Property with Equestrian Potential in France

On these pages we include properties which are already equipped with equestrian facilities and those which our agents feel could be converted to provide everything you might need for your horses.

Your ideal equestrian property might be a horse-heaven where you can lie in bed and look out over your horses from your master bedroom; where you can ride out over “green tracks” and hack to your heart’s content without crossing a metalled road; and where you are self-sufficient in oats, straw and hay from your EC subsidised arable land ! You might have more modest aspirations and simply want to rent a nearby field from a local farmer – if so, you can even ask the notaire to make your purchase conditonal on your finding suitable land!

True horse-lovers put their animals first and we constantly hear the refrain “the house doesn’t matter so long as the horses are alright”. So what do you need? The minimum is an acre (4,000m2) for your first horse and half an acre for every subsequent horse. This would be enough for keeping the horses but not enough for leaving them out to grass all the time – you would need to supplement their feed. Of course, if you intend building an equestrian centre with a sand school then you need to buy property with a larger acreage.

Unless the property comes with purpose built stables, a barn would be the perfect space as it could easily be converted into lease boxes, a feed area, a tack area and storage for hay. Ideally there will be a spring-fed lake or pond for water, or a well – ideal for equestrian properties.

Your horses will need to have French passports in addition to their breed society passports; they will also need to be vaccinated against flu, which is optional in England.

* You should be aware that notaires are obliged by law to notify SAFER (La Société d’Aménagement Foncier et d’Établissement Rural) of the sale of any land over 5,000m2 or the sale of any agricultural buildings. If SAFER considers that the land or building is essential to the survival of a local farming concern then it has two months to pre-empt the sale and offer it to that local farmer instead. In most instances this is a mere formality, but should SAFER exercise its right then you are automatically protected by the Compromis de Vente which will ensure that your deposit is returned.