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Why buy with us?
  • Registered estate agent under French law with prior experience in property development
  • Specialist in new build French property with insider knowledge
  • Focus on South of France and in-depth local knowledge
  • Regular on-site visits
  • Based in South of France where you plan to buy
  • Bilingual independent and free purchasing help and after sales service
  • Careful selection of property portfolio thanks to former experience in development
  • A one-stop-service based in France: no need to ‘hand you over’ to someone else
 
advantages
of new  build
  • Peace of mind : financial guarantee of completion
  • Financial advantages : refundable deposit
  • Guaranteed quality : lower energy costs
  • A personalised home in a wide choice of properties : an extensive choice of property style, type and size
  • Financial advantages : lower notary fees
  • Guaranteed quality : easier to let property
  • Financial advantages : stage payments
  • Peace of mind : secure and regulated buying procedure
  • Peace of mind : a ready-to-move-in property
  • Financial advantages : low maintenance and running costs
  • A personalised home in a wide choice of properties
  • Financial advantages : reduced land taxes
  • Financial advantages : no estate agent fee
  • Financial advantages : better resale & letting potential
  • Financial advantages : no uncertain & extra costs of renovation
  • Guaranteed quality : modern comfort and safety in well-designed home
  • Peace of mind : no renovation hassle
  • Guaranteed quality : latest building regulations
 
 

Pros & cons of French leasebacks

The advantages of French leasebacks

  • French leaseback is ideal for working people who can spend but a few weeks in holidays per year but still want to draw a revenue from their French property without the hassle of doing the renting themselves.
  • French leaseback is ideal too for families with young to teenage children because leaseback resorts are often family oriented and offer activities dedicated to children.
  • Your French property is always maintained to high standards and ready to enjoy when you arrive for your holiday.
  • You can swap locations if you buy with a large enough management company and therefore discover many different French regions over time. With some management companies you can even switch from seaside to mountain.
  • You invest in a new build property with all the building guarantees attached to this type of purchase and all the financial advantages (reduced notary fees, stage payments) plus the VAT discount which is unique to leaseback. For more details on the advantages of any new build French property you can read the Advantages of new build French property section.

In short you should regard French leaseback as a pure investment with a potential for a limited use. Instead of investing your money on the Stock Exchange it is invested in brick and mortar, in a sought after French region. It might not yield the sale revenue as life insurance, shares etc… but at least you know on what your investment is backed up, you can assess yourself the risks and advantages. If the leaseback is well chosen there is no risk and the advantage is a realistic and steady rental income. A realistic rental income in any French property is around 4%, be it leaseback or traditional buy-to-let.

 

The counterparts to French leaseback advantages

  • The counterpart to French leaseback many advantages is that there is a certain rigidness. You can’t visit whenever and for how long as you wish. You can’t personalise your decor and leave any personal belongings. Some management companies though tend to have very refined French home style decors and give your French property the looks of a self-decorated home.
  • The investment is not as liquid as any property and there are certain restrictions if you want to resell. First because there is a commercial lease attached to your property. The management company is entitled by law, to keep the property for the duration of the lease (between 9 to 11 years). When the lease expires you can renew or not. Generally management companies renew which is good news because it means that they earn money and you too and also because it is a guarantee that your French property will be maintained to high standard for many more years. Nevertheless if you want to reclaim the property for your own full use you have to give at least one year notice. Another reason why the property is not as liquid as a traditional property is because leaseback is so specific and can’t be resold like a traditional property. Nevertheless, big management companies offer to resell for you since they have a huge pool of potential clients in their holiday makers.
  • The last constraint in this regard is that if you take back your property into personal use there won’t be any rent charged with VAT on your property. You then have to pay back the French tax administration a proportional part of the VAT refund you got at the time of purchase (for instance if you sell after 11 years you owe 9/20th of the VAT refund). This is also the case if you want to resell the property unless you sell it to another VAT-registered individual, in other words if the property goes on being a leaseback property subject to VAT.

This is why you should really consider leaseback French property as a pure investment but at a time of uncertainty its value is one of the safest because it is based on safe grounds.
 

Conseil immobilier européen SNPI

Member of Syndicat National des Professionnels Immobiliers

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