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Rennes the best city for foreigners in France: A look at the data

The Local has tried to determine what city in France is the best for foreigners to live in in terms of quality of life. Here's a look at the data behind it.

Published: 21 June 2016 15:23 CEST
Rennes the best city for foreigners in France: A look at the data
Photo: AFP

Which city in France is the best for foreigners to live in, when it comes to all-round quality of life?

 

By our calculations it was Rennes, in Brittany. Before you ask where Paris came, the answer is fifth.

 

The full list of categories we looked at were: International air links, rail links, average monthly rent, unemployment rate, hours of annual sunshine, nightlife, distance to the beach, number of Michelin restaurants, best or easiest accent to understand, number of cultural sites/activities, greenest city, air quality, percentage of singles in the city, number of regional or national parks within two hours drive, and quality of public transport.

 

Full rankings: 

Rennes: 128

Nantes: 122

Bordeaux: 120

Toulouse: 115

Paris: 114

Lyon: 111

Montpellier: 107

Nice: 104

Grenoble: 102

Lille: 101

Marseille: 92

Clermont-Ferrand: 91

Strasbourg: 87

For each category we looked at an existing study and ranked the cities from 13 for the best down to one for the worst.

In some cases there were ties so the cities received the same points.

 

1. Air links

Number of international flight destinations

(All official airport websites)

 

13: Paris: 312, 2 international airports, plus Beauvais

12: Bordeaux: 126

11: Nantes: 90

10: Lyon: 84

9: Nice: 75

8: Toulouse: 66

7: Marseille: 64

6: Rennes: 59

5: Lille: 33

4: Montpellier: 20

3: Strasbourg: 13

2: Grenoble: 11

1: Clermont-Ferrand: 5 (no English-speaking countries)

 

2. Rail links

TGV line, journey time/number of trains to Paris daily

(Worked out from the SNCF website)

13: Paris: Obviously Paris has the best rail links in the country, serving national and international destinations.

12: Lille: TGV, 1 hr to Paris, 24 per day

11: Lyon: TGV, 2hrs to Paris, 29 per day

10: Rennes: TGV , 2 hrs 15 mins to Paris, 26 per day

9: Nantes: TGV, 2 hrs 15 mins to Paris, 22 per day

8: Strasbourg: TGV, 2.5 hrs to Paris, 16 per day

7: Bordeaux: TGV, 3 hrs 15 mins to Paris, 33 per day

6: Marseille: TGV, 3.5 hrs to Paris, 21 per day

5: Grenoble: TGV, 3 hrs to Paris, 9 per day

4: Montpellier: TGV, 3.5 hrs to Paris, 16 per day

3: Nice: TGV, 5.5 hrs to Paris, 12 per day

2: Toulouse: TGV, around 6 hours to Paris, 14 per day

1: Clermont-Ferrand: no TGV, 3.5 hrs to Paris, 7 regular trains per day

 

3. Average Monthly Rent

From the site: http://blog.locservice.fr/observatoire-locservice-2016-les-principaux-chiffres-du-marche-locatif-francais-3037.html

The average monthly rental for a French home is €624 ($678), according to online renting portal LocService.

The stats are based on the 65,500 homes rented out across the country via the website during 2015. Using the same site, here is cheapest to most expensive.

 

13: Clermont-Ferrand – €462

12: Rennes – €470

11: Nantes – €519

10: Grenoble – €533

9: Lille – €554

8: Toulouse – €581

7: Strasbourg – €591

6: Montpellier – €595

5: Bordeaux – €629

4: Marseille – €630

3: Lyon – €654

2: Nice – €685

1: Paris: €1,014

 

4. Best place to work/unemployment rate

 

Site: www.insee.fr

 

Unemployment rate by city with data from last three months of 2015

 

13: Rennes: 8.0 percent

12: Grenoble: 8.3 percent

11: Nantes: 8.4 percent

10: Clermont-Ferrand – 8.7 percent

9: Paris: 8.8 percent

8. Lyon: 9.2 percent

7: Bordeaux: 10 percent

6: Strasbourg: 10.3 percent

6: Toulouse: 10.3 percent

4: Nice 10.6 percent

3: Lille: 10.9 percent

2: Marseille: 12.6 percent

1: Montpellier: 13.2 percent

 

