Yes. French banks lend to buyers living abroad for Paris apartments, and the depth of the resale market tends to make them comfortable with the security. Strong files from the UK, Ireland, the EU or Switzerland are commonly financed at 70–80% of the price and residents elsewhere at 50–70%, with purchase costs of 7–8.5% paid from your own funds. What sets Paris apart is the building and the letting rules: co-ownership charges and voted works belong in your budget, and holiday-let income is not counted because tourist lets of a second home need an authorisation that is rarely granted.
How banks look at a mortgage in Paris
A mortgage in Paris is almost always a loan on an apartment: a lot in a copropriété, often in a Haussmann-era or older building. Lenders like this kind of security because there is a deep resale market for it, and a valuer can compare the price with recent sales in the same street.
For prestige apartments above roughly €1 million, private banks become an option. They lend in exchange for assets you place with them and can offer interest-only or variable-rate structures that retail banks rarely do.
The Carrez surface and co-ownership charges
The seller must state the private floor area of the lot, measured under the loi Carrez. It leaves out cellars, parking spaces and low-ceilinged parts, so it can be smaller than the figure in the advert. Paris prices are compared per square metre, and the Carrez area is the one a bank's valuer commonly relies on.
Co-ownership charges belong in your budget from the start. Ask for the recent charges and the minutes of the last general meetings, which show works already voted on the roof, facade or lift. The bank reads them too, since a large call for works soon after completion weighs on what you can repay.
Why holiday-let income does not count in Paris
Renting a second home in Paris to tourists for short stays requires a change-of-use authorisation (changement d'usage) from the city. It is rarely obtained, so banks will not count holiday-let income on a Paris flat, however promising the projection looks.
Long-term rent is treated differently. Rent from a furnished or unfurnished lease is commonly counted at around 70% when the bank can verify it, from an existing tenancy or a letting agent's estimate. Paris also applies rent control (encadrement des loyers), so the projected rent has to respect the cap for the flat.
Larger loans, insurance and wealth tax
Paris loans are often large. A borrower insured for more than €200,000, or whose loan ends after their 60th birthday, can expect a medical questionnaire. Insurance counts in the 35% repayment ceiling and in the all-in rate, which must stay under the legal cap: 5.40% this quarter for loans of 20 years or more.
If your French property is worth more than €1.3 million net, the wealth tax on property (IFI) applies. Debt taken out to buy it can reduce the taxable value, within limits. French Tax Online can check your position before you sign.
Next steps for a Paris purchase
Send us your situation through the eligibility check and we will introduce you to one English-speaking broker who places Paris files. Matching is free. Before you sign the compromis, an English-speaking notaire from French Notaires in Paris can review the co-ownership documents and the loan condition. To test a repayment against your income, use the mortgage calculator.
Your purchase deed is signed before a notaire. French Notaires matches English speakers with a bilingual notaire nearby, free of charge: Notaires in Paris.
Questions
Will a French bank count holiday-let income on a Paris apartment?
Generally no. Letting a second home in Paris to tourists needs a change-of-use authorisation that is rarely obtained, so banks rely on long-term rent they can verify, often counted at around 70%.
What is the Carrez surface?
It is the private floor area of an apartment in a co-ownership building, measured under the loi Carrez and stated in the sale contract. It excludes cellars, parking spaces and low-ceilinged parts, and valuers commonly price Paris flats on it.
Do co-ownership charges affect how much I can borrow?
Banks look at them alongside the repayment when judging whether the purchase is affordable. Works already voted by the co-owners can weigh more than the annual charges, so send the general meeting minutes with your file.