It's easy enough to drive around France a few times, see that house you really, really want and decide to buy it. That's when the hard work starts and the paperwork for the house starts piling so high your coffee cup is buried for weeks on end on the kitchen table. Yet there is another vitally important detail to consider: the French bank account.

Unless you enjoy changing currency on a more than regular basis, it is probably a good idea to get one, or at least find a bank which has grasped the fact that so many of you are buying across the Channel and realised they can make money by helping you out. Furthermore, if you are planning to rent property in France, a French bank account will help you convince the landlord that you can pay the rent and also makes paying utility bills much easier and cheaper.

But where do you start?
Firstly, it is important to come to the quick and often painful realisation that although you will probably encounter some familiar French bank branch names, the primary thing these banks will have in common with their British counterparts is that they take money. While HSBC, Abbey and Barclays all have French branches, they have to abide by the laws and interest rates set down by the Banque de France. Some, however, do have programmes specially aimed at British property buyers, which means you do not have to struggle with technical jargon, which can be difficult enough to follow at the best of times, let alone in French. However, these banks often do not have as many branches as France's native banks so it is worthwhile looking at what a French bank account has to offer you to make your access options easier.

Nevertheless, it is worthwhile consulting the bank that you have your British account at to see what money transfer rates they offer, suggests Halifax representative Mark Hemmingway. "Often, we recommend that you try and open a French bank account with a subsidiary of your UK bank. It is often cheaper and quicker to transfer funds within your bank, but there will be a fee to do this." Some major French banks you will come across are Le Crédit Agricole, La BNP Paribas, Le Crédit Lyonnais, La Société Générale, La Caisse d'Epargne and La Poste. Le Credit Agricole is the biggest in France and the second-biggest bank in Europe. Credit Agricole lays claim to 25 per cent of the French mortgage market and is starting to gain British clients as well. Helpfully, the bank recently opened CA Britline in the Calvados region of Normandy where you can discuss all your French banking requirements in English.
Don't worry if you aren't based in Normandy, either: Britline is a telephone and Internet banking service that, among other services, allows you to open an account, request a loan and insure your French property via post, telephone or fax.

Making choices
Having chosen a bank, you will open either a resident or non-resident account. If you haven't found a property to rent or buy, it is sensible to start with a non-resident type account, although this may subject you to a high initial deposit. Once settled, you can move onto a standard current account and savings account. With both accounts you are able to deposit and withdraw any currency but as a non-resident you may not be eligible for an overdraft. Then you have two more choices: you can either open an account by using phone, email or post, or you can show up in person.

Be prepared to be asked for every scrap of paper that confirms who you are and all your personal details. Some international banks do offer inter-country bank account transfers and credit history transfers. You will probably be asked for a bankers' reference, passport, proof of earnings and proof of residence in the UK such as a household bill. Having some money handy also helps.

If you are buying property, then you will need a copy of the sales agreement to show as well. If you have all the documentation the bank wants, you will be presented with yet more choices: you can open either a cheque, or current account, which is for daily use or a savings account. Of course, you can choose to open both.

Credit cards are available with cheque accounts but it is illegal for a French bank to pay interest on these accounts. Savings accounts, on the other hand, involve about two per cent interest gross. You can have two accounts open and simply transfer funds from one to the other. Once your account is open, you will be left with two ways to withdraw or pay from your account. The carte bleue is used for things such as direct payments, Internet payments, telephone payments, withdrawing cash and so on. It is not a credit card, but a direct debit card. Your payments will need to be authorised with a pin number rather than a signature. You can opt to have debits accumulated and withdrawn from this card as a direct debit, but if you want to do this you must specify when you open your bank account. Most French bank accounts debit credit card payments at the end of each month. Your cheque book only requires you to be able to write French numbers down, not put all your faith in shopkeepers' scribblings. Often, you will need photo identification to use cheques, which take about three days to clear.

