Outstanding news if you’re a Brit planning to new your perfect Paris this year! The pound to euro interbank exchange rate has shot up to 1.1534 today, its highest in 10 months, or since May 24th 2017.

As a result, when you transfer money from your UK bank account to France, you’ll receive a much higher euro total. In turn, this will cut your costs to buy your ideal property in Paris, and make your new home in Paris more affordable for you!

Pound flies, as Bank of England comes closer to lifting UK interest rates

The pound to euro interbank exchange rate stands taller today, because 2 members of the Bank of England’s 9-person interest rate setting committee unexpectedly voted to hike UK interest rates today, above 0.5%.

In particular, central bank policymakers Ian McCafferty and Michael Saunders have both voted to lift UK borrowing costs, to ensure that interest rates rise at a steady, moderate pace.

In turn, this lifts the odds that the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street, as the Bank of England is often called, will lift UK interest rates as soon as May. This has boosted sterling, giving you a helping hand to buy your gorgeous Paris property!

Sterling soars, as UK wage growth accelerates in January

Moreover, sterling has also shot up against the Eurozone’s common currency this week, because UK wage growth has accelerated, according to closely-watched data.

To be specific, UK wages including bonuses rose by +2.8% in the 3 months to January, said the UK’s Office for National Statistics on Wednesday. This is +0.1% above January’s 2.7%, as well as +0.2% above financial market forecasts for 2.6%.

This tells us that British workers are earning more, which in turn will fuel the UK’s economic growth in coming months. As a result, the pound is flexing its muscles versus the euro, making buying your beautiful property in Paris more affordable.

Pound’s strength cuts your costs to buy gorgeous Paris property

So to put the pound’s rise into context, let’s say that you intend to transfer £8,600,000 from the UK to your French bank account, to buy an exceptional duplex apartment in Paris’s Triangle d’Or.

At today’s interbank exchange rate of 1.1534, you’d get a total of 9,919,240€. By comparison, if you’d transferring your money back in late August, when the exchange rate stood at just 1.0797, you’d have received just 9,285,420€.

This is to say, sterling’s rise in the past 7 months means that you’ll receive an outstanding 633,820€ extra in your French bank account.

With all this in mind, it’s an excellent time to buy the Paris property your heart is set up, as the pound to euro exchange rate is going from strength-to-strength. Make the most of the favourable currency rate to make your Paris dream come true!

By Peter Lavelle at foreign exchange broker Pure FX https://www.purefx.co.uk +44 (0) 1494 671800 peter.lavelle@purefx.co.uk