Anne-Claire invested in Reims from Dubai
Can you borrow in France when you live in Dubai? Anne-Claire bought a bright 60 m² apartment in Reims for €245,000, converted from 1 to 2 bedrooms, as part of a €275,000 project. Let short term and used as a family pied-à-terre, it targets a 6% net yield.
Dubai
Anne-Claire’s flat in Reims
BeforeAfter
BeforeAfter
BeforeAfterWhat Anne-Claire had to overcome from Dubai
FinancingFour banks before the right deal
The bank that had financed her SCPI investment 15 years earlier told her “Dubai is blacklisted”. A second asked for so much paperwork, and refused to talk by video, that she set it aside. A third offered a deal, but with a 20% deposit. With an application prepared using the method, a bank said yes: a 25-year mortgage, a 36-month repayment holiday, with notary fees and works financed.
LettingShort lets and a family base
At first, she was aiming for a flat share near the future campus of the Reims business school. The flat she chose, right in the historic centre, costs more per square metre: with a standard let, the numbers did not add up. Using the programme’s tools, she estimates a 6% net yield as a short let, Airbnb-style. It will also be a family base two or three times a year.
Remote managementBuying in Reims from Dubai
Her first question: is buying from abroad feasible and manageable? Anne-Claire used a business trip to France to fit in a day of viewings in Reims. The rest was done remotely, with a complete file: a written summary, a presentation, photos of the property, net yield and charges. To choose between buying in her own name and an SCI, she consulted the network’s notary and an accountant, and bought in her own name.
Renovation worksOne more bedroom
The 60 m² flat has only one bedroom, but its layout allows a second: one of the reasons she made an offer. The bank included the fitted kitchen and minor works in the project, taking it from €245,000 to €275,000. Anne-Claire had also asked for the furniture to be financed: the banker told her not to push it.
How Anne-Claire invested in Reims from Dubai
Dubai
Little cash to hand
Anne-Claire lives in Dubai, where she bought her main home. She wants to invest in France, out of attachment to the country and for its stability. But her money is invested, sometimes locked in, and her savings plan is small. She also worries about buying from abroad and about tax.
Late 2024 or early 2025
She joins ImmoPourExpat
Anne-Claire told herself she could not be the only one held back, and wanted to see how others had got past it. She was looking for a push, a network and people to talk to. Her goal on joining: a purchase within the year, ideally by the summer.
March 2025, a day in Reims
Love at first sight, outside her criteria
She used a business trip to view properties in Reims: poor energy ratings, major works, nothing she loved. The agent then showed her a flat outside her criteria, right in the historic centre and more expensive per square metre. Windows everywhere, light on both sides: she could see herself there at once. Only three flats had sold in that area in ten years.
The project evolves
Short lets and a family base
Using the programme’s calculators, she estimates a 6% net yield as a short let, far less with a standard let. So she opts for short lets, Airbnb-style, and a base for her family two or three times a year. She bought the 60 m² flat for €245,000, about €4,000 per square metre.
Four banks
“Dubai is blacklisted”
Her first bank refused: the branch manager told her Dubai was on a blacklist. The second wanted too much paperwork and refused video calls. The third wanted a 20% deposit. She came to the fourth with a professional file, and a week later the bank started processing it.
The loan
25 years and a 36-month repayment holiday
The bank met all her criteria and went further: she had asked for an 18-month repayment holiday and got 36, with a 25-year mortgage. Notary fees, the fitted kitchen and minor works were financed, for a €275,000 project.
Today
A first purchase in her own name
After consulting the network’s notary and an accountant, she bought in her own name, simpler for a first purchase. She will turn the single bedroom into two and is already planning the decoration. She knows she can go back to other banks for a next project. Without the programme, she says, she would still be where she started.
Anne-Claire tells the story
“I came looking for a kick up the backside, a network and people to talk to, and in the end I’m leaving with all that, plus really interesting content that helped me make this project happen.”
Anne-Claire, who lives in Dubai
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