The market
Foreign buyers in France: the key figures.
Before choosing a region or a budget, it helps to know who is buying around you. Here are the figures that matter, where they come from, and what I read in them as an agent in Dijon.
Contents
Every year, tens of thousands of homes in France are bought by people who are not French. Some already live here; others buy from abroad, for a second home, a future retirement or an investment. The figures below come from notaries' studies and market barometers. Each one is dated, because they move.
How many buyers are foreigners?
The notaries count two groups: foreigners who live in France, and foreigners who live abroad, called non-residents.
- All foreign buyers together made up 5.4% of the buyers of existing homes in 2017, and 5.9% in the first half of 2018 (Notaires de France figures reported by SeLoger, January 2019).
- Non-resident foreigners alone made up 1.8% of the sales of existing homes in 2022, after 1.3% in 2021 and a peak of 2% in 2015 (Notaires de France study on non-resident buyers, published in 2024).
France records from several hundred thousand to more than a million sales of existing homes a year, depending on the year, so even these small percentages add up to tens of thousands of purchases.
You may have heard other round figures in the profession: about 60,000 purchases a year by foreigners, an average budget of 300,000 euros, 18 billion euros a year. They are consistent with a foreign share of around 6% of a market close to a million sales, but I have not found an official publication giving them as such. That is why I prefer to show you the notaries' figures, with their dates.
Where they come from
- 2022, non-resident buyers: Belgians 19%, British 17%, Germans 11%, Dutch 10%. The British share has been falling since 2016 (Notaires de France study on non-resident buyers, published in 2024).
- 2023: Belgians 19.5%, British 16.4% (CCF study of 2023 sales, July 2024).
- 2025, one network's sales to foreign buyers (416 sales): Swiss 22%, Belgians 19%, British 12%, Americans 11%, Dutch 8%, Germans 6%, buyers from the Gulf and the Arab world 5%, from Asia 4% (Capifrance barometer of 2025 sales, reported in July 2026).
The last source is a single network, not the whole market, but it shows the trend: Swiss and American buyers are more present than ten years ago. More in who buys property in France.
What they spend
In the same 2025 barometer, 15% of foreign buyers spent less than 100,000 euros, 34% between 100,000 and 250,000 euros, 33% between 250,000 and 500,000 euros, and 18% between 500,000 euros and 2.5 million euros. Average budgets were about 370,000 euros for Swiss buyers, 340,000 for Belgians, 235,000 for the British, 400,000 for Americans and 570,000 for buyers from Asia (Capifrance barometer of 2025 sales, reported in July 2026).
One more figure deserves your attention: according to the notaries, non-resident buyers paid on average about 13% more than residents for an old house in the provinces, and about 16% more for an apartment (Notaires de France study on non-resident buyers, published in 2024). Part of it is the type of property they choose, part of it is not knowing the local prices. The real sales are public in France: here is how to check them.
Where they buy
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur remains a classic, with 3.8% of its sales going to non-residents in 2022 (Notaires de France study on non-resident buyers, published in 2024). Over 2007 to 2017, non-residents bought around one home in ten in the Creuse, the Dordogne and the Alpes-Maritimes (Journal de l'Agence, February 2019). Recent barometers also point to growing interest in Haute-Savoie and in the Saône-et-Loire, the southern department of Burgundy (Capifrance barometer of 2025 sales, reported in July 2026). More in where foreigners buy in France.
What it means if you buy in Burgundy
Burgundy is a small market where good village houses and well-placed apartments do not stay long on sale. Buyers from Switzerland, Belgium or Paris often visit the same properties as you. Two things make the difference: knowing the real prices before you visit, and being able to decide quickly.
That is how I work with buyers abroad: you tell me what you are looking for, I send you the film of each property as soon as it comes in, I show it to you live on a WhatsApp video call, and I tell you what the sales around it really fetched. I work in English and French every day. I also speak Hindi, Urdu and Punjabi fluently, Persian (Farsi) very well, and good Greek and Arabic.
Sources
- Notaires de France study on non-resident buyers, published in 2024.
- CCF study of 2023 sales, July 2024.
- Capifrance barometer of 2025 sales, reported in July 2026.
- Notaires de France figures reported by SeLoger, January 2019.
- Journal de l'Agence, February 2019.
Frequently asked questions
What share of buyers in France are foreigners?
Around 5 to 6% of the buyers of existing homes when foreigners living in France are included (notaries, 2017 and 2018), and 1.8% for non-residents alone in 2022.
Which nationalities buy the most property in France?
Among non-residents, Belgians and British have led for years. Swiss and American buyers are very present in the most recent barometers.
Do foreign buyers pay more?
On average, non-residents paid about 13% more than residents for old houses in the provinces and about 16% more for apartments, according to a notaries' study published in 2024. Checking the real sales around a property avoids overpaying.
Are these figures available for Dijon?
Not by nationality. For prices, I use the official DVF data of notarised sales, commune by commune.