5. Hours of sunshine (best to worst)

https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/France/annual-days-of-sunshine.php

 

13: Marseille – 2,858

12: Nice – 2,724

11: Montpellier – 2,668

10: Grenoble – 2,066

9: Bordeaux – 2,035

8: Toulouse – 2,031

7: Lyon -2,002

6: Clermont-Ferrand – 1,913

5: Nantes – 1,791

4: Rennes – 1,717

3: Strasbourg – 1,693

2: Paris – 1,662

1: Lille – 1,617

 

6. Best nightlife

 

Study by FranceLive.fr, based on bars in PagesJaunes.fr, Number of inhabitants per bar

 

13: Clermont-Ferrand: 1401

12: Lille: 1440

11: Rennes: 1670

10: Bordeaux: 1672

9: Grenoble: 1691

8: Nantes: 1727

7: Lyon: 1767

6: Paris: 1964

5: Montpellier: 2237

4: Strasbourg: 2405

3: Nice: 2454

2: Marseille: 2492

1: Toulouse: 2614

 

7. Kilometres to the coast (best to worst)

13: Nice – 0 km (one of two coastal cities, but much better beaches)

12: Marseille – 0 km (bad beaches)

11: Montpellier – 8 km to the south

10: Nantes – 43km to Pornic on the west coast.

9: Bordeaux – 50 km to the west coast

8: Rennes – 54 km to Cherrueix on the north coast

7: Lille – 62 km to Bray-Dunes on north coast (special mention: 61 km to De Panne, in Belgium!)

6: Toulouse – 140 km to the south

5: Paris: 150 km to north coast, Dieppe

4: Grenoble – 209 km to Cannes, south coast

3: Clermont-Ferrand – 259 km to the south coast

2: Lyon – 260 km to the south coast

1: Strasbourg – 488 km to the northern coast

 

8. Number of Michelin-starred restaurants

http://restaurant.michelin.fr/

 

13: Paris: 92

12: Lyon: 15

11: Marseille: 6

11: Strasbourg: 6

9: Clermont-Ferrand: 4

9: Nice: 4

7: Toulouse: 3

7: Bordeaux: 3

5: Montpellier: 2

4: Nantes: 1

4: Lille: 1

4: Rennes: 1

1: Grenoble: 0

 

9. Best accent

We worked this out by a combination of two studies or rankings that we accept are by no means watertight. 

http://www.lepoint.fr/insolite/l-accent-toulousain-est-le-plus-sexy-de-france-28-01-2013-1620965_48.php

http://www.topito.com/top-accents-regional-sexy-chti

 

13: Toulouse – First on Topito (12 percent), 70.2 percent on Parship thought charming

12: Nice – Provencal accent scored second on Topito (10 percent)

11: Nantes – Breton accent scored third on topito breton, and 26 percent on Parship found it “intelligent”

11: Rennes- Breton accent scored third on topito breton, and 26 percent on Parship found it “intelligent”

9: Paris – Fourth on Topito (8 percent)

8: Clermont-Ferrand (No info from the 2 studies) Neutral

8: Bordeaux (No info from the 2 studies) Neutral

8: Grenoble (No info from the 2 studies) Neutral

8: Montpellier (No info from the 2 studies) Similar to Marseille?

4: Strasbourg – Alsacien, 8th

3: Lyon – ninth topito

2: Lille 5th topito, 74 percent find Chti funny

1: Marseille 72.2 of Parship thought it was funny.

