5 times bigger than Germany but with a population 20% smaller. In effect, it has a larger rural area with less people to populate it. And as more and more people relocate to cities, more houses are being added to the market—often at bargain prices.

The study found that over the past few decades, the main driver for an increase in total unoccupied homes has been an increase in the proportion of second homes. Between 1975 and 2020, vacant properties went up by two percentage points, while the proportion of second homes rose by six percentage points.

http://Seloger.com. There's no exact equivalent to Zillow because there's no MLS (multiple listing service) in France.

Finding a property in France. You can pick up local property magazines or visit local realtors (agents immobiliers) to find properties for sale. However, some people rent and sell properties without going through agencies (a process known as particulier à particulier) – these offers are available on the pap.fr website.

Here are the most important French real estate websites: LeBonCoin (160 million overall – general classifieds – probably 50 million for real estate) SeLoger.com (14 million) Logic-Immo.com (10 million)