Real Estate Finance
in France
Bridge and development finance for prime French real estate, from Paris to the Alps and the Côte d'Azur.
France combines a deep prime residential market with a fragmented financing landscape, where international and HNW borrowers frequently find domestic bank processes slow or ill-suited to short-dated needs. Bridge facilities are commonly used to fund acquisitions ahead of asset sales, finance refurbishment of Haussmannian stock, or unlock equity from low-leverage portfolios. Development finance is concentrated in Paris, the Riviera and the major Alpine resorts.
Passy Partners arranges facilities for private investors, family offices, hotel operators and developers active in trophy residential, ski-station hospitality, and Paris office-to-residential conversions, increasingly relevant under the post-Covid repositioning of tertiary stock.
Paris and Île-de-France
Haussmannian prime residential, hôtels particuliers, office-to-residential conversion.
Côte d'Azur
Cannes, Nice, Saint-Tropez, Cap-Ferrat: prime villas, boutique hospitality, mixed-use seafront assets.
Alpine resorts
Megève, Courchevel, Val d'Isère: chalets, hotel repositioning, branded-residence development.
Lyon
Regeneration, hospitality, mid-market residential development.
Bordeaux & Aix-en-Provence
Selective prime residential and hospitality.
- –Acquisition bridges on Paris prime residential held through SCI or non-resident structures.
- –Development finance for Riviera villa schemes and small luxury hospitality.
- –Bridge-to-sale on Alpine chalets and branded-residence units.
- –Refinancing of maturing French bank debt with private capital.
- –Equity-release facilities against unencumbered prime portfolios.
- Facility size
- From €1M, up to €50M
- Security position
- Senior, stretch-senior or whole-loan
- Bridge pricing
- From ~8% per annum
- Bridge leverage
- Up to ~70% of value
- Development
- From ~8% p.a., up to ~60% of GDV
- Term
- 3–24 months (bridge); 18–36 (development)
Indicative parameters only. Rate, leverage and term are set by the chosen lender and confirmed on completion of underwriting.
In France, intermediation in banking and payment services is regulated through the ORIAS register, with the IOBSP status (Intermédiaire en Opérations de Banque et en Services de Paiement) governing credit intermediation activity. Supervision sits with the ACPR. Passy Partners operates as an arranger from London, working with French intermediaries and French or European lenders where local IOBSP scope is required.
SCI and SCI à l'IS structures are commonly used for French real estate holding by non-residents, with implications for lender eligibility, IFI (impôt sur la fortune immobilière) exposure and succession planning. Structuring is coordinated with the borrower's notaire and tax counsel from term sheet stage.
France financing,
explained.
Yes, and most of our French flow involves non-resident borrowers. Acquisitions are commonly held through an SCI or SCI à l'IS, and our lender network is selected for its ability to underwrite non-resident principals and French holding structures. The structure affects lender eligibility, IFI exposure and succession planning, so it is settled with the borrower's notaire and tax counsel before we approach lenders. We confirm appetite with the chosen lender before issuing indicative terms.
Discuss a France financing requirement
Initial conversations are confidential and without obligation.