How much money do you need to buy a property in France? There is no single percentage that answers the whole question. Your transaction, financing and plans for the property determine which costs belong in the budget. Build an itemised schedule and replace each provisional amount with written evidence.
1. Separate the price from the other costs
Write down what the agreed price includes. If agency fees are already included in your starting amount, do not add the same fee again. Ask the agent and notaire to confirm the price breakdown and the basis used for the acquisition-cost calculation.
Acquisition costs paid through the notaire
The amount commonly called “notaire fees” includes taxes and other charges as well as the notaire’s remuneration. It is not simply the professional’s fee. The French tax authority explains these components.
Our French purchase-cost calculator estimates selected costs for an ordinary residential transaction within its stated scope. Enter the departmental rate and transaction treatment confirmed by your notaire. It does not determine your eligibility for relief or automatically look up the rate for an address. Read the formulas and exclusions before using the result.
Financing and professional support
If you borrow, ask for a schedule separating upfront charges from costs paid over the loan’s life. Bank arrangement fees, a loan guarantee, borrower insurance and any broker fee need their own treatment. The notaires’ overview of additional purchase costs identifies these categories. Add separately commissioned legal, technical or translation support where relevant to your purchase.
Works, setup and money retained
List essential work before optional improvements. Obtain property-specific quotes, state whether they include tax, and identify what remains unpriced. Furniture, moving, utility setup and currency-transfer costs may also need space in your plan. Keep a separate reserve: money left available is not a fee paid to a supplier.
The price is one part of the plan.
- Purchase price€250,000.00
- Selected acquisition costs€20,319.95
- Financing, works, setup and transfers€24,000.00
- Planned spending€294,319.95
- Reserve retained€10,000.00
Total resources planned€304,319.95
2. A worked budget for a €250,000 purchase
This is a fictional planning example, not a market-price benchmark or a quote. Assume an ordinary resale within the calculator’s scope, a confirmed 5% departmental rate, no relief, no remuneration discount, and a €1,400 allowance for formalities and disbursements. No additional agency fee is assumed in this illustration. A different fee arrangement requires a revised price and tax basis.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Purchase price | €250,000.00 |
| Selected acquisition costs from the calculator | €20,319.95 |
| Assumed upfront financing charges | €3,000.00 |
| Assumed initial works | €15,000.00 |
| Assumed furniture and moving | €5,000.00 |
| Assumed currency and transfer costs | €1,000.00 |
| Planned purchase and setup spending | €294,319.95 |
| Illustrative cash reserve retained | €10,000.00 |
| Total resources planned | €304,319.95 |
The €3,000, €15,000, €5,000, €1,000 and €10,000 amounts are chosen teaching assumptions. Replace them with your own evidence; they are neither typical costs nor recommended reserve levels. This schedule excludes ongoing mortgage payments and annual ownership expenses.
The acquisition-cost component is €15,796.25 transfer duty + €2,873.70 sale remuneration including VAT + €250 property security contribution + €1,400 allowance. That is €20,319.95, not the full €44,319.95 of spending above the price in this example.
3. Distinguish total budget, personal cash and timing
If a lender explicitly agreed to provide €200,000 toward this hypothetical purchase, the remaining resources in the example would be €104,319.95. This is arithmetic, not a lending offer or an assumed loan-to-value entitlement. Confirm which items the lender will fund and when the money becomes available.
An earlier deposit credited against the purchase price is a payment toward that price, not an extra purchase cost. Record it on your payment timeline so you know both the total personal contribution and the amount still due. Ask the notaire for the completion statement and payment instructions; reconcile money already paid against the final balance.
Use four columns in your own schedule: amount, evidence, payment date and funding source. Mark unknown items explicitly. A budget can add up and still fail if money is required before it is accessible.
4. Keep the annual ownership budget separate
Prepare a second schedule for recurring commitments: loan payments if any, insurance, maintenance, utilities, applicable local taxes and copropriété charges where relevant. For a rental project, add operating assumptions and test periods without rent. Do not treat expected rental income as money already available to complete the purchase.
For an apartment, ask about charges, planned work and payment dates. Allocation between buyer and seller is more specific than a simple rule that all previously voted works belong to one side. Service Public explains the allocation rules and the effect of agreements between the parties. Ask the notaire to show how those rules and any agreed adjustments affect your completion statement.
5. Your buyer-budget checklist
- Confirm the agreed price and agency-fee treatment.
- Obtain the notaire’s transaction-specific estimate and applicable rate.
- Separate loan setup costs from recurring repayments and insurance.
- Obtain quotes for essential works and record exclusions.
- Price moving, furnishing and currency arrangements where relevant.
- Identify completion adjustments and money already paid.
- Choose a reserve based on your actual uncertainties and commitments.
- Check that the payment dates match available cash and confirmed lending.
- Build a separate annual ownership budget.
Apply the budget to your buying decision
For a home or second home, explore the buying property in France course, including financing and ownership-cost planning. For a rental investment, the French real estate investment course adds underwriting, operating assumptions and a final decision dossier. Enroll in your course. You can inspect the curriculum and actual financing lesson preview now.
Continue planning your purchase
French mortgages for non-residents · Buying in France as an American
Sources and scope
This guide combines an original planning example with the sources linked above. Source checks cover the cited cost categories and copropriété allocation guidance as at 26 September 2026. The calculator’s separate methodology records its formula sources and limitations. Recheck rates, lender terms, quotes and property documents before relying on a budget. This is educational guidance, not a transaction-specific notarial, lending or tax assessment.