Buying in France pitfalls

Leper said:

I’d advise him to buy it and treat it as a cold investment. Personally, I couldn’t be a cold property investor, hence my financial losses especially since the recession of 2008. But, it’s not all about the money.

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Sorry, what's a "cold investment"?

declan11 said:

Electricity is much cheaper partly due to their widespread use of nuclear power.

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That buries the narrative that we shouldn't go for nuclear energy because it is too expensive. We have predominantly wind and fossil fuels and our electricity is among the most expensive in Europe. The proof of the pudding is in the eating

ClubMan said:

Sorry, what's a "cold investment"?

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Apologies Clubman, I merely meant to treat the adventure as a business one I.e try to make money at it by actively going after rentals rather than waiting for them to come, something that I wasn’t good at. It could be a good hobby too.

Not for everyone i know but a campervan, would be a better "Investment" and always holds value quiet well. Gives you endless options for travelling then also.

Jollyman said:

Not for everyone i know but a campervan, would be a better "Investment" and always holds value quiet well. Gives you endless options for travelling then also.

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Actually looked at them as well as caravan. Definitely not an investment though! It does keep some value. But it is also an expensive hobby. Keeping during the winter would be difficult for us.

Trust me, I'm speaking from first hand experience, the French will drive you nuts - they are a complete pain in the neck, when it comes to commercial transactions, regulations, or even when you need to get repairs done etc.

Do some research online and you'll find endless owners of French properties, who curse the day that they ever bought in France.

Rent somewhere nice there, each time you want to go there on holiday, and enjoy yourself, then leave, without the headaches that the French love to give to foreigners.

The rules and regulations also apply to French landlords

Having lived there, I would say that the French regulate everything, but unlike Ireland, actually enforce the regulations.

Here, we love rules and regulations, but normally completely ignore them and, furthermore, get annoyed if anyone actually tries to enforce them

azerty said:

Actually looked at them as well as caravan. Definitely not an investment though! It does keep some value. But it is also an expensive hobby. Keeping during the winter would be difficult for us.

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From personal experience i wouldn't recommend a caravan, but if you had extended family a shared campervan with yearly times scheduled etc might be a good option