Refund of Social Charges for Non-Residents?
If you sold your holiday home in France you may qualify for a refund of any social contributions levied, but you would need to act quickly.
estate agents
Deducting the Furniture to Reduce Buying Fees in France
A private seller has suggested that one way to reduce buying fees is to declare part of the price of the property as an amount to buy the furniture. Is this legal?
Home exchange: The secret perk of owning a house in France
Staying in a real home on your holiday through a home exchange is so much nicer and more authentic than staying in a hotel. Your French property is the doorway to a myriad new experiences.
Audierne, Brittany – How We Forgot Paradise
Prepare to suspend your disbelief for the time it takes to read this tale. Even I feel it has the gloss of fiction to it, reading it back. In begins with my own love affair with France. Autumn school exchanges…
End of tax exemption for auto-entrepreneurs – CFE
The exemption from paying CFE (Cotisation Financière des Entreprises) for auto-entrepreneurs a relief to the small business owners under the auto-entrepreneur self-employment status is becoming extinct.
Ten questions to ask when viewing a property in France
The moment of truth when you are looking to buy a home is the actual visit to the sites selected on your shortlist. Make sure to ask the right questions.
Managing Expectations: The Planning Application in France
Two scenarios to avoid. Seeking advice and guidance at an early stage of the planning application can reduce delays and cost in the renovation process.
My Favourite Time of Year: The Appeal of L’arrière Saison in France
Just after the tail-end of the summer holidays –once tourists have packed up their parasols and children are back in school– there is a magical time when nature seems in perfect stasis. It’s the shoulder season in France, and my…
PURCHASING A PROPERTY IN FRANCE: THE BUYER’S GUIDE
Welcome to the FrenchEntrée guide to buying a house in France. In this zone you’ll find everything you need in order to buy a French house, right from the first viewings to the actual move. FrenchEntrée also has a dedicated property team to…
Understanding the French Legal System: Civil Vs Common Law
Unlike the French legal system, the English framework is in general terms, based on jurisprudence or case law. The English legal system of common law is the basis of the legal structure of many English speaking countries from England to…
All about the money. Who, what and when?
Of interest to both buyers and sellers. Legal experts from Heslop & Platt detail how money changes hands in a property transaction.
Buying Rural or Urban, Don’t Forget the FX Factor
Whether you’re bound for the bustling boulevards of Paris or a sleepy provincial village planning your foreign exchange requirements can make the move much easier and leave you much better off. When the British think of living in France we…
Film review: Journal de France
Journal de France Director: Raymond Depardon, Claudine Nougaret Cert: 12A Running time: 100 mins Raymond Depardon is one of France’s most esteemed photographers and latterly a filmmaker of note. After starting his career as a photojournalist in the early 1960s,…
Loi ALUR Complicates Apartment Sales in France
The new law that came into effect on March 24, the loi ALUR (Accès au Logement et à un Urbanisme Rénové) has added new steps to the contract…
Top Reasons Why People Pull the Plug on Their Property Dream
What gives perfectly motivated buyers cold feet at the eleventh hour? We spoke to our experienced property experts and gathered data from clients …
10 tips: selling your French property
If this is the year to sell your French property, here are some top tips to help you which we have collated from estate agents and property experts across France…
The Role of the Notaire in France
The Notaire in France is involed in most of the important moments in life and ensures that all the proceedings comply with french law. …
Tips to Sell Your French Home Faster
What is the best approach if you’re planning to put your house on the market, or if it has lingered on the market for a while? Three ways savvy sellers can make their property stand out from the competition.
The emotional impact of moving to France
Psychologist Elaine Douglas looks at the issues of re-locating, from what to do before you leave to the issues of living in a new country, in particular the impact on relationships and family.
The Cost of Buying a Property in France
When buying a property in France it is easy to get overwhelmed by the various costs involved. It can also be difficult to define the exact costs of an individual service, and furthermore, to know what you should pay for each service. This article endeavours to breakdown the various costs involved in buying a property and give the average prices.
Case Study: Mr Dunlop’s Cross-border Inheritance – Part 1
So you think your international affairs are complicated?Part 1 in series of real life foreign inheritance stories from international succession and probate specialist Dan Harris of Stone King.
Diagnostic Surveys
The role that Diagnostic surveys play in the purchase of a house in France is very different from what you may be used to.
Insider Knowledge: Top Tips for French Property Buyers
Here are some key things to keep in mind, collated from estate agents and property experts across France…
Six Steps to Buying a House in France
Keep it simple with our very quick overview of the steps you need to go through to buy a house in France.
French Property Buyers Glossary
Image not found.Learning French is one thing but learning French property purchasing and building language is a whole new adventure for would-be buyers and restorers. Here are some words and terms to get you started.
New homes planned in historic lakeside town
Plans to build state-of-the-art new homes in a majestic French Alpine location which has been inhabited for more than 5,000 years.
