Notice of lease termination

Hi all

I am new to this forum.  We've had a lease since 2007 which up until yesterday had run really smoothly for us with prompt payment of rent, rent increases as defined in the lease etc.  But yesterday we received notice that Odalys are terminating the lease after the initial period of 11yrs 9 mnths, i.e. in September of 2019.  Is there anyone else in this forum on this residence?

From next September we will be free of a lease and on hearing all these comments from others I am thinking we are not going to sign a lease with anyone else leaving us with the following options:

- try and sell now at a low price if we can although we noticed a number of properties from the same block available to sell at one of the local agents

- repay the rest of the loan (we are lucky/unlucky to have put enough initial capital that the remaining mortgage is fairly low so we could use our savings to repay the mortgage).  This would mean that we would keep the property, fund the increased maintenance charges if we can by letting via a local agent and or to friends and also use it.

- default on the mortgage and let the bank take the property.  presumably if the value of the property is much higher than the mortgage they would accept that, or is that not necessarily the case?

Any advice out there?

I also contacted my accountant in France that said:

- Odalys may come back to offer another lease at a later point with a reduced price - > has that been the experience of people offered reduced return leases?

- Advised us to get together with other owners of Le Blanchot and find another company to take on a lease but we don't have the local knowledge or contacts to do that.