Hauts de France

Living and buying property in Hauts-de-France

From Lille neighbourhoods to the Bay of Somme, the towns of the Artois and the villages of the Avesnois, Hauts-de-France offers several settings for a home. Brick town houses, period apartments and rural properties contribute to its varied character.

For UK buyers, it can be a starting point for both a permanent move and regular stays across the Channel. The coast, cities and countryside each deserve to be explored on their own terms.

Explore the departments

The departments covered by this regional overview are: Aisne, Nord, Oise, Pas-de-Calais, Somme.

Nord
Lille, the towns of French Flanders, Dunkirk and the countryside of the Avesnois give the Nord several distinct identities. Buyers can explore urban apartments, brick town houses and rural homes, with different settings for a permanent move or regular time in northern France.

Pas-de-Calais
The Opal Coast, Arras, Saint-Omer and the countryside of the Artois give Pas-de-Calais a varied property setting. For UK buyers, the Channel crossings can also make this part of France a practical starting point for a holiday-home search, alongside plans for a permanent move.

Somme
Amiens, the Somme valley and the bay offer three different introductions to this part of northern France. Buyers can explore a city home, a coastal base or a house in a smaller town, with gardens and local life often shaping the search.

Lille and the region’s other cities

Lille and its surrounding towns provide a broad urban choice, alongside places such as Amiens, Arras, Valenciennes and Compiègne. Neighbourhoods, transport and layout help distinguish an apartment from a town house or residential home. A courtyard or modest garden can become an important part of the search.

Coastal homes for regular visits

The Opal Coast and Bay of Somme offer different atmospheres, from resorts and ports to small towns. An apartment near a beach and a house in a neighbouring commune provide different ways to spend a visit. Consider the complete journey from the UK together with the walks, shops and space for family you would enjoy once there.

Countryside and small-town houses

The Avesnois, Artois, Aisne and Oise landscapes introduce gardens and more rural properties. A wish for space might mean a study, outbuilding or larger outdoor area. Choosing a home near a local centre can connect that space with the everyday life of the place.

Lille and its metropolitan area: finding the right neighbourhood

Lille appeals to buyers who want city life to be part of their experience of France. Older streets, shops and cultural venues create a setting in which an apartment can make an enjoyable base. The historic centre, residential districts and surrounding communes nevertheless offer different ways to live. A town house with a courtyard, a bright apartment and a family home with a garden meet distinct expectations. Deciding which matters most helps give the first viewings a purpose.

Here, the neighbourhood contributes as much as the building. It may allow you to establish everyday routines on foot or provide a more residential setting for longer stays. Roubaix and Tourcoing have their own architectural histories, with brick houses and buildings connected with their urban past. Some properties stand out through their interior volumes; others through an arrangement that simply makes daily life comfortable. Looking at both the rooms and their wider setting gives a clearer picture of what an address offers.

Flanders and Artois: town houses and country settings

In French Flanders, villages, small towns and open landscapes bring another perspective. Around Bailleul, Cassel and Hazebrouck, buyers might consider a village house or a property whose grounds play a larger role. Brickwork, courtyards and older rural buildings contribute to the character of some homes. Space for gardening, a room in which to work and somewhere to welcome visitors may become the elements that define the search.

Artois provides a similarly varied choice. Arras offers town living in a distinctive historic setting, while surrounding communes provide alternatives for a house and garden. Around Béthune and Lens, the search may focus on the neighbourhoods and activities that would shape everyday life. These areas are worth exploring as individual places. A home near a centre and one more closely connected with the countryside can both suit a move to France, depending on the balance you want between local activity and time at home.

The Opal Coast: choosing the life around the seaside home

The coast has several identities. Dunkirk and Malo-les-Bains, Calais, Boulogne-sur-Mer, Wimereux, Le Touquet and neighbouring seaside towns create different rhythms for a stay. Some combine urban life with the beach; others encourage days organised around walks and the immediate neighbourhood. The landscapes around the coastal headlands add another reason to explore beyond the first property on a shortlist.

For an apartment, consider a welcoming living room, a balcony on which you can sit comfortably and an arrangement that works for short visits. For a house, the relationship between the garden, shared rooms and bedrooms helps show how family gatherings would feel. A second home does not need to be large to be rewarding. It needs to be somewhere you want to return, including for a few quiet days. A familiar walk, promenade or local shop can be as important to that attachment as the view from a window.

Amiens and Somme: town life and landscapes towards the bay

Amiens offers another starting point, with its neighbourhoods, historic surroundings and the presence of water within the townscape. Town houses and apartments allow buyers to consider everyday urban living; neighbouring communes extend the choice for gardens and additional rooms. Explore the places you would use during a normal stay, rather than judging the area entirely through a visit to its central sights.

Further west, Abbeville, smaller towns and the surroundings of the Bay of Somme appeal to projects in which nature and family visits have an important place. Saint-Valery-sur-Somme, Le Crotoy and inland villages provide distinct settings. A small-town house, an apartment and a rural property create different relationships with the area. The decision may depend on whether you want local activity close at hand or would rather make the garden and time at home central to each visit.

Oise and Aisne: looking beyond a single image of northern France

In Oise, Chantilly, Senlis, Compiègne and Beauvais give buyers varied starting points. Older centres, residential districts and surrounding villages provide possibilities for family houses, apartments and character properties. Woodland and historic places may be part of the attraction, but the address should also suit the routine of the people who will live there. A focused selection of communes usually makes a first viewing trip more revealing than an extensive circuit.

Aisne brings further landscapes and settings. Laon, Soissons, Saint-Quentin and Château-Thierry each have their own identity. Small towns, villages and countryside allow buyers to compare older houses, urban homes and properties with outbuildings. A workshop, a ground-floor bedroom or a room opening to the garden can give a house a very personal usefulness. Connecting those qualities with a place you would enjoy returning to helps turn an appealing listing into a coherent project.

Character that works for the way you live

Brick is familiar in the built landscape of northern France, but the region also includes coastal villas, stone houses and rural buildings with other traditions. Their appeal lies partly in proportion, light and the way older spaces accommodate current uses. An attractive façade becomes more meaningful when the rooms also allow you to cook, work, welcome guests and relax comfortably. For overseas buyers, checking current travel arrangements for a chosen area helps complete that picture. The objective is a home whose character and location support the stays you genuinely expect to make.

Your property search

Explore the properties offered by Sextant and refine your search by location, property type and budget. Share your plans with a property consultant to discuss the homes that interest you and the viewings you would like to arrange.