Quick answer
On our France defaults (€330,000 home, €1,200 rent, 10% apport, 3.2% fixed over 25 years), renting and investing stays about €38,000 ahead after 10 years and is still ahead after 20. Frais de notaire of 7–8%, taxe foncière and modest price growth explain it. Buying wins when rent is above about €1,400 for the same home, or you stay long and prices grow 3%+ a year.
How do you use the rent vs buy calculator for France?
On our French default numbers, renting and investing comes out about €38,000 ahead of buying after 10 years, and renting is still ahead after 20 years. The main reasons are the 7–8% frais de notaire, taxe foncière, and a rent that is modest compared with the purchase price. Buying wins when the rent for a comparable home is above about €1,400 a month, when you stay a long time and prices grow by 3% a year or more, or when cheap financing such as the PTZ lowers your rate.
This simulateur louer ou acheter models each month. The buyer pays the apport (down payment) and frais de notaire up front, then the loan payment (mensualité), taxe foncière, maintenance and insurance. The renter pays rent plus home insurance (assurance habitation) and invests the apport, the notary fees and any monthly saving. At the end, we compare net worth after the buyer sells. Our methodology gives the details.
What do our French defaults assume?
| Input | Default | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price | €330,000 | An existing apartment or house in a large regional city |
| Monthly rent | €1,200 | Loyer hors charges for a comparable home |
| Apport (down payment) | 10% | Banks usually want the apport to cover at least the notary fees |
| Interest rate | 3.2% | A fixed rate for the full term (taux fixe) |
| Term | 25 years | The HCSF maximum for most loans |
| Buying costs | 8% | Frais de notaire on an older home plus loan guarantee and bank fees |
| Selling costs | 5% | Agency fee, often 4–6% in France, plus mandatory diagnostics |
| Taxe foncière | 0.8% | Varies widely by commune |
| Maintenance | 1% | Includes your share of building works in a copropriété |
| Insurance | 0.1% | Home insurance (assurance habitation propriétaire) |
| Appreciation | 2% | Modest long-run growth |
| Rent growth | 2.5% | Indexed to the IRL (Indice de référence des loyers) |
| Investment return | 6% | A diversified portfolio, for example in a PEA or assurance-vie |
Check the rate. The Observatoire Crédit Logement/CSA reported an average mortgage rate of 3.40% in September 2026 (as covered by MySweetImmo), a little above our 3.2% default. Rates rose through 2026. If you have an offer, enter it.
Worked example: €330,000 purchase vs €1,200 rent
Upfront cash: €33,000 apport plus €26,400 in notary and loan-guarantee costs, or €59,400 in total.
Monthly payment (mensualité hors assurance): the loan is €297,000 at 3.2% over 25 years. The amortisation formula, M = P × r ÷ (1 − (1 + r)^−n) with r = 0.032 ÷ 12 and n = 300, gives about €1,439 a month. In the first month, €792 is interest and €647 is capital.
Borrower insurance: at an illustrative 0.3% of the loan a year, add about €74 a month, for a total of roughly €1,513. Under the HCSF 35% rule, the bank would want net household income of at least about €4,320 a month (€1,513 ÷ 0.35), with no other loans.
Total monthly cost of owning in year 1: about €1,962. That is the mortgage plus about €523 for taxe foncière, maintenance and insurance, before borrower insurance. The renter pays €1,215 and invests the €747 difference each month.
After 10 years:
- Buyer: home worth about €402,000, minus 5% selling costs and the remaining loan of about €205,600, gives net worth of about €176,600.
- Renter: portfolio of about €214,900.
- Renter ahead by about €38,000, with no break-even year within 10 years, or even within 20.
- Break-even rent: about €1,410 a month. If a comparable home rents for more, buying wins over 10 years.
The 5% rule gives €330,000 × 5% ÷ 12 = €1,375, very close to the full break-even rent. The 5% rule calculator gives that quick estimate.
What makes buying win in France?
| Change from defaults | Result after 10 years |
|---|---|
| Defaults | Renter ahead by about €38,000 |
| Rent €1,500 instead of €1,200 | Buyer ahead by about €16,000, break-even in year 8 |
| Prices grow 3% a year | Roughly a tie (renter ahead by about €3,500) |
| Rate 3.4% (September 2026 average) | Renter ahead by about €45,000 |
| Sell after 3 years | Renter ahead by about €39,000 |
Rent level is the most powerful input. Renting a cheap apartment and investing the difference beats buying it. Paying a high rent for a home you could buy at a reasonable price makes buying the better choice.
