Running a B&B in France
Today in France 20,000 guesthouses are in activities, and welcome holiday-makers from all around the world throughout the year.
Just as for many locals or expatriates, the idea of launching your own Bed&Breakfast business in France may be tempting for various reasons. However, before embarking on this adventure, you should keep in mind that running a Chambre d’hote is running a business above all; therefore you will have to follow a few steps to make sure it runs smoothly.
Investment:
First and foremost, you should decide whether or not you wish to use your own house to run your B&B. Indeed, you may wish to turn your property into a guesthouse as you already know the city and region and will therefore be able to advise the clientele. Nonetheless, expensive structural work and upgrades might be necessary to convert your property. Luckily there are other options such as buying a new house with all the required criteria or buy an already existing B&B and take over the activity. This last option has many advantages: limited upgrades will be required, furniture and installations may be sold with the house, and finally you may also benefit from the business’ good reputation.
Location:
Before settling your business, it is important to think carefully about the location of your B&B, if you plan to buy a property elsewhere. Indeed some regions attract more visitors than others, which is therefore crucial for your business activity. On the other hand, you may also think about choosing a place not overcrowded with B&B as your business would not stand out from others… except if you come up with a one of a kind project, unique in the region! In a nutshell: choosing a great location, isolated enough, in an attractive region could be a good compromise.
Bedrooms and bathrooms:
Every bedroom should have access to a private or shared bathroom and a WC. Shared or not, bathrooms must meet French health and safety requirements. Also keep in mind that some clients, although booking for 2 people, may not come as a couple and therefore ask for separate beds. Thus it is a good thing to have bedrooms where disposition of beds can be changed. Rooms’ size, decoration and en-suite bathrooms are import criteria in customers’ researches.
Report of your business:
Before launching your B&B business, make sure not to forget to fill a rental declaration (declaration de location) and then register with the local administration. This declaration reports all the details about the owner and the B&B activity (identity, home identification, number of bedrooms, number of people allowed, rental periods etc.). Any change of the elements above should be registered in a new rental declaration. It is also compulsory to register your activity with your home insurance.
Legal status:
The situation for guesthouse’s owners is quite confused regarding the legal status. Indeed there are various choices and you should therefore choose wisely which one to pick. However the most common legal status is the one of auto entrepreneur, as you can easily start and stop your business. Also, the social and fiscal charges are calculated on a turnover basis; therefore if you do not make any turnover, you will not pay any charges… thereby reducing the risk!
Taxation:
B&B business are subject to the BIC regime (Industrial and commercial benefits), such as leasebacks. This regime applies to turnover of less than 76,300€ ex-Tax.
However buying a property situated in a ZRR zone (i.e. Zone de revitalisation rurale or Rural revitalisation zone) gives you rights to tax cuts, by up to 50,000€ for one person and by up to 100,000€ for a couple. This tax cut is then spread over 6 years. To know if you can benefit from these tax advantages, you can cask local administrations.
Prices:
As you can imagine, prices of Chambre d’hotes vary from one region to another, and a wide range of prices exists. It will therefore be an important criteria in your price-fixing, as regional disparities appear. Prices are on average between 45€ and 85€ for a double bedroom (breakfast included); however you can find Chambre d’hotes for less than 45€ (20% of guesthouses). In order to fix an appropriate price, do not hesitate to check regional prices and services provided as this will guide you through the pricing process. Note that it takes around 3 years for your B&B to have a good occupancy rate and be cost-effective.
Last but not least, our main advice would be to learn French before moving to France, not only to handle the administrative tasks, but also because many of your customers will be French and therefore appreciate the effort and conversation.
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