Finding a home in France

What you must know

Nearly all French properties are freehold and are all registered at the land registry. Ownership of a house or a piece of land is determined by its registration and not by title deeds. While ownership is clear, the boundaries of a property may not be. If an exact plan of the property is not available or you are purchasing a sub-division of an existing registered property then the notaire will call upon the services of a surveyor to map the boundaries.

 
Consult a Notaire to find your property

The Notaires are an excellent source of information when looking for a property. They are, in fact, the only persons in charge of the execution of properties' sales. Most of the properties are still sold by Notaires (especially in rural areas) despite the developpement of estate agents. Notaires are recognised experts in real estate. They are the only ones that have access to the "Perval" files that list the sales prices of every property transaction in France.

When using a Notaire as agent, you will have to sign with him a detailed mandate. Your request will be automatically send to all the other "Notaires" having a brokerage department.

Notaires, as public officers, are bound to professional secrecy and adhere to a stringent ethic code. Notaires' negotiation fees have been set by a French governmental decree and are as follows :
5 % of the purchase price for the first 45 735 euro
2,5 % on everything above
All fees are subject to VAT (TVA) at 19.6%
They are due only when and if the transaction is concluded.

 
Find a Notaire specialized in real estate brokerage

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The purchase process

The provisional sale and purchase agreement:

Once you have found your home and reached an agreement on its price, you must enter into a provionnal contract ("compromis de vente " or "promesse d'achat") with the seller. It is essential that you do it with a Notaire ; he is the only one to give you all necessary guarantee on your future acquisition. The provisional contract stipulates, among other things, the details and state of the property, the existing encumbrances, the price and term of payment, the amount of the security deposit, the date for taking possession and any conditions precedent you wish (building permit, mortgage...). The security deposit usually amounts to 10 % of the acquisition price and is payable after a "cooling period" of seven business days giving you the opportunity to retract. It is kept by the Notaire and is refundable in case the conditions precedent mentioned in the provisional contract are not met. Be careful: do not buy a rented property unless you have taken advice from the Notaire as tenants have many rights in France specially in rural areas.

The deed of sale and purchase:

This is the actual sale and purchase agreement which must be prepared by a Notaire and signed in front of him by the different parties concerned. See details under "The role of the Notaire" page.

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Properties and houses for sale in France