# Another Bank Account Question



## JapanAmerica

I have tried to figure this out by reading through prior posts and threads, but I am still confused. My husband is Japanese and I am American. We will be buying a house in France, probably jointly with unequal interests reflecting our respective contributions. I am going to get tax advice before we finalize anything, but I think this will be the best way - his portion would be subject to Japanese taxes and mine would be subject to US taxes (as well as French taxes, of course). At what point do we need a bank account in France? It seems that we can probably pay the down payment from our accounts in Japan, but I understand we will need a French account for the closing? I wonder if we can use a joint account so long as we document our respective contributions to the purchase price. I think he will have an easier time opening an account because he is Japanese and does not have to deal with the FATCA issues, etc Perhaps we could even start with one account under his name. But if we need to have a joint account or if I need my own account, we may run into the FATCA/banks don't want to open accounts for Americans problem. (I am paranoid about this since Citibank forced me to give up my last account in the States for the same reason. Now I have only a Fidelity brokerage account in the US and a couple of accounts in Japan, as well as a Wise account.) We will probably close on the house before we actually move to France, so it won't be possible to visit local banks for purposes of opening the account. Any recent wisdom on these issues would be very welcome.


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## Bevdeforges

OK - a couple of clarifications here. Generally speaking, when a married couple buys a house in France, they don't really get to decide the split on the ownership. It's based on the marital "regime" they are deemed to have, based on when and where their marriage took place (or if they have formally filed to change their regime since arriving in France). Without getting into all the details, most foreigners wind up being considered to be under some variation of "community property" - which means that all big purchases (like that of a residence) are considered to be the joint property of the couple, no matter who paid the down payment or is making the mortgage payments. The marital regime comes into play here in France when (and if) the couple divorces, or at the death of one or both of the partners because it's the regime that determines how the property is split and in the case of a death, who gets what.

As far as closing on a house before you move to France, you need to consider how you're going to be financing the deal. Many foreign (i.e. non-French) banks won't write a mortgage on "foreign" (to the bank) property. And the "usual" mortgage source of first resort here in France is generally your own bank - so difficult to come by until you are officially resident here with a documented source of income (job, pension, whatever). It's generally a good idea to plan on renting a place in France for the first year or two until you learn the area and the "peculiarities" of purchasing property here in France. (Besides, once you've found a place and had your offer accepted, you have to count on at least 3 months - often more - before the transaction closes.) You definitely will need a French bank account to rent a place - and while you're renting, house hunting and learning how things work in France, you'll be building a "relationship" with your bank (or banks) which always helps when it comes time to be looking for a mortgage.


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