Investing in land is often seen as the ultimate safe-haven investment. Beyond directly buying an agricultural property, there is a particularly suitable legal and tax solution to become a landowner without having to farm yourself: the Agricultural Land Group (GFA). On ma-propriete.fr, we open the doors to this collaborative and heritage-oriented investment. To make your project a success, feel free to consult our buying guides.
The Agricultural Land Group, more commonly known as a GFA, is a specific type of civil company dedicated to the rural world. Created by the law of 31 December 1970 and governed by the Rural Code, its main objective is to promote the preservation of farms and to facilitate asset transfer. In practice, the GFA owns the land and buildings, while a farmer (who may be one of the partners or a third party) is responsible for cultivation and production via a lease.
In France, the GFA model is increasingly attracting investors looking for a tangible asset that is uncorrelated with volatile financial markets. This type of collective ownership allows you to hold shares representing a proportion of the company’s share capital.
The assets held by a GFA are varied. They mainly consist of agricultural land (arable land, grassland), but also of facilities necessary for the activity: storage sheds, livestock buildings, irrigation or drainage systems. In some regions, the GFA may own prestigious vineyards (often referred to as a viticultural GFA).
Economically, this model meets a crucial need: the price of land and the cost of equipment make it difficult for young farmers to set up. The GFA makes it possible to separate land ownership from land use. The farmer does not have to tie up cash to buy the land; instead, he or she pays rent, the farm tenancy (fermage), to the GFA. It is a form of solidarity land ownership that supports the rural economy.
Opportunities to buy shares can be found throughout France. Large cereal-growing regions (Centre-Val de Loire, Grand Est) often offer accessible entry tickets for several hectares of arable land. Western regions (Brittany, Pays de la Loire) provide opportunities related to livestock farming, while the South and East (Burgundy, Bordeaux area) are sought after for viticultural GFAs where the market value of the shares can be higher.
Buying GFA shares should not be done randomly. It is a long-term land investment that requires analysis of several criteria to ensure the safety of your savings and to optimise your asset diversification.
The return from a GFA comes mainly from rental income generated by the farm tenancy paid by the farmer in place. It is therefore crucial to check the existence of a sound rural lease, often a long-term lease (18 or 25 years), which guarantees the continuity of the rental. Although the gross rental yield is usually moderate (often between 1% and 3%), it is secured by the farm tenancy regulations.
The major advantage of a GFA lies in its favourable tax regime. For the shareholder, this investment is a powerful tax optimisation tool:
The price per share depends on the net asset value of the GFA divided by the number of shares. Particular attention should be paid to the price per hectare of the land owned by the company to ensure that it reflects the reality of the local market. Unlike the purchase of a conventional property, the purchase of shares is mainly financed in cash, although some bank loans are possible. It is a financial investment for diversification.
The transfer of shares is regulated. The GFA’s articles of association often provide for an approval right regarding new partners. In addition, the Safer (French land development and rural settlement agency) has a pre-emption right in certain cases, although this mainly concerns the sale of physical property rather than minority shareholdings. Lastly, land management is delegated to a manager, which provides total comfort to the investor, who does not have to deal with the day-to-day issues of the farm operation.
Ma-propriete.fr is the leading portal for finding listings of GFA shares for sale. We have developed specific tools to make it easier for you to search for rural assets and shares.
Our advanced search engine allows you to filter opportunities not only by location (region, département), but also by budget and type of production. You can precisely target offers that match your investment capacity.
To make sure you never miss an opportunity for a farm tenancy or share sale, we invite you to create email alerts. As soon as a new listing matching your criteria (for example “viticultural GFA” or “cereal land investment”) is published, you are immediately notified.
One of the major advantages of our platform is transparency and direct contact. Whether the listing is published by a professional (notary, specialised estate agent) or directly by selling partners, you gain access to their contact details so you can discuss the terms of the sale without unnecessary intermediaries.
Finally, thanks to geolocated listings, you can visualise the surrounding environment of the land in question, a key criterion for assessing the quality of the solidarity land ownership you are planning to invest in.
Are you a shareholder in a GFA and looking to sell your shares? Ma-propriete.fr offers you exceptional visibility to find qualified buyers.
The market for company shares is a niche market. Every month, our website attracts a large number of visitors specifically interested in the rural and agricultural sector. By publishing your listing with us, you directly reach a community of investors and enthusiasts, increasing your chances of completing a swift share transfer.
We know that discretion is sometimes essential when selling company shares. That is why we let you choose the level of geolocation for your listing. You can decide not to indicate the exact municipality in order to preserve confidentiality with regard to neighbours or the current farmer, while still remaining visible at département or regional level.
Your listing also benefits from multi-distribution. It will appear in the “Agricole” (Agricultural) category and may also be highlighted via our social networks and specialised Facebook groups, thereby reaching an even wider audience. Our knowledge of the rural market enables us to showcase all the strengths of your collective property: quality of the lease, regularity of rental income, or potential for capital appreciation.
Beyond simply publishing listings, ma-propriete.fr positions itself as an all-round partner for your land project.
By choosing ma-propriete.fr, you are opting for recognised expertise dedicated to your rural assets.
