# Living In Normandy Mortgage free



## philiet

Hi there,

I've been on this forum many times with business ideas but I'm getting closer to selling up in the UK and buying a property cash in normandy.

I'm trying to work out the rough cost of living. Here's a list I've made, does it seem realistic for a family of four

Tax Fonciece - 100
Tax d'habitation - 100
Food - 500
Internet - 60
Energy - 250
Water - 50
Fuel Car - 130
House Insurance - 50
Car insurance - 100
Meals out (twice a month) - 150
Repairs/misc - 200
Children's clothes etc - 100


----------



## LesFroggitts

If you're going to be moving permanantly then Taxe d'Habitation on a primary residence would not likely be applicable, or reduced (it is being phased out for primamry residences).

Energy for one month seems high, but a lot depends upon your usage, type of property, level of insulation - whether you have a pool or not etc. Is heating within your energy figure?

Water again depends upon the region (to a degree) and also upon whether you are paying just water in or water in along with sewage out if on mains drainage.

Health insurance requirements - you'll need private health insurance until such time as you have been accepted into the French system - it can take a long time (or it could be quick) but you need private cover until then. Thereafter once in you would then want a mutuelle insurance policy to top-up the national cover (which is NOT 100%) these depend upon ages of those in the cover along with what level of top-up you choose.

Mobile phone contracts again vary dramtically depending upon who you choose to go with, check on the network coverage for whichever area you choose, that'll guide you as to whois suitable to go with.


----------



## Crabtree

It really is impossible to say so much depends on the house you buy the commune you live in your personal desires and wants.But France is now an expensive country and is not going to get any cheaper so if you are on a shoestring now what will happen in a years time?


----------



## EuroTrash

It's all very well writing down average costs, but if the property you buy is not an average property your bills could be vastly different. Depending on the property you buy, you could halve or double some sections of your piece of string..
As @LesFroggitts mentioned, healthcare seems to be the big expense that is missing off of your list.
Also, if you have foreign income there may be a social charges liability.
You don't need to pay 60€ a month for internet, you can get it for less than half that.


----------



## Bevdeforges

Just to clarify a couple of items. If you are coming over from the UK and neither of the parents in the family have an EU nationality, you will require a one-year health policy to obtain your visas for France (unless one of the parents in the family is going to France to take on employment and will therefore be enrolled in the national health system). If one of the parents does have an EU nationality, you'll still need some form of interim health insurance to cover you until you qualify to enroll in the CPAM system. And on top of that you'll likely need a mutuelle (top-up insurance) to reimburse for those medical expenses and services the CPAM doesn't cover.

Tax fonciere varies all over the place - even just from one town to the next. So can depend enormously on where you buy.

Fuel for a car - consider whether two adults with two children can get by on a single car. Outside the larger towns here, there is remarkably little in the way of public transport for doing errands or socializing or anything else. Also depends on what you use your car (or cars) for - daily commuting, holiday travel, shopping or medical appointments, etc. etc.

Lots of little details that can affect a budget.


----------



## EuroTrash

Bevdeforges said:


> If you are coming over from the UK and neither of the parents in the family have an EU nationality


I seem to recall from his other posts that Phil's better half was a French lady. You haven't traded her in have you, Phil ?


----------



## Bevdeforges

EuroTrash said:


> I seem to recall from his other posts that Phil's better half was a French lady. You haven't traded her in have you, Phil ?


Could very well be. You have a far better memory for individual forum member details than I do. But still, if the marital partner who has the EU nationality, there are a few potential stumbling blocks. And don't forget that a non-EU person married to a French national has to get a visa - the "family member joining an EU national" thing doesn't apply when the couple is moving to the country of the spouse's EU nationality.


----------



## EuroTrash

Bevdeforges said:


> Could very well be. You have a far better memory for individual forum member details than I do. But still, if the marital partner who has the EU nationality, there are a few potential stumbling blocks. And don't forget that a non-EU person married to a French national has to get a visa - the "family member joining an EU national" thing doesn't apply when the couple is moving to the country of the spouse's EU nationality.


I did find Phil's business ideas memorable. Particularly the crisps. But I don't remember the personal circumstances very clearly and things may have changed since then, he's been quiet for a long while. Glad you're back Phil, I'm looking forward to having you as a neighbour


----------



## 255

@philiet -- Your budget looks fine for an initial cut. Obviously, you'll be able to fine tune it once in country and you've secured housing. Most of the previous posts mentioned budget items that could be reduced -- I'd rather budget more than I need and have an excess vice a deficit. I don't know your vehicle usage plans, but 130 EUR seems low (at least compared to my usage (and fuel prices are likely to continue to go up.) Cheers, 255


----------



## zarathustra

It's not a bad estimate, but unless you're within walking distance of things, France is a large country (compared to the UK at least) and you've probably underestimated on car fuel, especially given the new prices.
We're a family of four, and grow quite a bit of food. On a very good month our cost of living might be as low as 1,200 a month, or it could be as high as 2,400. Expect the unexpected - car repairs, boiler servicing/issues, potential roof leaks, fallen trees, unexpected tax demands, bank charges as well as healthcare costs/insurance, school costs (bus fees, canteen etc.).


----------

