Yes. Buyers living abroad can finance a flat in Montpellier with a French mortgage, commonly at 70–80% for strong files from the UK, Ireland, the EU or Switzerland and 50–70% for others. Two features of the city shape the file: a large student population under rent control, which caps the rent a bank can count, and new districts where flats are sold off-plan, with staged payments and lower purchase costs.
Montpellier prices and what people buy
The PAP price observatory put the average price in Montpellier at €3,440 per m² in March 2026. In the old centre, around the Comédie and the Écusson, flats averaged about €3,833. In Port Marianne, the district built along the Lez towards the sea, newer flats were generally above €4,600.
Two kinds of purchase raise specific questions here: a small flat to let, often to students, and a new apartment bought off-plan. Both lead to mid-sized loans, and a studio can fall under a bank's minimum for non-residents, commonly €100,000–250,000.
Student lets under rent control
The University of Montpellier had about 52,000 students and Paul-Valéry University about 21,800, according to the Métropole's magazine at the end of 2024, which also counted 10,000 international students in the city.
Rent control has applied in Montpellier since 1 July 2022, to furnished and unfurnished main-residence leases and to the bail mobilité, a furnished lease of one to ten months. Each year the prefect sets reference rents by zone, number of rooms, age of the building and whether the flat is furnished. A bank counts verified rent within that cap, commonly at around 70%. The national experiment behind it was due to end in November 2026, and in October 2026 Parliament was examining a two-year extension.
Buying off-plan in Port Marianne and the new districts
New apartments in Port Marianne and the city's other new districts are usually sold off-plan (VEFA, sale before completion). You pay in stages as the building rises, and the bank releases the loan at each stage. During construction you usually pay only interest on the sums released, and where capital repayment is deferred the maximum term rises from 25 to 27 years.
The law limits how much the developer can call before each stage is reached: no more than 35% of the price once the foundations are finished, 70% once the building is weathertight and 95% on completion, with the balance due when you take the keys. The developer must also hold a completion guarantee (garantie financière d'achèvement), which the bank and the notaire will check.
Purchase costs on a new build are around 2–3% of the price, against 7–8.5% on an existing home, which lowers the cash you need. Our new-build guide covers the stages, the guarantees and the timetable.
Tourist lets and buying through an SCI
Letting a second home in Montpellier to tourists needs a change-of-use authorisation. An individual owning in their own name can obtain a personal authorisation without compensation, limited to one home per household in the commune, and only a capped number is granted in the zone under quota. If you own through a company such as an SCI, you need a permanent authorisation with compensation, by converting a shop or office into housing, a market the city says is not yet active locally.
The choice of structure therefore affects how you can use the flat. Montpellier also applies the maximum 60% surcharge on the council tax for second homes, which falls on a flat you keep for your own use rather than one let to a tenant on a long lease.
Next steps in Montpellier
In the eligibility check, say whether you are buying an existing flat or off-plan, and whether you will let it. We will introduce you to one English-speaking broker who places files in the Hérault, and matching is free. French Notaires in Montpellier can connect you with an English-speaking notaire, and our guides by region cover other parts of France. The mortgage calculator compares the cash needed for an existing flat and a new one.
Your purchase deed is signed before a notaire. French Notaires matches English speakers with a bilingual notaire nearby, free of charge: Notaires in Montpellier.
Questions
Can I get a buy-to-let mortgage for a student flat in Montpellier?
Yes. Banks count verified rent from a lease, commonly at around 70%, but the rent must respect Montpellier's rent cap and a small loan can fall under a lender's minimum.
Does rent control apply to furnished flats in Montpellier?
Yes. Since 1 July 2022 it has covered furnished and unfurnished main-residence leases, including the bail mobilité.
Can a non-resident buy an off-plan apartment in Montpellier with a mortgage?
Yes. The bank releases the loan in stages as construction progresses, purchase costs are around 2–3% and the term can reach 27 years when capital repayment is deferred.
Can my SCI let a Montpellier flat to tourists?
Only with a permanent change-of-use authorisation backed by compensation, which means converting a commercial space into housing. Individuals owning in their own name can obtain a personal authorisation without compensation for one home.