British buyers pile in as French mortgage rates hit record lows

Leggett Immobilier report record sales, despite Brexit fears, with much of the demand being stimulated by the lowest mortgage rates ever seen in France.

Fixed rate French mortgages are now available from as little as 1.70 % with 80 % loan to value on a 20 year term. These rates are available to most non residents and more than offset the recent changes in exchange rate.

As an example : Based on the rates above, with a purchase price of €200,000 and a deposit of €50,000 the monthly repayment would be just €737.69.

Trevor Leggett, Chairman of Leggett immobilier, comments :

“With the pound bouncing up and down like a yo-yo, a huge number of our clients are now taking advantage of the ridiculously low borrowing rate. If you are looking for an investment then property in Paris, the Alps or Paca can easily provide a 3-4 % yield, with 7-8 % yield available in some provincial towns. Add in the ability to borrow at well under 2 % and we’re seeing an unprecedented opportunity – even clients looking for a holiday home are piling in. Prices hit rock bottom 12 months ago and are only going one way for the foreseeable future.

We sold 1200 properties last year and are on target to sell even more in 2016. The EU referendum vote had a marginal effect on the volume of demand from the UK but the requests we are receiving are more serious, it’s mainly the tyre kickers who have dropped off. In the last three months alone we’ve had 14,384 enquiries from the UK with more of our buyers switching from paying cash to taking out a mortgage.

Borrowing in France is pretty straightforward and our sales support team are happy to put clients in touch with major banks like BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole who have dedicated English speaking staff”.