For many years, the British dominated the market of buyers not residing in the second home in France, but the image has recently changed, largely due to what the latest Brexit purchase data shows.
The place spoke with Audrey Fauvette, business developer of CCF Mortgage in France, who supports working with international clients, to have an idea of the last image when it comes to British buyers.
Based on his investigation, which analyzed the latest data (2023) of the Noteires of France that included purchases of people with a fiscal residence that is not France (that is, not residents), the CCF mortgage in France found the three main regions.
These were: Nouvelle-Aquitaine (which represents 39 percent of the purchases of British properties, and stable compared to 2022), Occitania (15 percent of purchases, a slight increase of 14 percent in 2022) and Auvergne-Row2.
On the other hand, the transactions of the British decreased year after year by 30 percent in the Paca region (Provence-Alpes-Côte-D’Azur) by 2023, and decreased by 25 percent in the Auverne-Rhône-Alpes region.
“Historically, the southwest has been the prioritized area for the British,” Fauvette summarized, explaining that they analyzed the latest data of the notars of France (of 2023) based on the fiscal residence of non -residents.
Advertisement
“After that, he finds them buying properties throughout the country, but for different reasons.
“For example, in Normandy, historically this has been a location for a short -value purchase. People could buy a little pied- ° Near the crossing of the channel to spend on weekends. They could spend about € 100,000 to € 150,000.
“Otherwise, the British opt for the second houses in the Alps. These are common chalets for skiing, so the investment would be greater, around € 700,000.
“Like other nationalities, it also has British purchasing properties in southern France and throughout the Riviera, for opinions, climate and other benefits that Peter Mayle speaks in his books,” Fauvette said.
Advertisement
In general, non -resident British spent € 303,300 on average in a second house in France.
Read more: Folder: What parts of France are more popular among the British buyers of the second home?
Brexit’s fall
In their market report by 2023, Fauvette and his team indicated that the number of transactions made by British had fallen by 20 percent year -on -year (2023 compared to 2022), and the purchase price that the British paid had also decreased by 28 percent.
“This continuous change in the market has been clear from Brexit. Before 2016, the main non -resident non -French buyers, but since 2016, the number of transactions has decreased consistently.
“Now we have seen the Belgians become the main buyers in the non -resident market.
“For the British, the decrease in purchases can be connected to Brexit and at the end of free movement in Europe. The need to have a residence permit has caused its administrative burns to be more complex, which leads to a decrease in British purchases of the second home,” Fauette explained.
Advertisement
He also highlighted other trends that have affected British decisions to buy second houses in France, such as exchange rates and trends in the French real estate market.
“In contrast to the Americans who saw the dollar strengthened in 2023, for the British, the pound weakened against the euro. It was not weak, but woke up,” Fauvette said.
Despite the fact that the pound has not dropped below parity, when the pound exchange rate falls to euros, this may have an impact on the purchasing power of the British in France.
Fauvette also observed trends in the French real estate market that led to stagnation in property purchases in 2023.
Specifically, French interest rates rose in 2023. In November 2023, average interest rates for 20 -year -old mortgages increased to 4.3 percent, a large jump from February 2022, when rates were as low as 1.1 percent.
Advertisement
He also noted that the prices of the French properties had remained high in 2023. “Many sellers had bought their property before the COVID-19 pandemic, and did not want to reduce their price to sell a lower value than they had bought.
“This led to tension in the real estate market in France due to Leghy’s negotiations between buyers and vendors, and this had an effect throughout the market, even in foreign buyers,” Fauvette said.
What could we expect in the future for the British?
While the British will still have to deal with the visa requirements, there are some factors that could make the real estate market more attractive to the possible British buyers of the second home.
As Fauvette mentioned, the exchange rate can play an important role in British decisions to buy second houses in France. However, as demonstrated by recent week, this can fluctuate.
As of February 2023, the British pound exchange rate to Euro was 1,1166, but in April 2025, it was 1,1517.
The French real estate market has also been collecting. “Interest rates tied in 2024, so we see what impact it has,” Fauvette said.
Experts expect rates cuts to help increase transactions in the French real estate market in 2025, taking out the previous stagnation market.
Advertisement
Preferences could also be changing. Some real estate agents have said that the fall in the purchases of the second house could be related to the fact that the most British may be interested in moving to France full -time, instead of just spending a few months a year here.
Joanna Leggett, Marketing Director at Leggett Immobilier, told the premises in a previous interview: “Where we used to have between 50 and 50 seconds of homes and main residences, it seems to be more like 75 percent to 25 percent for permanent houses.”
Read more: the British still buy in France despite the fall after Brexit in properties sales
Nuncaberness, according to the latest French imigration data, 10 percent of British Ferwer moved to France in 2024 that in 2023.
]
