Buying a Property in France

To buy a property in France you will need to contact:

 
  • Agents immobiliers - French estate agents who earn their commission on a sale. We recommend that you ensure that the agent belongs to the Fédération Nationale des Agents Immobiliers - 'FNAIM'*. (The National Federation of real estate agents). Alternatively you can buy a property privately direct from the owner. You can find a selection of privately owned property for sale on this website. Note that in France it is the buyer that pays the estate agents fees so buying direct from the owner will save you money.
  • Notaire  (a French property lawyer) A Notaire acts as an intermediary for both parties during a French property transaction. As an independent official, his main duty of care is to ensure that the documents transferring ownership of the property are in order and to collect taxes on behalf of the French government. They may not perform the role or give you the same security and protection as you would expect from a Solicitor so it is advisable to use a solicitor also.
  • Bilingual Solicitors. A firm of solicitors specializing in the French property market, preferably bilingual, with the knowledge and experience to liaise with the Notaire. They should be able to give advice for the particular circumstances of your purchase, and advise on both French law and the interplay of the French and English legal systems. You may often hear that when looking to view properties in France you should not sign anything at the agents’ offices, as this may be taken to be a binding offer or signed contract on your part. The only exception to this is that you may be asked to sign a Bon de Visite. This document will be the agents’ confirmation that you are visiting certain properties, and you should sign it.
  • Mandat - written authority signed by the seller before they can negotiate a sale of the property. You should ask to see this document before you deal with any sales intermediary in France or elsewhere.
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    Raising Finance 

    As a general rule, French lenders will allow you to borrow up to 80% of the purchase price, exclusive of mortgage arrangement fees, legal fees and attendant purchase expenses. Monthly repayments are usually by means of direct debit from a French bank account.

    Life assurance cover is usually required - and included in your monthly repayments – which must be assigned to the lender for the duration of the loan.

    The Various Stages of a Purchase

    As in England and Wales, the purchase of French property is achieved in two main stages. Once you have chosen a property and agreed a purchase price (you may wish to negotiate a lower price than that being asked), you will usually be asked to sign a preliminary purchase contract. You will also be required to pay a deposit of, usually, 10% of the purchase price. The contract is binding subject to various conditions and formalities.

    The second stage involves signature of an acte de vente (deed of sale), at which point ownership of the property is transferred to you as buyer and the full amount of the purchase price and notaire’s fees are paid. The exception to this are new build properties, when completion may take place well in advance of actual delivery of the property to the buyer and only a proportion of the price paid.

     

    The Contract

    Contracts for Existing Properties

    Contracts used for the sale of existing properties fall into three main categories:

    1. The promesse de vente and 2. the promesse d'achat are unilateral contracts, rather like options, whereby you or your seller respectively enter into a commitment to sell or buy, but the other party is not bound. In the case of a promesse de vente, you may therefore be able to withdraw from the transaction before completion.

    3. The compromis de vente on the other hand is a bilateral contract which binds both parties and a failure by you to complete the purchase could result in a claim for damages. There is no universal rule about what happens to the deposit if a transaction does not proceed. The form of contract must therefore be carefully studied in order to ascertain whether failure to proceed with the purchase results in loss of the deposit, a claim for damages greater than the deposit, or even a Court action compelling you to complete. You should also be clear as to what remedies are available to you should your seller withdraw from the transaction.

    Contracts to be avoided include the offre de vente (offer of sale) and the offre d'achat (the purchase offer). Anything put in writing such as an exchange of letters (échange de letters) between the parties may be construed as a legally binding contract. For example what appears to be a “reservation deposit receipt” may be a binding contract.

    Contracts for New Properties

    You will be required to sign a reservation contract, and then a particular form of purchase know as a vente en l’état futur d’achèvement (future completion sale). This is normally signed before the building work has finished. You take ownership of everything that has been built by then, and the remainder as work progresses. Various guarantees as to completion must be included in this form of transaction.

    French law does not recognize the concept of “subject to contract” (practiced in England) and, once you have selected a property, you usually sign the contract and pay the deposit before any planning and other local authority searches and enquiries are made by the Notaire, or before a mortgage has been agreed. Your only protection is provided by the conditions suspensives which appear in the contract. Conditions suspensives are special terms or conditions of your contract negotiated prior to signature which, if not satisfied, will entitle you to withdraw from the contract and recover any deposit paid.

    "Cooling Off" Period

    Once you receive the contract, there is a seven day “cooling-off” period during which, as a prospective purchaser, you can consider whether you do indeed wish to proceed with the purchase. You cannot normally be required to pay the deposit before the end of this time. The seller must receive the notice within that time, and there are strict rules as to how the notice must be served. If you have paid a deposit, this is to be returned within twenty-one days after giving a notice.

    Between Contract and Completion

    Once the contract is signed, the Notaire will obtain the equivalent of a Land Registry search from the Bureau de Conservtion des Hypothèques. This search will disclose any restrictions on the seller’s right to convey title and the existence of mortgages.

    A Certificat d’Urbanisme or Note de Renseignements d’Urbanisme is obtained. This is a document from the local authority that declares the future use of the land and administrative restrictions or requirements which apply. The Certificat also gives information on whether building is allowed, the density and other details of development. If the Certificat is positive, the planning authorities may not refuse planning permission, which is obligatory before any building work starts. Note however that a Certificat d’Urbanisme is only valid for one year.
    As necessary searches for the presence of lead, asbestos and termites are also carried out through the agent or notaire.

    When the Notaire is satisfied that there is nothing of significance revealed by his searches and enquiries – which usually take between one and three months to obtain – affecting the property, he calls upon the parties to attend at his office in France to sign the acte de vente which he has prepared. It is important that you understand the contents of the acte de vente before signature and go through it in detail and identify any possible problems.

    Once the acte de vente is executed, title to your property is registered by the Notaire at the Bureau de Conservation des Hypothèques, the equivalent of the English Land Registry. After it has been registered, the acte de vente is kept in the Notaire’s archives and only an official copy is provided as evidence of your title. If you require proof of ownership immediately after completion for the purposes of, e.g. subscribing to the utilities or sorting out insurance, the Notaire should be asked to supply a statement (Attestation) confirming that you are the owner. The registration process itself often takes several months or even a year to complete.

    If you are not French resident for tax purposes you should register your ownership of the property by 30 April in the year following completion of your purchase with the Centre des Impôts des Non-résidents at 9 Rue d’Uzès, 75094 Paris Cedex 02.

    Legal Expenses

    As buyer you will be solely responsible for the legal costs and expenses incurred in relation to the transfer of French property which must be paid to the Notaire before completion. These costs are generally about 7.5% plus a further amount of approximately 1% if you are taking a mortgage. Properties under five years old which are being sold for the first time are not subject to stamp duties, and the notaire’s fees are therefore lower. However the sale price will generally be more expensive as the price includes French Value Added Tax.

    Take a look at Properties for Sale in France

    * A list of FNAIM Agents in France is available on Prettys Solicitors website.

    This article was adapted and used with permission from Prettys Solicitors and is intended as a guide only. Information relating to individual circumstances should be sought by contacting Prettys solicitors direct and mentioning you have seen this article on French Connections.