Buying a house in France

[Trish444]

Hi
I am on the verge of selling my house in the UK and buying a small flat for home visits and to keep myself on the UK property ladder and buying a house in the Dordogne to spend 8/10 months of the year.
I would be grateful for any warnings or advice. I spent four months near Bergerac last year and loved it but noticed it was dead when I arrived for a couple of weeks.
France is where I want to be but any help re medical insurance or taxes, lifestyle in winter and whether we would be better advised to rent would all help. Thank you .

Oh my, Not one positive or encouraging post. I am sure there are difficulties and the grass is not greener but if OP wants to move I don’t see why it has to be that bad.

Sorry Op I have no idea about France, but I come from another EU country and I would say, do your research, go in slowly, be realistic and do things in small steps. But mainly, go for it and enjoy!

I love the Italian countryside and the sun and the dolce vita but I need other things in my daily life. I coyld not cope there ft. At least not now. Maybe when older?

Good luck.

Also, And I may be naive, I cannot see Brexit affecting moving to this extend.

Extent, even

The posts might come across as discouraging to someone outside of France but to me they come across as realistic.

I agree clearsommespace. Very easy to be seduced by France but life as an expat can be very challenging. And, I also think Brexit could have a big effect on living here.

The OP has asked for warnings or advice and that’s what she is getting. France is great - but anyone who thinks it is just like England except they speak French and with cheaper houses is in for a shock. Think very hard before selling up to make the move not least because the French property market is very different to that of the U.K. unless you are thinking of buying in Paris. You might be able pick up what looks like a bargain in in a remoter part of France, spend some cash chi-chi-ing it up and have a great house to live in, but don’t expect a huge return on your investment if you decide to sell up and move on/back. Rural France can be very bleak - as you have already discovered - that’s why you would be best advised to rent for a year before buying to determine whether you actually like the area you have chosen. Also, having relatives who speak good French is not the same as speaking French yourself and I think you do need to speak the language to live here. What is it you hate so much about living in the U.K.? I predict that if you move to France there will still be things you hate, they will just be different things.

I've lived here for all my adult life. Unless you are in the system via your job it is more complicated. And my god it's a slow moving bureaucracy. We are fully part of the healthcare system but out top up healthcare is way more than 50€ a month.

You uk tax is a tax credit for your taxes in France. You are taxed on your global revenue. Dividend income is taxed st 38%. Taxes all added together our massive in France.

Top up health insurance isn't cheap - mine costs a total of 250€ a month, via my employer! (For a gold plated scheme, admittedly).

But top-up insurance presupposes a right to be in the French state health scheme, and to do that you need to be legally resident in France (and that means you will need to be a French tax payer).

Expect it to be harder than before for non-workers to get into the system. There is already abundant anecdotal evidence of the French authorities starting to look much harder at the entitlements of British immigrants.

No one on here is being negative about the idea of living in France, since some of us actually do live here. But what the OP is proposing is daft in view of Brexit, and probably illegal (not least the idea that she can use the FR health system unhindered while in France and the NHS while in the UK - it doesn't work like that - as à FR resident I have no automatic right to any NHS treatment except for emergency care using my EHIC card).

Re. Escape to the Chateau (of which I am a huge fan) - noone should be fooled into thinking that is anything other than great TV. He has various other jobs presenting other TV shows and presumably a fat fee from Channel 4. Dick and Angel are an incredibly talented pair of individual, but that Chateau is clearly a money pit - huge parts of it (that we never see) no doubt remain unrenovated and what has been renovated has certainly not been achieved with the proceeds of hosting a few weddings. I think the reality is more apparent on Escape to the Chateau DIY (yes I really am hooked) where a more ordinary couple are attempting the same in a Chateau they are renting and another couple are looking for a place to buy (note one of the properties they view has been done up by an English guy who is now trying to off-load it). Dick and Angel are Dick and Angel - that's what Escape to the Chateau is really about. Great TV, but not something that is achievable in RL for most people.