 

10. Cultural sites and activities

Trip Advisor “Sights and Landmarks” + Museums

Museums, churches, cathedrals, sacred/religious sites, historic sites, monuments/statues, cemeteries, castles

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g187147-Activities-c47-Paris_Ile_de_France.html

13: Paris: 628

12: Nice: 87

11: Marseille: 83

10: Lyon: 80

9: Bordeaux: 71

8: Strasbourg: 69

7: Toulouse: 54

6: Lille: 49

5: Montpellier: 37

4: Nantes: 36

3: Grenoble: 23

2: Rennes: 20

2: Clermont-Ferrand: 20

 

11. Greenest city

http://www.lesentreprisesdupaysage.fr/files/Dossier-fichiers/DP-Palmares-Unep-des-villes-les-plus-vertes-de-France-2014-1.pdf

Green space per inhabitant. Green space data from tourism websites, INSEE population data

 

On average, France’s big cities have:

– 31 m² of green space per inhabitant

– 11 trees per hectare (but only 0.2 trees per inhabitant)

– Average green space budget per inhabitant: €47

– on average, invest 1.2 % of budget on green space

 

13: Rennes:  8,680,000 m², 207,178 inhabitants, 42 m²

12: Nantes: 34 m²

11: Bordeaux: 25 m²

10: Toulouse: 7,600,000 m², 441,802 inhabitants, 17 m²

9: Grenoble: 2,350,000 m², 155,637 inhabitants, 15 m²

9: Strasbourg: 4,000,000 m², 271,782 inhabitants, 15 m²

9: Montpellier:  3,930,000 m², 257,351 inhabitants, 15 m²

6: Lille: 12 m²

5: Clermont-Ferrand: 1,500,000 m², 139,860 inhabitants, 11 m²

4: Lyon: 4,360,000 m², 484,344 inhabitants, 9 m²

4: Nice: 3,000,000 m², 343 304 inhabitants, 9 m²

2: Marseille: 6,400,000 m², 850,726 inhabitants, 7.5 m²

1: Paris: 9,950,000 m², 2,243,833 inhabitants, 4 m²

 

12. Proximity to regional and national parks

Google Maps – within 2 hour’s drive

13: Paris: 6: Haute Vallée Chevreuse, Oise Pays-de-France, Vexin Francais, Gatinais Francais, Montagne de Reims, Perche

13: Lyon: 6: Pilat, Chartreuse, Massif des Bauges, Livradois Forez, Vercors, Ecrins

13: Montpellier: 6: Cevennes, Grands Causses, Camargue, Haut Languedoc, Narbonnaise, Alpilles

10: Grenoble: 5: Chartreuse, Écrins, Vercors, Vanoise, Pilat

10: Marseille: 5: Calanques, Verdon, Luberon, Alpilles, Camargue

8: Clermont-Ferrand: 4: Volcans d’Auvergne, Livradois Foret, Millevaches, Cevennes

8: Toulouse: 4: Haute Languedoc, Causses de Quercy, Pyrenées Ariegeoises, Narbonnaise

8: Lille: 4: Scarpe-Escaut, Avesnois, Caps et Marais, Oise Pays de France

5: Strasbourg: 3: Ballons des Vosges, Vosges du Nord, Lorraine

4: Nantes: 2: Briere, Loire Anjou Touraine,

4: Nice: 2: Mercantour, Verdon

4: Rennes: 2: Brieres, Normandie-Maine

1: Bordeaux: 1: Parc naturel régional des Landes de Gascogne

 

13. Air Quality

http://www.terraeco.net/IMG/pdf/Terraeco-classement-villes-durables-2014.pdf

13: Nice: 5 (ranking)

13: Montpellier: 5

11: Toulouse: 7

10: Strasbourg: 11

9: Nantes: 15

8: Rennes: 18

7: Clermont-Ferrand: 19

6: Bordeaux: 21

5: Marseille: 22

4: Paris: 26

3: Grenoble: 28

2: Lyon: 29

1: Lille: 30

 

14. Most singles

http://www.linternaute.com/homme/magazine/les-villes-qui-comptent-le-plus-de-celibataires/en-savoir-plus.shtml

 

13: Lille

12: Rennes

11: Toulouse

10: Bordeaux

9: Montpellier

8: Grenoble

7: Nantes

6: Lyon

5: Paris

4: Clermont-Ferrand

3: Strasbourg

2: Nice

2: Marseille

 

15. Best public transport

http://www.changerdeville.fr/ou-vivre/facilite-de-deplacement-palmares-des-villes-1026.html

Unfortunately Paris was not included in the study so we gave the city the average score, based on the fact the transport is clearly good, but is beset with problems. Just ask commuters on the RER trains. Once the Grand Paris comes into existence then the rankings may change.

