A property project is decided as much by the quality of the application as by the property itself. Two borrowers with identical incomes rarely receive the same offer — what separates them is preparation. This page brings together the advice that actually matters: estimating your borrowing capacity, sizing your personal contribution, understanding what moves the interest rate, reading an APR, budgeting the fees and genuinely comparing loan offers. You can then price your project with the CourtierVIP simulators and ask to be put in touch with a credit broker.
A bank does not assess a project, it assesses a risk. The same file, with the same figures but presented in a different order and with the right supporting documents, does not get the same answer. That is the value of advice taken early: it is not about negotiating a decimal point on the rate, it is about making the application readable and reassuring on first reading.
In practice, three mistakes come up constantly:
Mortgage advice starts by correcting those three points. Everything else — putting banks in competition, negotiating, structuring — comes afterwards and rests on them.
The financing application is the only document the bank decides on. Without being asked, it must answer three questions: where the income comes from, how the borrower manages money, and what happens if the situation deteriorates.
The last three months weigh more than the last two years. An overdraft, even small and repaid, an active revolving credit, recurring instalment payments or unexplained transfers to a third party all raise questions. Conversely, regular saving, however modest, proves a capacity for effort — the single most effective argument in a financing application.
The practical advice is simple: if your banking situation is not clean, postpone the application by three months rather than take a refusal. A refusal leaves a trace and complicates what follows.
The bank compares your future instalment with your current housing cost — rent or existing instalment. Going from €700 of rent to a €1,400 instalment is a 100% step-up, which will have to be explained and offset by visible savings. A small, or negative, step-up is a strong argument in your favour.
Borrowing capacity is the maximum amount a lender will agree to lend you, given your income, your charges and the term envisaged. It rests on a simple principle: your total loan instalments, borrower insurance included, must not exceed a defined share of your net income.
In France, the recommendation of the Haut Conseil de stabilité financière caps this ratio at 35% of net income, insurance included, over a term generally limited to 25 years. Banks keep a margin of flexibility on part of their lending, reserved primarily for main residences and first-time buyers.
Concretely, on €3,500 of net monthly income with €200 of car loan outstanding, the available envelope is around €1,025 per month for the mortgage, insurance included. It is that instalment, set against the term and the rate, that determines how much capital you can borrow.
The ratio is not the only filter. The bank also checks what is left once every charge is paid, relative to household size. A 33% ratio may be refused to a family of five and accepted for a single person on the same income. This is why a mortgage simulation gives an order of magnitude, never a decision.
Permanent-contract salaries beyond the probation period are counted in full. Bonuses and variable pay only count if they are regular across several years. Rental income is usually counted at 70 to 80%, to cover vacancy and running costs. Self-employed income is assessed over two to three sets of accounts.
A personal contribution is not just a sum that reduces the capital borrowed. Its first job is to cover what a bank finances reluctantly: notary fees, guarantee fees and arrangement fees. That is why a contribution of around 10% of the price is often presented as the entry threshold — it roughly matches those ancillary costs.
Emptying your savings to maximise the contribution is frequently a mistake. The bank looks at the savings remaining after completion: they are your safety cushion. Keeping the equivalent of several instalments after signing is more reassuring than a bigger contribution that leaves nothing behind.
Still possible, mainly for young profiles early in their career with credible income progression, or for rental investments where financial leverage is the point. It is paid for with a higher rate and stricter scrutiny of how the accounts are run.
Personal savings, released employee savings, a formalised family gift, zero-rate and assisted loans depending on the situation. A gift must be documented: a large sum appearing on an account without explanation is a classic sticking point.
The rate a bank advertises is not a fixed tariff: it is a starting point adjusted file by file. Understanding the levers lets you act on it rather than accept it.
The bank's own funding cost, its commercial policy of the moment, its presence in your region and its appetite for your type of project. Two lenders can quote several tenths of a point apart on the same day, on the same file, simply because one wants volume and the other does not. That is exactly what makes competition worth organising.
In France, almost all residential mortgages are fixed rate: the instalment is known for the whole term. A variable rate, even capped, transfers risk to the borrower and is only justified in particular situations, generally over short terms.
The annual percentage rate of charge — TAEG in French — bundles into a single indicator the headline rate, the borrower insurance required, arrangement fees, guarantee fees and compulsory ancillary costs. It is expressed as an annual percentage and it is the only legally comparable figure between offers.
An offer at 3.45% with insurance at 0.42% and €1,200 of arrangement fees costs more than an offer at 3.60% with insurance at 0.15% and fees waived. Comparing headline rates here leads you to pick the more expensive of the two. The APR restores the real ranking.
The APR appears by law on the loan offer issued by the bank, next to the total cost of credit. Until you hold a written offer, you have a commercial proposal: it binds no one.
A loan's APR cannot legally exceed a ceiling, the usury rate, published periodically by the Banque de France according to the term. An application can be refused not on its merits but because its APR, insurance included, crosses that ceiling — a frequent situation for borrowers with a health risk, whose insurance is loaded. Reducing the insurance cost then becomes the key to the financing.
