France is still the top property hotspot for British buyers looking to purchase abroad, according to overseas property and finance specialist Simon Conn.

He said that British buyers accounted for a third of all non-resident purchases in the country in 2016, only slightly under the previous year’s figure. Conn claimed that Brexit has, as yet, had a limited impact on the market.

He said: “France has always been a hotspot and despite Brexit and all its possible implications, it is still proving to be the country we receive more enquiries about than any other. While it is still too early to draw any conclusions on the impact of Brexit on Brits investing in France, there has only been a small reduction in the number of purchases made by non-residents.
  
“We can see a pattern around the types of people and where they buy in different countries. For example, people who buy in Normandy and Brittany are the types who tend to buy in Costa Blanca and Costa Brava. And the sorts of people who buy in Southern France often go for properties in the Algarve and Costa del Sol. The middle market is the Dordogne and Savoir areas.”

Too soon to say?

However, Conn admitted that the 2016 figures do not show an immediate impact because of Brexit and given the timing of the referendum in June, it is likely that many buyers were already committed to buying.

“We will wait to see how the market develops in the coming months, but we can safely say that France remains a key European location for Brits looking to buy abroad,” he added.