Also, And I may be naive, I cannot see Brexit affecting moving to this extend. Why can you not see it? EU nationals have the right to come and work in France. They have reciprocal health care agreements so the first 2 years are covered and you just need top up insurance. You have the right to residency. None of this is true for non EU nationals. British nationals already in France are trying to get either a residency permit or French nationality before its too late . When it comes to moving to France Brexit changes everything.

I believe if you own a property in UK , but spend time in France. You will still need to pay full council tax. If it is a flat you will need to pay the service charges too and utilities (some utilities have a monthly standing charge even if you don't use the service but still want it connected). You could rent your flat out when you are in France, but you may need to pay tax, check HMRC website. I would suggest checking all costs first, before making a commitment

Renting in France is also very different to renting in the UK.
In France the tenants have to pay for property upkeep and repairs unlike the UK where the landlord is responsible.

@catslife what do you mean by that? Not being goady, just not sure. I've rented out a lot of property in France and as the owner always been responsible for upkeep.

You are completely naive to not be concerned about health care and you haven't even mentioned Brexit.

My DH is not salaried but pays health care contributions (massive sums) under a different scheme and we are still fighting to get a carte vitale two years later. We are now having to employ a lawyer to deal with its it in our behalf after endless meetings with local authorities where various well meaning people tell us they have no clue.

Building work is twice as expensive as the U.K. and takes three times as long. It took us two years just to sort out building permits. The TV programmes are wildly misleading.

Not sure that's true about tenants paying for property upkeep and repairs. We rented for 2 years and the landlord was responsible for everything. We even used to get rent back if they'd had a good year. It was also really cheap compared to UK and accommodation so much nicer.

Not true about tenants being responsible for upkeep.

And if landlords fail to maintain property tenants can get reduced rents or even a payment from the landlord.....

Just to repeat. FRANCE is a huge country and away from the cities people are few on the ground. Add a seasonal holiday element and Bleak is definitely the word.
I am very familiar with the South of France and away from Nice and Canne In the winter it is empty!
However I am a Towny and although I like visiting the countryside I could never live in it.

Brexit will creat huge changes many of which we can only imagine, however If you are resident in France at the end of December 2020 (or end of March next year 2019 if the transition agreement is not signed) your rights to remain in FRANCE will (should) be secure.
I live in Luxembourg (City) so can not comment on health care in FRANCE. However getting into any system is difficult and France is famous for its bureaucracy!
Here are some links for EU social security and also the ETIAS which may be of help.
Good luck.
HEALTH & SOCIAL SECURITY
These links may be of use. Not sure how many of the benefits will be available after Brexit and the transition period which ends 31st December 2020.
europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/health/when-living-abroad/health-insurance-cover/index_en.htm
—
ec.europa.eu/social/BlobServlet?docId=6834&langId=en
—
europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/work/social-security-forms/index_en.htm

This blog by a professor of EU law may help as well.
I understand it to mean EHIC and S1 arrangements will continue to the end of the transition agreement (End Dec 2020)
eulawanalysis.blogspot.lu/2018/03/the-implications-of-revised-european.html
This is a blog from the London School of economics.
blogs.lse.ac.uk/brexit/2018/04/24/what-will-happen-to-health-and-social-care-for-british-pensioners-living-in-the-eu27/
——————————-
TRAVEL INTO THE EU SCHENGEN ZONE
ETIAS similar to the USA ESTA is due to be introduced in 2020.
Britains would not have needed an ETIAS to visit the Schengen zone while Britain was in the EU.
ETIAS just one more negative for leaving the EU.
ec.europa.eu/home-affairs/sites/homeaffairs/files/what-we-do/policies/european-agenda-security/fact-sheets/docs/20161116/factsheet_-_etias_en.pdf
AND
www.etiaseurope.eu
This happened on 25th April 2018
www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2018/04/25/european-travel-information-and-authorisation-system-etias-council-confirms-agreement-with-european-parliament/
By the time ETIAS is introduced I imagine the British Home Office will have its own system up and running monitoring/registering EU citizens entering Britain.

At least take comfort from the fact you voted for Remain.