France ends Spain’s reign

France overtakes Spain as most searched-for site on property portal

France is now the most popular country among prospective buyers of property abroad, according to Rightmove Overseas.

Having overhauled Spain to claim top spot, France bagged 20.03% of all searches for countries in November.

Shameem Golamy, head of overseas at Rightmove, says: “The big news this month is that there are more searches for French property on Rightmove than ever before. The news this year that the French government chose not to tax owners of holiday homes an extra 20% seems to have finally percolated through to buyers. This, coupled with the start of the winter sports season, appears to have driven UK buyers to browse properties in France. All but three of the French regions have increased in search activity.”

Aude experienced a huge monthly search hike in searches of 38.41%, with interest in the Midi-Pyr�n�es increasing by 21.44%.

This news follows a raft of recent research from the likes of Conti, Knight Frank and Savills with HomeAway.co.uk that puts France at the top of the popularity ladder when it comes to Brits looking to buy abroad.

www.rightmoveoverseas.co.uk