Cheap French Property

Who isn’t looking for cheap French property? Whether it’s a rural retreat for your retirement, a second home for your holidays or a relocation to start a new life abroad, France has bargains galore. And if you’re a first-time buyer priced out of the UK market then a cheap French property could actually be your first rung on the property ladder.

As a general rule of thumb the further north and the further inland you go, the more you get for your money – there are exceptions of course, Paris springs to mind. Within these parameters we can say that the further you are from an airport, road and rail infrastructure and amenities the more house prices drop away. Together with location, the other key word is compromise: it might be the perfect house but without a garden or on the side of a busy road; or the location might be perfect but the house needs major renovation work. With cheap French property there will usually be some aspect which isn’t ideal so you should be prepared to compromise.

If you like ‘remote’ then ‘La France Profonde’ (deepest France) offers the best chance of finding cheap French property. Here, our agents can still find real bargains hidden up lanes and down tracks - so make contact with them and keep the communication channels open.

Happy hunting grounds for cheap French property are usually Centre (especially Indre and Cher), Limousin, Auvergne and Burgundy (especially Nièvre). Have your finances in place before you start looking, a real bargain will be snapped up quickly so make sure you’re in a postion to move - the property will only be taken off the market when you have signed the contract and paid your deposit.

If you’re on a tight budget then don’t forget that you also have estate agency and notaire’s fees to pay. Usually the estate agent’s fees are included in the advertised price but make sure before you make an offer. For an approximate calculation of your notaire’s fees use the French Property Centre Notaire’s Fees Calculator.

Buying a renovation project will allow you to buy a property with potential at a knock down price and add value when time and means allow. But make sure you insert a ‘condition suspensive’ (get-out clause) into the compomis de vente (preliminary sales agreement) making your purchase conditional on getting a positive ‘certificate d’urbanisme’ (outline planning permission) for the works you want to do. This means you will be refunded your deposit (typically 10%) should you be refused permission for the renovation work.