France’s heritage for sale

If you’re looking for property with a bit of history and heritage attached to it then the way to go is France. A special division was recently created to look at the French government’s real estate for resale.

The French state owns about 28,000 properties. These properties are jointly worth about $50 billion. About $2 billion’s worth of property has already been sold off in the past three years.

One building of interest that is going to be sold early in 2007 is the Hotel Majestic. Situated in central Paris, the hotel is a great historical structure because it is believed to be the command centre for the Nazis when they occupied France. It is estimated to be over 500 million Euros.

French nationals or foreign buyers are welcome to buy properties like this.

The program was put together by the government not to sell the heritage of France but simply, to cut costs. 85% of profits will go to the current occupant of the building, and the remaining 15% will be used to cover government debts.

Unfortunately, not everyone is happy with the program. Ousted civil servants, used to working in beautiful buildings of history complain because now they are made to work in simple, modern buildings instead. The Institut Montaigne, a French think tank, believes that the program lacks a coherent strategy. They believe that some buildings are being sold too cheap. The government disagrees; when a sale price is deemed too cheap, the government will cancel the sale and retain the building for a few years before trying to resell at a better price.

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France’s heritage for sale

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