Digest: How to Buy in France for €13,000 (and Yes, There’s a Catch)

In this week’s Your Overseas Dream Home Digest…

• 5 Homes for Christmas on the Beach from $128,000

• A “Dead” Easy Way to Buy a Home in France

• Luxury Real Estate in Baja’s Top Beach Towns

• You Questions Answered: What to Look for in a Sales Contract

As I write, I’m in Baltimore. I came to the city for a few days to mark a milestone with longstanding friends and colleagues at the Maryland Club.

Later today, I’ll be traveling back to my home in Guadalajara. There, the afternoons are warm and sunny, with highs hovering around 80 F. Mornings and evenings are cool and fresh. Perfect weather for going for a stroll…for being outdoors…for sipping coffee in the afternoon sunshine on bright terraces…

Up north, well, let’s just say it’s been less pleasant—highs in the mid-40s F, lows in the mid-30s F. A few days here reminded me why I move with the sun…

I move between my homes throughout the year. As I say, I’m currently staying at my home in Guadalajara. My wife’s parents retired here, so we built a home in the city. After the holidays, though, my wife and I will be heading to our condo in Los Cabos.

Then come spring I’ll move back across the Atlantic…to my condo on Portugal’s Silver Coast and my base in southern Ireland. Next year, a new home joins the mix, a historic mansion in the far north of Portugal.

This lifestyle means I have no need for air-con…or heating bills… I get spring-like weather and outdoor living all year round. And it means, I always have income rolling in since I rent out several of my homes when I’m not using them.

This lifestyle is open to anyone. It’s possible when you buy the right properties in the right locations. Properties that can generate big income. Like the deals I send to my Real Estate Trend Alert group.

I does mean one thing, though…

Christmas in the sun. It’s still feels surreal to me—celebrating the holidays in the sunshine. But if you ask me, it’s a small price to pay.

If you feel the same, this article we shared this week in Your Overseas Dream Home will be of interest…

5 Homes for Christmas on the Beach from $128,000

While Europe and the U.S. shivers through their traditional cold Christmas, myself and countless others will be enjoying a different Christmas experience, from Costa Rica’s Pacific shores to Thailand’s tropical islands.

Think Santa arriving by longboat in Phuket, Christmas trees decorated with seashells in Panama, and barbecues on the beach where fresh-caught seafood replaces turkey as the star of the show.

Celebrating Christmas overseas can be a wonderful new experience. Did you know that in Brazil, Santa is known as Papai Noel and he sometimes trades his heavy red suit for tropical beachwear?

I asked my team to find affordable dream homes where you can enjoy Christmas on the beach and they found homes from Brazil to Bali, Costa Rica to Thailand, where you can own from as little as $128,000…

Listings in the full article here.

Buy Now, Move in Later: A “Dead” Easy Way to Buy a Home in France

Speaking of attractive pricing…

Did you know there’s a way to buy a charming, move-in ready, two-bedroom home in France’s Loire Valley for as little as €13,000? But…there is a catch!

The owner you’re buying from is allowed to live in the house for the rest of their life. This intriguing way of buying property is unique to France and Belgium and these are called “vente en viager” deals.

The term “viager” owes its origin to the old French word viage, meaning “duration of life.” In short, you buy a property from an elderly person for a significantly reduced price. In return, the seller gets to live in the house for the rest of their life, while they collect an annuity payment (usually monthly) from you.

Now, I’m not a gambler, I like a sure thing and these en viager deals do come with some risk…but I wanted to know more about these deals so I asked my team to dig into this method of buying a home in France.

They looked for en viager deals that are on the market right now and dug into the weeds about how this all works…and what can happen when one of these deals goes wrong (there’s a great story about a lady called Jeanne Calment).

You can read more about en viager deals here.