Borrower insurance covers repayment of the loan in the event of death, disability and, depending on the contract, incapacity for work. Every bank requires it, although no law imposes it. Over a long loan it is commonly the second largest cost after interest, and sometimes the largest for the youngest borrowers, who benefit from low interest rates.
The bank offers its group contract, mutualised and rarely the cheapest for a young non-smoker. Delegation lets you take cover elsewhere, provided the guarantees are at least equivalent. The cost gap over the full term of a loan routinely runs into thousands of euros.
French rules allow you to cancel and replace your borrower insurance at any time, free of charge and without waiting for an anniversary date, as long as the new contract offers equivalent guarantees. It is one of the few substantial savings that can still be made after signing.
Comparing loan offers only makes sense if the proposals are strictly equivalent. An offer over 20 years and one over 25 years cannot be compared: the second will always show a gentler instalment and a higher total cost.
Support on a mortgage largely consists of surfacing those lines, which never appear in a comparison of rates.
A credit broker is an intermediary in banking operations and payment services. In France the activity is regulated: registration with ORIAS, professional indemnity insurance, duties of information and advice, continuing training. That framework is verifiable — the ORIAS register is public.
Brokerage fees are legally due only after the funds have actually been released. Nothing can be claimed from you before then — a simple rule that protects the borrower. The broker also receives a commission from the chosen bank. Both must be disclosed to you in writing before you commit.
No broker guarantees that a loan will be granted, or a rate announced in advance. The decision belongs to the bank, and only the written offer counts. A promise of results should put you on your guard.
CourtierVIP provides free simulators, usable without creating an account, so you can price a project before speaking to anyone.
Every simulation shows the estimated instalment, the rate applied, the corresponding debt ratio and the total cost, with the date the rate table was last updated. The result can be downloaded as a PDF.
If the figures suit you, you can ask to be put in touch with a partner broker. Your request is passed on with the details you entered, so you are not asked for them twice. You stay free at every step: a simulation is not a credit application, and being put in touch is not a commitment.
The advertised price of a property is never the amount actually to be financed. Four items are added to it, to be anticipated from the outset because they determine the contribution required. The orders of magnitude below are indicative: they vary with the property, the region and the lender.
A misleading name: they consist mostly of taxes paid to the State and local authorities, the notary’s own fee being a small part. They generally run to around 7 to 8% of the price for an existing property and 2 to 3% for a new build. It is the heaviest item and is rarely financed by the loan.
The bank requires security on the loan: a guarantee from a specialist body, a mortgage charge, or a lender’s lien. Expect in the region of 1 to 1.5% of the amount borrowed. A guarantee body has the advantage of a partial refund at the end of the loan, which a mortgage charge does not offer.
Charged by the lender for assessing and structuring the file. They commonly range from a few hundred euros to about 1% of the amount, often capped. This is one of the most easily negotiated items, and frequently waived when several banks are competing for the file.
The intermediary’s remuneration, as a percentage of the amount borrowed or a flat fee. They fall due only after the funds have been released and must be disclosed in writing before you commit. They should be weighed against the saving actually obtained on the APR and on the insurance.
There is no single threshold: it depends on the term, the rate, your existing charges and your household. By way of illustration, €200,000 over 25 years at around 3.5% including insurance means an instalment close to €1,050, which implies roughly €3,000 of net monthly income with no other loan outstanding, to stay under a 35% debt ratio. A simulation with your real figures will be far more reliable than any general rule.
It is possible, though less common than a few years ago. It mainly concerns young borrowers on permanent contracts with credible income progression, and some rental investments. In return, the rate is generally higher and the bank is stricter about how the accounts are run and the savings kept after completion.
Generally six to ten weeks between submitting a complete file and the funds being released: bank assessment, issue of the offer, the statutory ten-day cooling-off period during which the offer cannot be accepted, then signing at the notary. An incomplete file is the leading cause of delay.
No. A simulation uses an indicative rate table and gives an order of magnitude. Only the written loan offer issued by the bank binds it, with its APR and its total cost. Until that offer exists, no rate is secured.
No. Delegation lets you take cover with another insurer as long as the guarantees are at least equivalent, and the contract can be changed at any time during the loan, free of charge. For a young non-smoker, the gap with the bank’s group contract often runs into thousands of euros over the full term.
The headline rate only pays for the capital lent. The APR adds the required insurance, arrangement fees, guarantee fees and compulsory ancillary costs. Two offers can show the same headline rate and markedly different APRs: it is the APR, and only the APR, that allows an honest comparison of loan offers.
Brokerage fees are legally due only after the funds have actually been released: nothing can be asked of you beforehand. The amount must be disclosed in writing before you commit, and should be weighed against the saving genuinely obtained on the APR, on the insurance and on bank fees.
The simulation is free, immediate and commits you to nothing. You get an estimated instalment, borrowing capacity and total cost, downloadable as a PDF.
Run a free simulationPage updated on 19/08/2026