Scpi Investing in French Properties

If you want to invest in French Housing you encounter 2 opportunities:


1. First option: to buy directly a property.
Buying Real Estate in France is very much secured, because the law is quite strict, so if you buy real state, you will have to register the transaction at a state officer office, so your investment will be safely registered.

But the hassle is that if you intend to rent it, and obtain money from it, you must realize that French law is particularly protective for the renter.

For example if your renter doesn't pay out, you must make numerous official actions with attorneys and ushers, and then you must wait for a judgement to expropriate your renter.


And the judgment is given during the winter time, then you'll have to wait until spring.
This whole process usually last one year minimum, and during that time you spend money for lawyers and receive no money frm tenant

2. The second way to invest in French Real Estate without all the hassle is to buy SCPI Shares
SCPI is a company that gathers shareholders money, then invest it by buying real estate, rent it and distribute the income each quarters to the shareholders.

Shareholders get all the information about which investments have been made, and they receive a quarterly net income.


It means that the Scpi takes care of just about everything: purchasing, leasing, managing tenants, reselling.

Besides selling your share is very easy: you just need to send a form to the Scpi and tell how many shares you need to sell, then they will sell them to the buyers.

There are a great number of Scpi in France, which means that you should pick carefully.

First you can choose Scpi Scellier, they are investing in brand new real estate that will be leased to individuals.
The yield is low, about 3%, but it offers you some income tax reduction, so if you pay revenue taxes in France then it's made for you

If you pay income tax, you can also choose Scpi Scellier Renove, which is the same principle as Scpi Scellier except that it invests in old real estate that will be fully renovated

Another type is called Scpi Malraux, it invests in old constructions in protected areas. It lets you to have access to old stones constructions

Last but not least, if you don't pay any income tax in France, then you should invest in Scpi de Rendement, which invest in Commercial and Enterprise Buildings. They offer an atractive net yield of 5,40% in 2011.

There are 2 types of Scpi de rendement:
Many are specialized in Workplace Buildings
Some are investing in Commercial Buildings

According to me, Scpi offers the best ratio yield vs Security, you have a great yield, real estate investment wihtout all the hassles, and better liquidity

If you want to understand more about Scpi, then you might want to visit the website of one of the recommended French Financial Advisor: www.lecgpi.com