The French property purchase process has a number of differences to that of the UK, the first noticeable difference being that the purchaser pays the estate agents fees. Do not let this put you off though, as the price advertised for the property will generally include those fees. 

 

Once an offer is made and accepted, the estate agent will provide you with a formal letter to sign confirming your offer. The vendors will then sign this so there is a formal record of the offer and acceptance.  A “Compromis de vente”, which would be considered similar to Conditions of Sale in the UK in terms of their purpose, but not necessarily their content, will then be drawn up by the estate agent which will provide a number of important pieces of information regarding the property, including a diagnostics report. Diagnostics reports cover a number of set criteria by law, including electrics, lead paint and asbestos details, if any, and have to still be valid at the date of completion, the validity period of the report being noted within it usually. This is entirely different to a survey – these have to be specifically requested in France if you require one as they are not done as a matter of course and the diagnostics reports will not include structural matters for example that a survey can do. 

 

In the conditions of sale, any “conditions precedent” should be included such as whether the purchase is subject to a mortgage being granted, or it is conditional upon the sale of another property. 

 

The estate agent will arrange for you to sign the Compromis de vente, and once countersigned by the vendors, there is a cooling off phase of 10 days where either party can pull out of the transaction. After this phase has passed you will be asked to transfer the deposit to the estate agent, generally 10% of the purchase price, but can be any amount so long as it is documented in the Compromis. 

 

The Compromis will generally include an indicative exchange date but, as there are a number of steps that have to be taken in the interim, this can be delayed. Once the Compromis is complete and binding and the deposit paid, a notary (lawyer) will take it forward. You can choose your own notary but people often choose the same notary who can act for both the purchaser and the vendor. The notary will complete all of the legal aspects of the property transfer, such as calculating taxes due, land registry searches and contacting appropriate bodies who have an interest in the sale such as SAFER (the Land Development and Rural Establishment Society), who have pre-emption rights over certain type of buildings and land for sale in rural areas. Once the notary has completed the checks the Acte de Vente will be prepared by them and a date for exchange given. You will be given a completion statement which will include the balance of the purchase price as well as any pro-rated taxes due and fees payable and asked to ensure that cleared funds have been received by the notary prior to that date. On the exchange date you will attend the notary office to sign the Acte de vente and will be given the keys to the property. 

 

Things to think about as part of this process; inheritance and use. Given France’s inheritance laws which strongly protect children, you cannot disinherit and they have automatic entitlement to a share in the estate on the death of the first parent, you should ensure that you are clear who the property will be owned by and used by, in particular whether an “en tontine” (lifetime enjoyment clause) is needed for the surviving spouse. This can be further complicated where there are blended families or estranged children for example. Your notary can best advise on how to address this. 

Make sure you have also organised insurance for the property from the date you sign the Acte de vente.

 

If you want to read more about the purchase process and related matters, www.notaires.fr is a useful resource and also provides an English version of the site.