Oldest ever person's genius deal with lawyer meant she got paid to live in her own home

Jeanne Calment, the oldest person ever, was paid handsomely simply for living in her own home thanks to a clever deal she made with a lawyer.

And she certainly had the last laugh.

Born in France on 21 February 1875, Jeanne lived a record-breaking 122 years 164 days.

Someone who certainly didn’t expect her to live that long was property lawyer André-François Raffray.

Jeanne lived in a large apartment above the drapery store owned by her husband Fernand’s family.

She lived a life of luxury, with servants to cook and clean for her – a life that seemed to appeal to Raffray.

Jeanne had no living heirs, having lost both her daughter Yvonne Marie Nicolle at age 36 and grandson Frédéric at age 37.

So at the age of 90, in 1965, she made a deal with Raffray.

They signed a contingency contract which meant she’d sell him her apartment if she could live there for the rest of her life.

He agreed to pay her a monthly sum of 2,500 francs – worth around £330 – until she died, at which point he’d take over ownership of her home and move in.

As she was already 90, and Raffray was essentially half her age, it seemed to be a very good deal for him.

Little did he know, she’d live for another 32 years, longer than any other human in recorded history, and longer than him.

Raffray died in 1995 at the age of 77, when Jeanne was 120 years old.

She hadn’t even lived in the apartment for the last decade, having moved into a care home when she was 110.

Jeanne lived almost three years more, until 4 August 1997, and Raffray’s family continued to pay her the monthly sum after his death.

She lived so unexpectedly long that Raffray ended up paying her more than double the value of the apartment.

She’s reported to have once said of the arrangement: “In life, one sometimes makes bad deals.”