by Florian Callens
published on Wednesday April 24, 2024 to 08:31 •
3 min read
The French village of Saint-Amand-Montrond has put a house up for sale for the symbolic price of 1 euro. The condition is that you completely renovate the house and actually come to live in the village. Interested parties have until June 15 to register, after which the lucky person will be chosen.
Why is this important?
In recent years, articles have appeared in the media several times about homes costing 1 euro in Southern European countries. This has been a trend, especially in Italy. This usually concerns dilapidated houses that you are obliged to renovate. In this way, small villages want to prevent their population numbers from declining further.Saint-Amand-Montrond
The house for sale is in Saint-Amand-Montrond, a village of about 9,000 inhabitants that is centrally located in France, approximately 45 km from Bourges. It is a house on an area of 77 square meters, with a garden and garage. It is a two-storey house with two bedrooms.
“There are many possibilities,” says Francis Blondieau, deputy responsible for Urban Planning of Saint-Amand-Montrond. Ouest France.
To register
Anyone interested in the house can register on the Saint-Amand-Montrond website until June 15, 2024. You must submit a file there, which must show that you as a candidate meet a number of conditions.
- Interested parties must come to live permanently in Saint-Amand-Montrond for at least ten years. Those who are only looking for a second home or a country retreat don’t stand a chance.
- The new owner must completely renovate the house. Since it has been vacant for about twenty years, this will be major work. The municipality estimates that the renovation will cost around 127,800 euros. If you can do some of the work yourself, the costs will of course decrease. Moreover, you have a chance to win many subsidies and you will be supported by the municipality.
Choice
In July, the Saint-Amand-Montrond selection committee will meet to decide who can buy the property for 1 euro. The choice will be made around September and the deed of sale will be signed in January 2025. The new owner then has another five months to start the renovations. The works should be completed in July 2028.
- No one has registered for the home yet. However, the municipality is confident that this will still happen. In 2021, it had a similar initiative for another home, which received 90 registrations.