Is the ‘règle des 3 à 5 ans’ right?
The règle des 3 à 5 ans says you should buy only if you will keep the home at least three to five years. That is roughly the time needed for price growth and capital repayment to recover the frais de notaire. It is useful as a minimum test. With today’s rates and our default assumptions, three to five years is often not enough. Selling after three years leaves the buyer about €39,000 behind.
A better rule is to find your break-even year in the calculator and make sure your planned stay is comfortably longer. For more on how to read that number, see our guide to the rent vs buy break-even point.
What does it cost to buy and sell in France?
| Cost | Typical amount (late 2026) | Paid by |
|---|---|---|
| Frais de notaire, existing home | About 7–8% of price | Buyer |
| Frais de notaire, new build (VEFA) | About 2–3% of price | Buyer |
| Loan guarantee (caution or hypothèque) | Often around 1–1.5% of the loan | Buyer |
| Bank arrangement fees (frais de dossier) | Often up to about €1,000–€1,500 | Buyer |
| Agency fee (frais d’agence) | Often 4–6%, sometimes included in the advertised price | Usually seller |
| Diagnostics (DPE and others) | A few hundred euros | Seller |
| Capital gains tax on sale | None on your main residence | — |
Most of the frais de notaire are droits de mutation (DMTO), transfer duties paid to the département and commune. Only a small part is the notary’s own fee. The 2025 budget allowed départements to raise their rate by 0.5 points for sales between April 2025 and March 2028, and most did. First-time buyers purchasing their main residence are exempt from that increase, as Service-Public.fr explains. As a primo-accédant, you could reduce buying costs in the calculator by about 0.5 points.
How do French mortgages work?
- Fixed rate for the full term. Most French home loans are taux fixe for 15–25 years, so your payment does not change. The calculator’s single rate fits France well.
- HCSF rules. Total debt payments, including borrower insurance, must not exceed 35% of net income. The maximum term is 25 years (27 for some new builds with a deferral period). Banks can exceed these limits for 20% of their production, mainly for main-residence buyers.
- Assurance emprunteur. Lenders require borrower insurance against death and disability. Since the loi Lemoine in 2022, you can switch insurer at any time. Loans under €200,000 per borrower, ending before your 60th birthday, need no medical questionnaire. A delegated policy can be much cheaper than the bank’s group policy, especially for younger borrowers.
- Apport. Banks generally want the apport to cover at least the frais de notaire. Some lend 100% to strong profiles.
- Usury rate (taux d’usure). A legal ceiling on the total loan cost (TAEG), published quarterly by the Banque de France.
How does the PTZ (prêt à taux zéro) change things?
The PTZ is an interest-free state-backed loan for first-time buyers, subject to income limits. Since 1 April 2025 it covers new homes, both houses and apartments, across all of France. It also covers older homes with substantial renovation works in less tense areas (zones B2 and C). It has been extended until 31 December 2027. Further changes were being debated in the 2027 budget in late 2026, so check the latest rules.
To model the PTZ, compute a blended rate. For example, €60,000 at 0% plus €237,000 at 3.4% gives a weighted average of about 2.7%. Enter that as your interest rate. For a new build, also lower buying costs to about 3%.
What about taxes and rent rules?
- Taxe foncière is paid every year by owners. Rates are set by communes and have risen in many cities since 2023. Find the figure on the seller’s last bill and enter it as a percentage of the price.
- No taxe d’habitation on main residences since 2023, for renters or owners.
- Rent control (encadrement des loyers). In Paris, rent on new leases has been capped against reference rents since July 2019. Similar schemes operate in cities including Lille, Lyon and Villeurbanne, Montpellier and Bordeaux. Annual rent rises in a lease are limited to changes in the IRL index. Capped rents make renting more attractive, so lower rent growth to about 2%.
- Energy rules. Homes rated G on the energy performance certificate (DPE) can no longer be newly let, with F to follow. When buying an older home, add renovation costs to maintenance.
