France attracting investment interest

France is remerging as a property investment destination for Brits looking for property abroad.

According to overseas property experts PrimeLocation.com, buyers are growing sceptical of 'newer' destinations, including those in Eastern Europe, and are now returning to more familiar locations.

"Interestingly, France has always been the top area in terms of people buying there, although it is hard to discern what percentage is buying for investment purposes," said Louise Hall, business director at PrimeLocation.com.

"A lot of the people who had invested in places like Eastern Europe are now selling up and going back into familiar locations, such as France, Spain and so forth."

Recent Office for National Statistics (ONS) research found property investment in France and Spain were the preferred location for UK residents.

However, it is newer areas of the country which are attracting investment in the present market.

"The Brits, where they have been out-priced, have gone into other areas of France. The south-west part of France has definitely gone up in price but is still relatively inexpensive compared to the south-east," continued Ms Hall.

"The Dordogne is very popular with the Brits as well."

Paris is also proving attractive to investors.

According to research by France Home Finance, last year the city saw growth of 8.4 per cent. Furthermore, the same research finds Paris is more affordable than other global capital cities - such as London, Amsterdam, Dublin, New York and Tokyo.

"People have been investing in Paris because in terms of the cost of apartments and so forth, Paris is a relatively good buy because there is an infrastructure there and it has an industry," said Ms Hall.

"Also, it is easy to get to now with the Eurostar but the difficulty any Brit has now is how strong the euro is against the pound and what you can get for your money."

The euro hit an all time high this morning against the pound.

In early trading euro bought 80.005 pence, its strongest level since the currency was introduced in 1999, as traders began to account for the imminent slashing of UK interest rates.