10 reasons to choose France as your second home
French Lifestyle
Activities in France
Ease of Integration & Acceptance from French Home Owners
Ease of Travel to France & Accessibility
French Architecture & History
For most people, the decision to choose France for overseas property investment comes easily. They have become Francophiles without even noticing, and love France and all things French. They want to enjoy the ambience and joie de vivre of the French lifestyle.
However, for those of you less familiar with France, here are some of the primary reasons why a French property investment is a good bet if you are thinking of investing in property in Europe.
In my opinion there are certainly more than 10 reasons to choose to live or to have a second home in France and below I give 10 of the most popular reasons given by the thousands of clients who have bought properties through Latitudes over the last 20+ years.
French Lifestyle
The French seem to know how to enjoy life and appreciate the finer things it has to offer without letting daily aggravations get in the way. In France at lunchtime, for instance, everything and everyone stops, from builders and managers to office workers and farmers so that they can enjoy good food and wine plus the sociability of eating and relaxing with friends or family. I am sure many of the problems we experience in the UK could be improved if people had the time to relax a little in the middle of the day so that they could talk over their problems.
Activities in France
Most areas of France offer something to do at all times of year and in all weathers – there are lots of festivals all over the country, many of them are during the Summer months but there is a smattering throughout France at all times of years such as the flower festival and carnival in Nice in February and the truffle market in Aups, etc.
There are shows and concerts at the many theatres and as far as sport goes, there is opportunity for all of them from tennis, golf, horse riding and fishing to skiing and sand surfing. It really is possible to spend one day on the beach and the next on the ski slopes with only 70-90 minutes drive between.
Walking and hiking amongst some of the most wonderful scenery found in almost every department is very popular and hang gliding, flying, canoeing, rafting and surfing are all there for the taking if you are brave enough.
This choice of activities is another reason why people choose France over so many other European destinations, where the British buy homes just to live in the sun in an ex-pat community. Most communes have public tennis courts and swimming pools and many offer facilities for children’s activities throughout the holidays. For those who are not so energetic there are bridge clubs in many of the towns and of course boules available everywhere.
Ease of Integration & Acceptance from French Home Owners
In France you can become involved in the day-to-day life of a village or town and feel part of it but at the same time have friends of your own nationality. In most cases you only have to show willing to speak a little French for the local population to accept and assist you.
If you want to totally immerse yourself into France then choose your areas carefully so that you find yourself with like-minded people with some common interests. For instance, if you are a born and bred townie then it may be that you wouldn’t have much to say in the local bar to the farmers who know only a simple rural life. Even though the idea of a less stressful lifestyle is appealing, you may still be looking for some entertaining conversation. In many other of the more popular destinations for the British to buy homes, you will find that the ex-pats seem to form a commune and mix only with each other, and in many cases can’t or don’t speak the native language.
Ease of Travel to France & Accessibility
France is obviously the closest of our European neighbours and access to the various areas of France has never been better. With the very regular ferries and trains as well as the brilliant road network in France, together with countless flights to every region in France, you know that you can always get there and even more important, that you can always get back within a few hours in an emergency. In addition friends and family can get to you easily and cheaply so that you never need feel cut off from them. In many cases you may find that you get to see more of your loved ones and be able to spend ‘quality time’ with them than when you were living just up the road and leading the busy hum drum lives that we all lead nowadays. You will also have the additional benefit in many areas of having access to another adjoining country such as Italy, Spain, Germany, Switzerland and Belgium plus it is an easy drive to Holland. You also have access to the tiny countries of Andorra, Luxembourg and the Principality of Monaco which makes life even more interesting.
French Architecture & History
Properties in France come in all shapes and sizes and for those who are looking for something special offering character and original features of bygone years there is an abundant supply that cannot be bettered in any country. Chateaux, manoirs, maisons de maitre, maisons bourgeious, (check spelling) mill houses with original parts intact, windmills, railway cottages and even the occasional railway station house, winemakers cottages, farmhouses and various beautiful colombages and stone built cottages or larger houses with outbuildings and private estates are easily available all over France and are a delight to those who prefer not to live in a standard more recently built home. For those who prefer a new or more recent property it is often possible to find these built in the style of the older properties.
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Overseas Property Investment | Property to Buy in Europe | Properties to buy in France |