How do inputs change across French cities?
| City | How to adjust |
|---|---|
| Paris | Very high prices relative to rents, and rent control. Taxe foncière is low relative to value, so try 0.4%. At €500,000 against €1,400 rent with 1% growth, renting is about €150,000 ahead after 10 years. |
| Lyon | High prices and rent control. At €380,000 against €1,250 rent, renting stays well ahead (about €68,000 after 10 years). |
| Marseille | Lower prices relative to rents than Paris or Lyon, but taxe foncière is among the higher rates in large cities. Enter your actual bill. |
| Bordeaux | Prices corrected after 2022, and rent control applies. Run your exact price and rent. Buying can win if you find a reasonable price. |
| Toulouse and Nantes | Strong rental demand and more moderate prices. These are among the better big-city candidates for buying. |
In a copropriété, add the non-recoverable charges as a monthly fee and check the planned works (travaux votés) in the general meeting minutes. Our condo calculator is designed for that.
When does renting win in France, and when does buying win?
Renting tends to win when:
- you might move within 10 years and lose the frais de notaire and agency fees
- you rent in a rent-controlled city at below the break-even rent
- the home has a poor DPE rating and needs expensive energy renovation
- you would borrow at the HCSF limit and have no savings left
Buying tends to win when:
- comparable rent is above the break-even rent (about €1,400 on our defaults)
- you qualify for the PTZ or buy a new build with 2–3% notary fees
- you stay 15 years or more, in a city with steady price growth
- you lock a fixed rate you can easily afford
For the bigger picture, see renting vs buying a home and the hidden costs of owning a home.
Louer ou acheter: a checklist for France
- Compare like with like. Use the rent for the same size, area and condition of home, excluding charges.
- Estimate frais de notaire at 7–8% for an older home or 2–3% for a new build. Subtract 0.5 points if you are a primo-accédant.
- Get the taxe foncière from the seller’s last bill.
- Ask for copropriété documents: charges, planned works and the sinking fund (fonds de travaux).
- Get two insurance quotes, the bank’s group policy and a delegated policy.
- Check the 35% rule with insurance included.
- Look at PTZ eligibility and enter a blended rate if you qualify.
- Set your horizon longer than the break-even year, not just three to five years.
These figures are estimates based on your inputs and are not financial advice. To compare France with its neighbours, try the Spain calculator or the all-countries hub.
Frequently asked questions
Louer ou acheter: which is better in France?
On our default inputs, renting and investing the difference comes out ahead over 10 and 20 years. That is because frais de notaire are high, owners pay taxe foncière and maintenance, and the rent on a typical home is modest relative to its price. The answer flips when comparable rent exceeds the break-even rent of about €1,400 a month, or when prices rise faster than about 3% a year.
What is the 'règle des 3 à 5 ans'?
It is a common French rule of thumb: buy only if you will stay at least three to five years, so the frais de notaire can be absorbed by price growth and capital repayment. It is a minimum, not a guarantee. On our defaults, buying is still behind after 10 years, so check the break-even year in the calculator rather than relying on the rule.
How much are frais de notaire in France?
For an existing home (ancien), frais de notaire are typically 7–8% of the price. Most of that is transfer duties (droits de mutation) collected for the département and commune. For a new build (neuf), they are about 2–3%. Most départements raised their rate by 0.5 points from 2025, but first-time buyers buying a main residence are exempt from that increase.
What is the HCSF 35% rule?
The Haut Conseil de Stabilité Financière requires banks to keep a borrower's total loan repayments, including borrower insurance, at or below 35% of net income, with a maximum term of 25 years (27 for some new builds). Banks can exceed these limits for up to 20% of their lending, mostly for main-residence buyers and first-time buyers.
Should I include taxe d'habitation?
No. Taxe d'habitation on main residences was abolished for all households from 2023, so renters and owners of a main home no longer pay it. Taxe foncière is the recurring tax that only owners pay, and it is already in the property-tax input.
Can the PTZ make buying worth it?
The prêt à taux zéro lowers your average interest rate, which helps buying. Since April 2025 it covers new homes across France and some older homes needing works in less tense areas, under income limits, and it runs until the end of 2027. To model it, enter a blended interest rate across your bank loan and the PTZ.