Luxury Homes in Baja’s Top Beach Towns

If you’re looking for something more mainstream…

Located on the southern end of the Baja California Peninsula, Baja California Sur is one of Mexico’s most stunning gems and a hugely popular destination among the rich and famous. It’s a place where arid deserts meet the turquoise waters of the Sea of Cortez, dubbed “the aquarium of the world” by Jacques Cousteau, due to its extraordinary variety of marine life.

All around Baja Sur, you can snorkel alongside colorful fish, sea turtles, and sea lions or take a whale-watching excursion to see majestic gray and humpback whales. Inland, the Sierra de la Laguna mountains provide excellent hiking trails, waterfalls, and panoramic views of the region’s dramatic scenery.

History and culture buffs will appreciate the charming colonial architecture of towns like San José del Cabo and the artistic enclave of Todos Santos, a designated Pueblo Mágico known for its galleries and creative community. For a more tranquil escape, the beaches of La Paz and Loreto are the perfect place to unwind.

Baja California Sur is also synonymous with luxury and high-end living, particularly in Los Cabos with its upscale resorts, world-class golf courses, gourmet dining, and exclusive beachfront villas.

This week I asked my team to look for exclusive homes around Baja Sur. And although you will need a bigger budget for these homes, they do offer the ultimate in luxury living in Baja.

Read about what they uncovered here.

Your Questions Answered

Have some feedback or a comment for me or my team? A question about owning overseas? A destination you’d like us to scout. Share it here. I’d love to hear from you. Here’s a question I’ve gotten from a readers recently…

Dan P. asks: Hi Ronan. I’ve got a question about sales contracts when buying a property overseas. Are they similar to the ones we see in the States or are there specific things I should be looking out for before I sign one?

Ronan says: Hi Dan. Thanks for getting in touch. That’s a great question. Buying overseas is never going to be exactly the same as buying at home. Sure, the buying process might be similar to buying a home in the U.S. but there will always be quirks you won’t be familiar with. You should always read and make sure you understand what you’re signing.

Your sales contract spells out your agreement with the seller. It covers who pays what, how much, and when. It details what you get—the kitchen cabinetry, the air conditioners, perhaps the light fixtures. And it lays out what happens if either you or the seller fail to comply with any of the contract clauses.

Of course, when buying real estate overseas, it’s essential to hire a good local attorney. When we have a RETA members-only deal, I always share the name of the one I use in that destination. Your lawyer will go through the contract with you and explain the terms and clauses.

Often it’s advisable to have them translate the sales contract for you as well. Sometimes a developer or seller will give you a sales contract or purchase agreement in English. That’s a nice courtesy but it may not be the binding contract. Often only a contract that is in the official language of the country that you are buying in is legally binding, whether that is Spanish or Portuguese or French. If you have a dispute with the seller and you need to go to court, then the contract in the language of that country will be the one that’s used.

Here are some major things to look out for in your sales contract:

• Check that the property details, description, and price are correct.

• Check that the seller’s name matches the name on the current title deed.

• Ask your attorney to check that your sales contract/purchase agreement gives you title, free and clear, on closing. That may seem obvious but sometimes contracts don’t give you title on closing. I’ve seen a few that give you possession of a condo, and the keys, but not the actual registered title. Instead, the developer simply stated that he would register it at some point (with an undefined time period). Have a specific timeframe in the contract for you to get your title deed.

There are some practical exceptions to this that your lawyer can advise you about. For example, with pre-construction condos in certain countries, the title deed will only be issued after the condo regimen has been legally constituted and recognized. There can be bureaucratic delays with this, meaning that the title can follow possession. And, if you take out bank or developer finance, you may get possession rather than the title deed, until the loan is paid off. This is all normal. Just have your attorney ensure that you are legally covered if you get possession but not the title deed.

Ronan McMahon, Founder, Overseas Dream Home & Real Estate Trend Alert

P.S. If you have a question about buying real estate overseas or have suggestions for destinations my team and I should put on our scouting list for 2025, drop me a line here.