Avoid making rubber cheques
It is important to maintain a reasonable balance in your cheque account: never write a cheque drawn on an account unless you are totally sure you have the funds to cover it.
In France, cheques are the equivalent of cash and you can only cancel a cheque if you can prove that it's been lost, stolen or deemed fraudulent. Being overdrawn can have some very serious consequences. Unlike in the UK, overdrafts are seen as a privilege and therefore even French people are lucky to get one, let alone a foreigner, so you can expect to be punished with more than just a slap on the wrist.

Penalties for a bounced cheque or unauthorised overdrafts can be damaging to your aims of buying property or doing anything else financial in France. Cheques will no longer be honoured and high charges will be made to your account, which can make the problem even worse. If you do not resolve the problem to the bank's satisfaction or get into trouble again, then you are in danger of becoming an Interdit Bancaire, which means you will not be allowed to carry a cheque book and your name is put on a banking blacklist for three to five years. You will not be able to solve this problem just by changing banks, as all the banks have access to this blacklist.

Furthermore, if you have already taken out a mortgage and you get yourself into trouble with bouncing cheques, then you must beware of bodies who have a right to automatically take funds from the troublesome account. The tax office, for instance, can take property tax you may owe so it is important that you have sufficient funds available for this eventuality. Make sure you at least request an overdraft when opening an account, because if you are lucky enough to succeed then you could save yourself a whole lot of trouble.

Mortgages
In France, the crucial factor when getting a mortgage is affordability, rather than the income multiplying system used in the UK. Basically, the rule is that mortgage repayments cannot amount to more than 30 per cent of the net income. Although French lenders are bound by this law, they are still able to offer different interest rates, which are
generally two per cent lower than UK rates, though banks add a certain percentage to that. France has considerably less available in terms of mortgages than in the UK. You can expect to find discount, fixed and capped products through most lenders, but unless you are a French national, interest-only loans are hard to find.

Abbey National, under the new brand UCB, now offer mortgages for French properties. Specifically aimed at international buyers, this service aims to provide ongoing bilingual assistance at all stages of the purchasing process, from signing the preliminary sales agreement, to choosing your French mortgage, to mortgage application and, finally, completing the deed. When you apply for a mortgage, you will need proof of income and outgoings and piles of documentation as all mortgages are 'full status'. You will also need to prove that you are financially able to meet the mortgage repayments. No lenders will give pre-approval to a mortgage, so all your documentation will be rigorously checked. This means that if it takes you months to find the property you want, the information you supplied will be out-of-date and you have to start all over again. When you apply, you will have to fill out a mortgage application form, life assurance form and copy of the compromis that has been signed by both you and the vendor.

In France, life assurance is mandatory to cover the amount and duration of the mortgage. Some lenders will go by their own in-house policies because they cover all the terms of your mortgage and follow French regulations. Existing life policies are generally not accepted. Although previously it has been near-to-impossible to re-mortgage or re-finance in France, some recent changes mean banks and lenders are becoming more lenient. You cannot sign your mortgage offer until ten days after reading it, but you must do it within 30 days. If you get the date wrong, you will be sent another letter and have to wait another ten days. You can now use a mortgage to buy property which may or may not need renovation or improvement works, use it to bridge finance (only if you are selling a French property and buying another French property), re-finance an existing mortgage on your French property if you want to reduce monthly payments or benefit from lower interest rates, and release equity from the French property.
 
For more information on the French banking system:
Britline  

An example ...
Mr and Mrs Smith want to open a French bank account. Here are the steps they must take:
Choose a bank – there are French branches of familiar banks such as Abbey, Barclays and HSBC but they operate under French laws and regulations;
Choose an account – will it be resident or non-resident? Cheque, savings, or both?
Present your documentation – bankers' reference, passport, proof of earnings and proof of residence in the UK such as a household utility bill.
Make sure you can provide a deposit if needed.
Once you have opened a bank account, always make sure there is enough money in there – an overdraft or a bounced cheque can have serious financial implications.

Now, Mr and Mrs Smith want to apply for a mortgage
They must provide proof of income and outgoings and piles of documentation as all mortgages are 'full status'.
All that documentation must then be rigorously checked by the lender. Once that has been done, Mr and Mrs Smith must wait for a ten-day 'cooling off' period before they can sign a mortgage agreement. They must do this within 30 days.

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