Originally Posted by EuroTrash

When I saw the title of the thread my first thought was, is this a slang term for a "house of ill repute" and I was ready for anything when I opened it!

Originally Posted by dmu

Me, too, and when I googled, the first result gave a home for former residents of such a house. Further down in the results was a list of EHPADs under the same name. Today's useful piece of info, the name apparently comes from the fact that Martha (and sister Mary) were very hospitable to Jesus...
And now, back on topic!

Originally Posted by dmu

Sorry, but when I read the title, I thought it was a completely different type of house:
https://www.maisondemarthe.com/
Seriously though, @del f, please take everything said above on-board. Particularly the employment status/Social Security Contributions aspect (more important than Income Tax IMO) and your "partner" status. France isn't a partner-friendly country, you would be considered as two separate individuals in all administrative respects, and importantly, on Inheritance. A "partner" doesn't have the same rights as a legal spouse and must either pay a horrendous Succession Tax if named in a Will, or has no rights at all if not named, in which case everything goes to the legal next-of-kin. Either way, there would be financial problems for the surviving partner.... If you buy property jointly, ask the Notaire for possible ways of avoiding such problems, one of which would be to get married!
You don't say how your respective French is, but you've both got time to get it to an adequate level before you arrive, so that you can cope better with bureaucracy.
Good luck with your plans!