Press Release Summary = France offers a huge appeal for Britons looking to buy abroad, be they prospective residents or buy-to-let investors. Whether it\'s the proximity to Britain, the lifestyle, food and wine, the rural scenery, alpine ski resorts or sunshine and beaches of the Cote D\'Azur, the country offers a wide variety of options and appeal for many tastes and with it different investment opportunities.
Press Release Body = France offers a huge appeal for Britons looking to buy abroad, be they prospective residents or buy-to-let investors. Whether it\'s the proximity to Britain, the lifestyle, food and wine, the rural scenery, alpine ski resorts or sunshine and beaches of the Cote D\'Azur, the country offers a wide variety of options and appeal for many tastes and with it different investment opportunities.
Small wonder, therefore, that France, alongside Spain, leads the way for UK investors buying property in Europe. Prospects may get even better with the determination of new president Nicolas Sarkozy to expand home ownership in the country.
Yet to make the most of these opportunities, experts are advising UK investors to watch out for a couple of pitfalls.
The first of these is language. Traditionally, of course, the British are believed to expect everyone else should speak their language and the same is said to be true about the French. But away from the stereotypes (however accurate, or otherwise, they may be) the fact is that not being able to speak French can leave some investors at a disadvantage, according to Elie Barbeau, office manager for the Association Integration Kreizh Breizh, an organisation which helps ex-pats moving to Brittany to integrate with the local community.
Ms Barbeau said that when it came to dealing with property companies in France, many smaller ones were in the habit of acting unscrupulously by exploiting the language barrier to increase their returns: \"You have got property companies which are not very fair with foreigners, because their aim is to make [profits].\"
While she emphasised that this was not true of the \"serious\" companies, which were larger and employed English speaking intermediaries because they \"realise that expats are very \'interesting\', financially speaking\", Ms Barbeau nonetheless said language skills would be highly beneficial to investors.
Language is not the only issue. Writing in Homes Worldwide, legal expert Barbara Heslop advised that the law in France is different when it comes to surveying properties before a sale to check everything is fine with the property. She said that unlike in Britain, \"there is no legal requirement in France for the equivalent of what we in the UK know as a home buyers survey or a full structural survey\".
She added that the kinds of surveys that were legally required for the seller to carry out were more limited and would not uncover serious roof or wall problems, while only a statement of \"natural or technological risk factors\" was required for new build properties.
Thus, stated Ms Heslop, buyers should ensure an independent structural survey is carried out before buying.
France is not a country with a reputation for property problems. However, those heeding the advice about how to deal with the differences in law and language that will distinguish many countries from each other will be best placed to avoid the potential pitfalls that do exist, enabling them to reap the many benefits of overseas property investment.
2022
