Mortgages for buying in France, region by region
Lenders look at a Paris flat, an Alpine chalet and a Dordogne farmhouse in different ways. Choose the region you are buying in.
Buying somewhere else in France? Lyon, Occitanie, the Loire or the Atlantic coast: tell us where and we match you with a broker who places loans there.
Same French lending rules, different files
The 35% debt ceiling, the 25-year maximum term and the usury caps apply everywhere. What changes from one region to the next is how a bank reads the property and the plan behind it.
- The price. Banks compare the agreed price with recent sales nearby, which are public in France. A Paris flat, a Megève chalet and a Dordogne farmhouse are valued on very different evidence.
- The type of property. Ski apartments sold with a management lease, farmhouses with land and outbuildings, and houses with gîtes each raise their own questions for a lender.
- Rental plans. Since 20 May 2026, every furnished holiday let in France must be registered through a national online service, and the Le Meur law of November 2024 lets towns restrict them further. Check local rules before counting on rental income in your application.
- Running costs. Many towns where housing is scarce add a surcharge to the council tax on second homes. Your broker builds it into the budget the bank sees.
- The local lenders. Regional banks such as the Crédit Agricole and Caisse d'Epargne networks lend mostly in their own area, and some are more open to non-residents than others.
Prices, lenders and notaires, region by region
How non-residents get a mortgage in Paris
Paris flats are among the easiest homes for a French bank to value and resell. The detail sits in the Carrez surface, co-ownership charges and the tourist-let rules.
Read the guideA mortgage on the Côte d'Azur for buyers living abroad
Riviera prices often bring private banks, SCIs and wealth tax into the conversation. What that changes for financing a villa or a sea-view apartment.
Read the guideHow to buy a chalet in the French Alps with a mortgage
Chalets and ski apartments can be financed from abroad. Banks look closely at the resort, winter access, the building and any lease to an operator.
Read the guideBuying a house in Provence with a mortgage from abroad
Most foreign buyers in Provence want a stone house, often with a pool and some land. Each of those adds something to check before a French bank will lend.
Read the guideGetting a mortgage in Bordeaux from outside France
City apartments and stone townhouses in Bordeaux finance like any home. A property with vines is a different file, and the wine side needs a professional loan.
Read the guideBuying a house in the Dordogne or the Lot with a mortgage
Lower prices make the Dordogne and the Lot easier to buy into, and small loans harder to place. How to work with bank minimums, renovations and gîte income.
Read the guideHow to get a mortgage on the Basque coast from abroad
Demand on the Basque coast is strong and several towns restrict short-term lets. Have your financing reviewed before you offer, and plan it around your own income.
Read the guideA mortgage in Normandy or Brittany when you live abroad
From Deauville apartments to Breton stone cottages, prices in the northwest vary widely. Read the risk report on coastal homes and check loan minimums on smaller buys.
Read the guideBuying in a specific town
What foreign buyers look at there, what lenders check, and the notaire to call.
Buying an apartment in Nice with a French mortgage
Most buyers from abroad in Nice want an apartment. Banks lend on them readily, but letting one to tourists now needs a city authorisation that is capped each year.
Read the guideFinancing an apartment or villa in Cannes from abroad
Cannes prices run from town-centre flats to Croisette apartments at nearly twice the average. Who lends at each level, and what the flood map and letting plans change.
Read the guideA mortgage in Antibes or Juan-les-Pins from abroad
Antibes is three markets: old-town flats, seaside apartments in Juan-les-Pins and villas on the Cap. Each raises a different question for the bank.
Read the guide
Financing a villa in Saint-Tropez and the Gulf
Saint-Tropez prices put most villas beyond retail banks. How private banks lend there, what the Gulf villages change, and the wildfire rules for wooded plots.
Read the guideBuying in Aix-en-Provence with a French mortgage
Aix draws buyers to its old-town flats and country bastides, and parents to its university. What French banks look at for each kind of purchase.
Read the guideGetting a mortgage in Marseille as a non-resident
Prices in Marseille vary threefold between arrondissements, and old buildings vary even more. What that means for the valuation, the loan and holiday lets.
Read the guide
A mortgage in Lyon when you live outside France
Lyon is a city of homes and lettings more than holiday flats. What banks look at for a canut apartment, a buy-to-let under rent control or a move to the city.
Read the guideBuying in Toulouse with a French mortgage from abroad
Toulouse is the centre of French aerospace, and that shapes many files. How banks read an assignment, contractor income or a new French job, and what lower prices change.
Read the guideGetting a mortgage in Montpellier from abroad
Students and new districts shape many purchases in Montpellier. How banks count capped student rent, and how they finance a flat bought off-plan.
Read the guideBuying a chalet or apartment in Chamonix with a mortgage
Chamonix has stopped new second homes and licenses tourist lets. What that means for a bank financing a chalet or ski flat for a buyer living abroad.
Read the guideA mortgage in Annecy and around the lake
Annecy is part of Geneva's commuter belt, and many buyers earn in Swiss francs. How French banks treat franc income, and what the lake's letting rules change.
Read the guideBuying in Biarritz with a French mortgage
Biarritz prices average over €7,000 per m², and the town restricts holiday lets and new second homes. What banks look at before they lend.
Read the guideFound the area? Check what you can borrow there.
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