5 Questions: The Brubackers. A renovation project in the Dordogne.
Perched on the cliffside village of Beynac-et-Cazenac, Aquitaine, “La Maisonnette” sits quietly elbow to elbow with the chateau commanding a view of the Dordogne river and the surrounding countryside. Ben and Stephanie Brubaker tells us about the road that took…
5 Questions: investing in the south of France, a guest post by Rebecca Russell
In a recent conversation with an Australian couple who bought an investment apartment in Nice, Rebecca Russell asked them 5 questions:
We run a gite business in Provence
David and Karen Taylor live in Saint Saturnin Les Apt in Provence, where they run a gite business and are lucky enough to have their own olive grove. Here they speak to FrenchEntrée about why they left the UK to start afresh in France.
Steep Rental Prices in Paris… 330 Euros a Month for a 1.5m2 Closet?
This Paris landlord gives “out of the closet” a whole new meaning. The minimum allowable area for an apartment to be considered habitable in Paris is nine square meters.
From Texas to the Dordogne • Jeff and Liz find a home
Jeff and Liz were dismayed to be shown a house that was different from their specifications, not in the small hamlet they had envisioned, not stone construction, and was very formal in style. It was also substantially over budget. In short, it was perfect.
A stylish cottage renovation in the Dordogne
“Renovating and owning a house in France has been an incredible adventure that allowed us to feel like we’re a small part of a village and opened up a whole new way to experience France.”
What and Where to Buy in Brittany
As always, Brittany is popular whatever the economic climate. Well-informed buyers can find greater choice and better value.
Looking to buy a vineyard in France?
With more than 123,000 hectares, the Bordeaux vineyards are the largest vine region in the world. Amongst the 10,000 châteaux dotted around this area, you can find vineyards which produce some of the most renowned wines in the world.
The Basics of French Property Renovation
Stephen Davies offer an insight into the basics of renovating in France, from the pitfalls to the kinds of property that are currently available to take on as a renovation project
Make the Most of the Sun and Reduce Your Energy Bills Permanently
In France the sun provides much more energy than we can ever hope to harness. However, technology now allows us to capture this free energy to heat hot water and to heat our homes. Make the most of the sun and reduce your energy bills permanently.
Why Overseas Buyers Are Choosing New Build Property in France
It’s a cliché, but like many clichés it contains an element of truth; the French in general really do prefer to buy new properties rather than older ones. Across France, in cities, towns and tiny villages, new homes are being…
Discover the Dream-like Alpilles Villages
The Alpilles never cease to enthrall, no matter how many times you navigate the meandering little roads that connect the dreamlike unspoilt villages scattered throughout this protected nature reserve.
My dress agency in Poitou-Charentes
In the three years since Terry Warren opened Je Ne Sais Quoi in La Rochefoucauld, she has seen everything from old knickers to vintage Chanel come through the doors of her dress agency. FrenchEntrée asks her how she – and her two teenage children – came to be in the Charente and what she hopes to achieve with the business.
Renovation grants
If you’ve bought a French property in need of renovation, then it may be worth contacting the local mairie to find out if you are eligible for a grant to help cover the costs.
Rip-it Encore: a British band abroad
Kent Terry from Nutley in England (45) and Jake Watt from Dunbar in Scotland (31) with Tilda the Taxi are Rip-it Encore, a band based near Pézenas (Herault) that play bars, restaurants, weddings, parties and other events.
So You Can’t Pay Your French Mortgage
There is an underlying expectation in the UK that banks should show consideration for borrowers who find themselves in difficulty and should treat them gently. However, that’s not how it is seen in France. The mortgage deed entitles the bank to repossess if the loan is not repaid.
Home Inspection Reports and the Law
When selling (or letting) properties there are a number of reports that must be available to a prospective purchaser (or tenant) before they enter into a binding commitment. Edward Coxall provides a summary of some recent changes in property law including home inspection reports.
Real-life Story: Buying in Sanary-sur-Mer
Sue Aitken owns a flat in Sanary-sur-Mer, a town in Provence that she discovered as a student. Here Sue tells FrenchEntrée how the town has managed to retain its charm over the years and why she decided to buy the first property she saw.
‘Nice stole our hearts!’
Rebecca Russell, a property finder on the French Riviera, talks to an Australian couple about why they decided to invest in an apartment in Nice.
Financial services in France
The financial services industry is organised very differently in France to the UK. Separate rules and regulations exist for the three main industries offering financial products.
Leaving Minnesota for the Lot et Garonne
When Katie and her husband moved from the US to France, they bought a vineyard in the Vendée before taking on a farmhouse in Lot et Garonne. Here she tells FrenchEntrée about their journey so far and the cookery website that is keeping her busy.
Moving to France as a family
In February 2011 Katie and her husband Greg moved from Melbourne in Australia to Eymet in the Dordogne with their three children and two dogs in tow. Here she tells FrenchEntree what prompted the move and how the family is getting on so far.
Running a gite in Brittany
Jill Harrison runs a gîte business in Brittany. Having spent the past 10 years in France, she considers how life has changed since she left the UK behind for a farmhouse in France and offers an insight into what it takes to be in business.
The Midi-Pyrénées Is Ideally Suited to Eco-living
Ten years ago, eco-friendly living would have been considered slightly unconventional. Nowadays, almost everyone is contemplating some form of environmentally friendly home improvement says Nadia Jordan, who lives in the Midi-Pyrénées and thinks it ideally suited to eco-living.