13: Lyon

12: Lille

11: Toulouse

10: Rennes

9: Bordeaux

8: Grenoble

7: Paris

6: Nantes

5: Strasbourg

4: Marseille

3:Montpellier

2: Nice

1: Clermont-Ferrand

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PROPERTY

How to ensure your French property is insured for storm damage

Storm Ciaran’s property-wrecking passage through France - with another storm forecast for the weekend - may have many people wondering how comprehensive their insurance cover is. 

Published: 3 November 2023 15:45 CET
How to ensure your French property is insured for storm damage

In the wake of Storm Ciaran, thousands of property owners in France are preparing insurance claims – with initial estimates of the bill for damage between €370 million and €480 million.

Home insurance is compulsory in France, whether you own the property you live in or you rent – and it must include some level of storm damage cover. 

Check also to see if your insurance provides cover in case of a declaration of a catastrophe naturelle.

The garantie tempête (storm guarantee) covers damage caused by violent winds. What constitutes a ‘violent wind’ varies from contract to contract, but there appears to be a widespread consensus of agreement on wind speeds over 100km/h.

In most insurance contracts, this covers damage caused by the storm and within the following 48 hours – so you’re covered if, for example, a tree weakened by the storm comes down within that period and damages your property.

Be aware that, while the storm guarantee automatically covers the main property, it generally only covers any secondary buildings and light constructions – such as a veranda, shed, solar panels, swimming pool or fence – if they are specifically mentioned in the contract. 

The same is true of any cars damaged by debris. A basic insurance contract might not include storm damage, so it is always worth checking.

Damage must be reported to your insurer as quickly as possible. The deadline for making declarations is usually five days after any damage is noticed. This is especially important for second home owners, who may not be at the property when the damage occurs. 

In some cases – such as in the aftermath of Storm Ciaran – insurers may extend the reporting period. But under normal circumstances, it’s five days after the damage has been discovered.

What happens next

To make a claim, the first thing to do is contact your insurer by phone or email. Your insurer will take you through the next steps, but usually you have to send in a declaration – which should include an estimate of any losses and for any repairs, with evidence where possible, such as photographs and any receipts for purchases. 

Your insurer may also request proof of wind intensity, which can be provided for example by a nearby weather station.

The insurance company may appoint an expert to come and assess the damage, so make sure to keep damaged property safe until they arrive, as well as all invoices for any urgent repair work. 

What if you’re a tenant?

If you rent your property, you must report any damage inside the accommodation to your insurer and also notify your landlord so that they can file their own claim. 

In the case of a co-propriete, you must declare damage inside the accommodation to your insurer, while the trustee sends his own declaration to the collective insurance (which sometimes covers the private areas) .

How long does it take for claims to be settled?

Payment of the compensation provided for by the “storm guarantee” depends your home insurance contract. After the insurer has estimated the amount of damage, compensation is generally paid between 10 and 30 days following receipt of the insured’s agreement.

What if we got flooded?

In the case of flooding, you may have to wait for a natural disaster order to be issued. 

Catastrophe naturelle

The ‘state of natural disaster’ is a special procedure that was set up in 1982 so victims of exceptional natural events, such as storms, heavy rain, mudslides and flooding, as well as drought, can be adequately compensated for damage to property.

The government evaluates each area and deems whether it qualifies for the status of catastrophe naturelle (natural disaster). 

Essentially once a zone is declared a natural disaster, victims can claim from a pot of funds created by all insurers. If the zone is not declared a disaster, insurance companies are under no obligation to pay out. 

Under a “state of natural disaster” residents are covered for all those goods and property that are directly damaged by the phenomenon, in this case storms.

It applies to residential or commercial buildings, furniture, vehicles and work equipment that are already covered by insurance policies.

Homes must be already covered by a multi-risk insurance policy for the status of natural disaster to count.

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