13 Basic French Words for Moving, Renting, or Buying a Home
As a French language learner, you've probably dreamed of living in France or a Francophone country at least once. Whether you've limited yourself to abstract, vague ideas of what you would do there, or you've dedicated an entire Pinterest board and checklist to your dream, you certainly aren't alone in wishing to visit a foreign country.
Visiting or living in a Francophone region is the best way to improve your language skills. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to truly master a foreign language. Even just a short trip can do wonders for advancing your language skills, especially if you dedicate the trip to practicing real-life French every day. Longer immersion trips are obviously more beneficial than a short, weeklong venture, but they require a lot more planning and financing than studying at home or in a classroom will. One thing that you'll have to meticulously plan, for instance, is the move.
Moving to a foreign country can be very stressful. Learning some of the basic French vocab and phrases associated with moving, however, can help you feel better prepared to tackle it. Even if you don't feel confident in your level of French and plan on doing a lot in English, knowing basic French moving vocab can do wonders to make the transition easier.
Why Should You Know Moving Vocab?
Moving isn't something that you'll do very often. At least, not as often as you go to the grocery store or use public transit. When do you move, though, it can be a pretty high-stress moment. You can eliminate some of that stress by learning basic French moving vocab before the actual move. That way, when someone asks if you're looking for un appartement ou une maison, or if you want your rent to be charges comprises, you know what they're asking.
In some cases, immersion programs will provide housing so you won't need to know this vocab. If you're moving on your own or your program doesn't provide housing, then knowing the following vocab will be vital.
Realistically, you can move to France or another Francophone country without knowing French. There are plenty of multilingual agencies that can help. However, as a French language learner, your primary goal for moving is to learn French. This means practicing new vocab and exposing yourself to the language. Now, you can certainly work with a multilingual company to ensure that nothing gets misunderstood, but you should definitely try using French vocab in your search for a new living place.
13 Words for Moving in French That You Should Know
One thing to keep in mind about French vocab is that it may differ between regions. France and Quebec, for example, have many linguistic differences that will impact your French. Fortunately, in most cases, basic French words for moving, renting, or buying a home will be the same. As you'll see below, there are some situations where a particular vocabulary word may be specific to one region or another.
General Moving Vocab in French
As can be expected, moving, renting, or buying may look a little different in a foreign, Francophone country than in your home country. Some of the vocab in French is very specific to certain situations and I'll go over that in a bit. For now, here is the vocab list that you should keep track of:
- démenager > to move (out)
- démenagement > move-out (noun)
- émmenager > to move (in)
- louer > to rent
- acheter > to buy
- une agence immobilière > real estate agency
- un propiétaire > landlord
- un studio > studio
- un T2 / T3 / T4 / T5 > (an apartement/house with) one bedroom/two bedroom/three bedroom/four bedroom
- la caution > the deposit
- chez nous / chez moi > our home/my home
French is very particular in how you can say that you moved. You can't use the same word in every situation; démenager is specific to moving out whereas émmenager is specific to moving in.
When it comes to what type of house or apartment you want, un T2 / T3 / T4 / T5 is unique and limited to France. It isn't used in other Francophone countries. Understanding it can be a little tricky at first, but it really isn't that complicated. There is no T1, as the living room is counted as a room. Therefore, a T2 would be a one bedroom apartment with a living room. A T3 has two bedrooms and a living room, and so on and so forth. It's a little hard to explain here, so here's a video that explains it more in-depth.
Vocab for Buying a House in French
Now, I know it's unlikely that you'll be buying a house for a quick immersion program, but if you plan on fully moving to a Francophone country, then maybe you will one day. It may not be as soon as you move, but if you're sure of your move, then maybe it is. In either case, here is some more basic French vocab that is specific to buying a house.
- faire un emprunt / un prêt immobilier / un crédit immobilier > take out a mortgage
- aller au notaire > go to the notary
As you can see, there are three different ways to say "mortgage". All are generally understood so you can use any of them; just be aware that they do have a bit of nuance to them and someone else may use a different term depending on the situation.
Additionally, le notaire in French is the person who concludes a sale between you and the seller of the house or apartment. They finalize all the paperwork and ensure everything is in order. You cannot buy a home without going to a notary.
What to Know When Moving to France
So now that you know some essential French words for moving, what else should you know before your big adventure?
First thing first: Not every French-speaker will know English, so don't expect to get by on it. The point of moving in the first place is to immerse yourself in French and you can't do this if you revert to English every chance you get. In some places, people may not even speak English, particularly southern France and rural areas. Plan on only using French even if you struggle to make a sentence or be understood. Over time, it will get easier.
Next, there are a few websites you should know about if you plan on moving. They range from news channels to the equivalent of Craisglist (which can be a great place to find an apartment). Familiarize yourself with them before your move.
Finally, if you plan on renting, there are a few things you should know in advance.
It's possible to rent from either an agency (une agence immobilière) or an individual (un particulier). With an agency, you'll have nonrefundable fees called honoraires in addition to the deposit. These fees can be quite high, so be sure to ask what they are before working with an agency. If you go through a private individual, you likely won't have fees, but there can be other issues. Some private landlords may try to trick or take advantage of foreigners.
Whether you choose a private landlord or an agency, you have the choice to rent an apartment with utilities included (charges comprises) or excluded (hors charges) in the monthly rent. I highly recommend renting an apartement charges comprises as you won't have to worry about finding companies for all of your utilities. The good news is that it isn't hard to find such an apartment.
Practice Makes Perfect
Again, you probably won't use this French moving vocab very often, but it's still worth practicing and memorizing. You may be surprised when it comes up and feeling confident in your vocab beforehand can alleviate a lot of stress.
If you plan on moving or simply want to test your listening comprehension, I recommend watching this moving vlog in French to learn more about moving in France and to practice your new vocab.